A slew of pre-filed education proposals for the 2017 state legislative session aim to reshape how the system in Missouri operates - from the level of school and state boards on down to the most intimate of spaces of public restrooms and home school environments.
There are two bills that mandate a gender binary in public restrooms -HB 202 and SB 98. Rep. Jeff Pogue, R-Salem is the sponsor of 202. That bill requires that all public restrooms other than single occupancy ones - which could be made unisex - be "gender-divided." The doesn't define how the "gender-divided" would be determined or enforced.
Furthermore, the bill forbids political subdivisions - which generally include cities, counties, school districts and other local government bodies - businesses and buildings in the state with a public restroom from enacting ordinances or policies in conflict with the bill.
Pogue did not return calls for comment on the bill.
Ed Emery, R-Vernon County, is the sponsor of SB 98, which focuses in on schools specifically and moves beyond the restroom. SB 98 defines biological sex as the physical condition of being male or female - determined by chromosomes and identified at birth by observation of a person's anatomy and categorization on their birth certificate. The bill then uses that definition as a basis to require that all school restrooms, locker rooms and shower rooms accessible for use by multiple students at a time shall be divided by biological sex - "to ensure the personal privacy and safety of students."
Under the bill, transgender students may come forward and receive access to alternative facilities - such as single-stall restrooms, unisex restrooms and controlled use of faculty restrooms, locker and shower rooms - provided that the parent or legal guardian of that child agrees to these alternative accommodations in writing.
Emery's office said he was unavailable for comment.
Bathrooms are not the only place where students may be removed from the company of their peers.
Another of Emery's bills - SB 32 - proposes that children with a statutorily-defined disability or who are wards of the state could receive a scholarship to pay for their qualified education expenses, in exchange for their parent or guardian signing an agreement to enroll their student in a qualified non-public school or home-schooling environment and absolve their school district of residence from responsibility for their child's education.
The program would end upon a student's graduation from high school, and any deposited scholarship funds left at the end of a year roll-over to the next. If a student is enrolled in a non-qualified school setting or is disqualified for violations, the remaining funds would all be returned to the program.
Conversely, there have been bills filed to bring more students (back) into schools. Rep. Jim Neely, R-Cameron, has sponsored HB 324 to prevent school boards from suspending students for truancy. SB 173, sponsored by Sen. Rob Schaaf, R-St. Louis, would require school districts to provide opportunities for home-schooled students to participate in extracurricular activities.
Physical and mental health are other priorities among the education bills filed. Beginning July 1, 2018, Rep. Mike Kelley, R-Lamar wants every child enrolled in kindergarten or first grade to receive one comprehensive vision exam under HB 239. Sen. Jamilah Nasheed, D-St. Louis has filed SB 52, which mandates that public higher education institutions provide students and staff with information about depression, mental health resources and suicide prevention programs. The bill also forbids medical schools in the state from prohibiting, hindering or penalizing medical students from studying the prevalence of depression and other mental health issues among medical students.
Nasheed's SB 53 would seek to make affirmative consent the norm at institutions of higher learning. It defines consent as "active, unambiguous, and voluntary agreement by a person to engage in sexual activity" that can be revoked at any time. Affirmative consent is also not predicate on any former or current relationship between the parties involved, intoxication or recklessness on the behalf of a person accused of sexual assault or a victim's inability to communicate based on unconsciousness, sleep or other incapacitation.
Bullying is the focus of Sen. Scott Sifton's, D-Kansas City, SB 206. The bill mandates school district employees to report incidents of bullying, and notify the parents or guardians of the victim and the accused bully or bullies. Victims who face chronic bullying and who have completed all the necessary reporting policies would be required to be informed of other remedies, including legal ones.
Another focus of legislation on the books for the spring is the preparation of students for successful entry into the job market post-graduation. Sen. Gary Romine, R-Poplar Bluff, wants to establish a dual enrollment program and scholarship act under SB 106. Students at the start of their seventh-grade year would submit a plan of study and a written agreement that would include the assignment of a mentor to them, a commitment to 50 hours of unpaid tutoring or mentoring and a demonstration of economic need. In exchange, students would receive funds during their high school careers to pay for dual credit programs at approved public or private higher education institutions.
Here's a very brief run-down of some other pre-filed education-related bills:
Some bills sponsored by Rep. Kathryn Swan, R-Cape Girardeau: HB 102 creates more opportunities for certified music therapists to serve children from the ages of birth to 3 years old. Swan said that the bill is less about addressing a shortage of music therapists and more about providing access, as currently under Medicaid, music therapy is only recognized for children aged 4 and older. Her HB 189 would create an educational savings plan for K-12 expenses, modeled after 529 college savings plans. The K-12 fund could be invested in from birth of a child, and would accrue interest, Swan said. She also has a bill about providing a tax credit for donations to organizations that address "unmet health, hunger and hygiene needs of children in school" - HB 98.
HB 201, sponsored by Pogue: prohibits school districts from collecting biometric information from students without the written consent of parents or legal guardians.
HB 63, sponsored by Rep. T.J. Berry, R-Clay Co., offers a tax credit for student loan payments resulting from degrees in science, technology, engineering or mathematics to qualified state residents.
House bills 141 and 139, sponsored by Rep. Bryan Spencer, R-Wentzville, aim to reduce what he sees as unnecessary professional development sessions for teachers. He said that the current mandate to spend 1 percent of a district's annual budget on professional development is a waste of time and money, and he would prefer voluntary or self-selected enrollment in professional development. In the event of the governor withholding funds, HB 141 excuses school districts from compliance with funding the 1 percent, and HB 139 would make that excuse from compliance permanent.
HB 94, sponsored by Rep. Jeanie Lauer, R-Blue Springs, would allow students to take the ACT WorkKeys assessments instead of the ACT Plus Writing test. WorkKeys is focused on workplace skill-sets of "Applied Mathematics, Locating Information, and Reading for Information," according to its website.
HB 304, sponsored by Rep. Patricia Pike, R-Adrian, allows divorced, retired school employees to collect the full amount of their retirement allowances in the absence of their spouse as a beneficiary, and HB 305 prohibits retired school employees from collecting their retirement allowances at all in a month they serve as a temporary or long-term substitute teacher.
HB 133 from sponsor Bill Lant, R-Pineville, and HB 79 from sponsor Joe Don McGaugh, R-Carrollton, both would allow school districts to be exempt from paying the prevailing wage for school construction and maintenance work. McGaugh said that his bill would probably take effect Aug. 28 if passed, although he would ultimately prefer a more comprehensive labor reform bill.
HB 310, sponsored by Rep. Rob Vescovo, R-Arnold, would require school superintendents and assistant superintendents to be employed by school districts only by written contracts.
HB 263, sponsored by Rep. Chrissy Sommer, R-St. Charles, and SB 33, sponsored by Emery, respectively require school districts to be more publicly transparent about their financial information and annual academic status.
HB 280, sponsored by Rep. Jay Houghton, R-Martinsburg, would not allow school to start earlier than 10 days before the first Monday in September, also known as Labor Day weekend.