TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida’s Board of Education put new limits on the teaching of gender identity and sexual orientation in all public schools, Wednesday afternoon.
Under threat of license revocation or suspension, 4th through 12-grade educators are forbidden from “intentionally” offering “classroom instruction” on sexual orientation or gender identity outside optional health classes— or where “expressly required by state academic standards.”
The change comes on top of last year’s law, Parental Rights in Education, banning instruction of the topics entirely in K through 3rd-grade classrooms.
Ed Commissioner Manny Diaz, Jr. said the state board was trying to “provide clarity” to Florida’s teachers about what they can and can’t do.
“It should be taught within the standards and this provides clarity,” said Diaz. “It’s not changing anything. All it’s saying is that you are complying with our standards— and that’s what you should be teaching.”
But concerns remain, especially for the LGBTQ+ community. Many at the board meeting worried they, or their children, could be censored.
Civil rights advocates at Equality Florida warned the rule doesn’t define “classroom instruction,” leaving teachers with a dangerous vagueness.
“Teachers, removing books from their classrooms, taking down safe space stickers because they don’t know where the boundaries are,” said Jon Harris Maurer with Equality Florida. “In an abundance of caution, we’re seeing this chilling effect where teachers are self-censoring.”
The changes are expected to take effect in the coming weeks. Officials said parents, teachers, and students would have more than 30 days, at least, to prepare.
