Michigan State Board Rejects Conservative Push to Block Health Education Standards Update

In a tense 5-2 vote split along party lines Tuesday evening, the Michigan State Board of Education rejected a resolution that sought to halt proposed updates to health education standards. The vote effectively allows the process for updating these standards, which include controversial sexual education components, to continue moving forward.

The resolution, introduced by the board’s two Republican members, aimed to stop the proposed standards from advancing to the next stages, which include revisions based on public feedback, another presentation to the Democratic-controlled board, and eventually a final vote.

More than 60 individuals participated in the public comment period, with a majority expressing opposition to the standard changes. Republican board members Tom McMillin of Auburn Hills and Nikki Snyder of Goodrich argued that sex education was being integrated into broader health standards in a way that would eventually make it mandatory for all students.

McMillin specifically criticized proposed standards related to gender identity and sexual orientation, calling them ideological. “That is a belief,” he stated during the meeting. “We are instructing beliefs and ideology.” He further claimed the standards were unconstitutional despite similar language existing in other states’ education guidelines.

Board President Pamela Pugh, a Democrat from Saginaw, strongly pushed back against what she described as widespread misinformation about the standards. “I am outraged that misinformation is being weaponized to frighten parents,” Pugh said. She emphasized that the proposed standards would not change existing parental rights or local control.

“It is very clear that parent rights, local control and transparency remain fully intact in the proposed standards,” Pugh stated. “Parents continue to have the right to review materials to opt their child out of any sex education lesson without penalty.”

Michigan Department of Education Deputy Superintendent Diane Golzynski clarified that the standards do not alter state law. “We don’t set state law,” Golzynski explained. “Legislators set state law. We only set standards. And the standards are set to help local districts choose the curriculum that they want to use.”

The clarification addresses a key concern among opponents – teaching sex education remains non-mandatory in Michigan. School districts can choose not to offer it entirely, and parents retain the right to opt their children out of such instruction. Students 18 or older can opt themselves out.

The controversy centers on updated standards that include topics like gender identity, with proposed middle school recommendations defining concepts such as gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation. The standards explain that romantic, emotional, and sexual attractions can be toward individuals of the same or different genders and that these attractions may change over time.

Conservative groups, including Moms for Liberty and Citizens for Traditional Values, mobilized supporters to attend the meeting, with some promotional materials incorrectly claiming parents would lose opt-out rights under the new standards.

Several parents voiced strong concerns during public comment. Billie Schultz of Southgate, who currently opts her child out of sex education, expressed fear that “under these new standards, that right can be taken away.” Sheila Cohoon of Clinton Township predicted “a mass exodus that you have never seen before” if the standards are approved.

Supporters of the updated standards highlighted that the current guidelines haven’t been revised since 2007. Taryn Gal, executive director of the Michigan Organization on Adolescent Sexual Health, noted this means “an entire generation of students has gone through school using outdated guidance that does not reflect what we now know about mental health, technology, vaping, healthy relationships, consent, among many other topics.”

Al Craven, a retired health education teacher, shared a story about teaching male students about normal bodily functions during puberty, recalling a student who had approached him saying, “I thought there was something the matter with me.”

The standards will continue through the review process, with revisions based on public feedback expected before a final vote at a future board meeting.