About SHAC

A local school health advisory council has been established to assist the District in ensuring that local community values and health issues are reflected in the District's health education instruction. A majority of members must be parents of students enrolled in the District and who are not employed by the District. Also, one or more public school teachers, public school administrators, District students, health-care professionals, members of the business community, law enforcement representatives, senior citizens, clergy, representatives of nonprofit health organizations, or representatives of another group may serve. [See EHAA legal] This committee meets four times annually.

Agendas, Meeting Minutes, Audio Recordings

The council's duties include recommending:

The number of hours of instruction to be provided in health education; curriculum appropriate for specific grade levels designed to prevent obesity, cardiovascular disease, and Type II diabetes through coordination of health education, physical education and physical activity, nutrition services, parental involvement, and instruction to prevent the use of tobacco; appropriate grade levels and methods of instruction for human sexuality instruction; and strategies for integrating the curriculum components specified by item 2, above, with the following elements in a coordinated school health program:

• School health services;

• Counseling and guidance services;

• A safe and healthy school environment; and

• School employee wellness.

Content Of Human Sexuality Instruction

Any instruction relating to human sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases, or human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) shall be selected by the Board with the advice of the local school health advisory council. The instruction must:

• Present abstinence as the preferred choice of behavior for unmarried persons of school age;

• Devote more attention to abstinence than to any other behavior;

• Emphasize that abstinence is the only method that is 100 percent effective in preventing pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, infection with HIV or AIDS, and the emotional trauma associated with adolescent sexual activity;

• Direct adolescents to a standard of behavior in which abstinence before marriage is the most effective way to prevent pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, infection with HIV or AIDS;

• and teach contraception and condom use in terms of human use reality rates instead of theoretical laboratory rates, if instruction on contraception and condoms is included in the curriculum.