MA H656

Schools offering sexual health education must provide medically accurate, age-appropriate curriculum covering human development, anatomy, STI/HIV prevention, contraception, abstinence benefits, consent, healthy relationships, dating violence prevention, and information about gender identity and sexual orientation.

Parents and guardians must be notified annually about sexual health education offerings, their right to withdraw students from instruction, and their ability to inspect curriculum materials before courses begin; notifications must be provided in English and other commonly spoken languages.

Students withdrawn from sexual health education by parents face no disciplinary action or academic penalty and must be offered alternative educational activities.

School districts and charter schools must file biennial reports to the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education detailing curriculum names, hours of instruction, enrollment numbers, and student withdrawals by grade level; data will be published on the department website and shared with the Department of Public Health within 30 days.

The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education must review and update the Massachusetts Comprehensive Health and Physical Education Curriculum Framework at least every 10 years.