SF 85 (LSB 1143XS (6) 90)

SENATE FILE 85

BY  SALMON

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to public education, including participation in surveys, analyses, activities, or evaluations by students, employees, and contractors of school districts or charter schools and prohibiting the use of certain resources or materials related to social and emotional learning.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  256.9B  Prohibition —— display of collaborative for academic, social, and emotional learning materials —— guidance related to social and emotional learning.
   The department shall not display on the department’s internet site or otherwise disseminate any references or materials related to or created by the collaborative for academic, social, and emotional learning, or use such materials as a framework for social and emotional learning.
    Sec. 2.  Section 256E.7, subsection 2, Code 2023, is amended by adding the following new paragraph:
   NEW PARAGRAPH.  0j.  Be subject to and comply with the requirements of section 279.77 relating to student, employee, and contractor participation in surveys, analyses, activities, or evaluations in the same manner as a school district.
    Sec. 3.  NEW SECTION.  279.77  Protection of student rights.
   1.  The board of directors of a school district must receive the prior written consent of a student’s parent or guardian before requiring a student to take part in any survey, analysis, activity, or evaluation that reveals information concerning any of the following about the student or the student’s family, whether the information is personally identifiable or not:
   a.  The political affiliations or beliefs of the student or the student’s parent or guardian.
   b.  Mental or psychological problems of the student or the student’s family.
   c.  Sexual behavior, orientation, or attitudes.
   d.  Illegal, antisocial, self-incriminating, or demeaning behavior.
   e.  Critical appraisals of other individuals with whom the student has close familial relationships.
   f.  Legally recognized privileged or analogous relationships, such as those of attorneys, physicians, or ministers.
   g.  Religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs of the student or the student’s parent or guardian.
   h.  Income, except when required by law to determine eligibility for participation in a program or for receiving financial assistance under such a program.
   2.  An employee of a school district, or a contractor engaged by a school district, shall not answer any question pertaining to any particular student enrolled in the school district in any survey related to the social or emotional abilities, competencies, or characteristics of the student, unless the board of directors of the school district satisfies all of the following requirements:
   a.  The board of directors of the school district provides to the parent or guardian of each student enrolled in the school district detailed information related to the survey, including the person who created the survey, the person who sponsors the survey, how information generated by the survey is used, and how information generated by the survey is stored.
   b.  The board of directors of the school district receives the written consent from a student’s parent or guardian authorizing the employee or contractor to answer questions in the survey pertaining to the student.
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to public education, including participation in surveys, analyses, activities, or evaluations by students, employees, and contractors of school districts or charter schools and prohibiting the use of certain resources or materials related to social and emotional learning.
   The bill prohibits the department of education from displaying on the department’s internet site or otherwise disseminating any references or materials related to or created by the collaborative for academic, social, and emotional learning, or using such materials as a framework for social and emotional learning.
   The bill requires the board of directors of a school district or the governing board of a charter school to receive the prior written consent of a student’s parent or guardian before requiring a student to take part in any survey, analysis, activity, or evaluation that reveals information related to political affiliations of the student or the student’s parent or guardian; mental or psychological problems of the student or the student’s family; sexual behavior, orientation, or attitudes; illegal, antisocial, self-incriminating, or demeaning behavior; critical appraisals of individuals with whom the student has close familial relationships; legally recognized privileged or analogous relationships; religious practices, affiliations, or beliefs of the student or the student’s parent or guardian; or income, except as required by law to determine eligibility for a program. The requirement applies whether or not the information is personally identifiable.
   The bill prohibits an employee of a school district or charter school, or a contractor engaged by a school district or charter school, from answering any question pertaining to any particular student enrolled in the school district or charter school in any survey related to the social or emotional abilities, competencies, or characteristics of the student, unless the board of directors of the school district or the governing board of the charter school provides to the parent or guardian of each student enrolled in the school district or charter school detailed information related to the survey and receives the written consent from a student’s parent or guardian authorizing the employee or contractor to answer questions in the survey pertaining to the student.