Resolution against health standards gets 9-0 vote

    After several meetings when it was discussed, Chase County Schools board members voted 9-0 Tuesday for a resolution that takes a stand against the state health standards.
    Minor wording changes were made that do not alter the intent, after two board members felt it should be updated based on the standards’ current status.
    The resolution, sent earlier this year to the CCS board by Sen. Dan Hughes, who encouraged its passage, was written during the time the standards were still being debated.
    However, in September, the State Board of Education paused further development after public comment was heavily against them due to some of the content suggested as early as kindergarten.
    A change in Section 2 suggested by board member Jeff Olsen added “that were”  before “proposed by the NE Department of Education.”
    With the change, the section reads: “The Board hereby directs and determines that the District will not adopt or utilize the Health Education Standards that were proposed by the NE Department of Education. The District will make its own determinations regarding the content of its health education curriculum.”
    Replacing “new” with “future” in Section 3 also gained the board’s okay.
    That section now reads “At such time as the NE Department of Education removes all content which promotes ideological positions on human sexuality, the District will consider the adoption of future Health Education Standards.”    
    Last month, the State Board of Education set up an ad hoc committee to review the process on how the standards were developed.
    Former school board member Sheila Stromberger cautioned the board last month that with the committee formation, the standards could be approved at any time.
    She welcomed the board’s action Tuesday.
    She noted early this year, the CCS board wrote a letter in opposition to the health standards’ first draft.
    She said she’s known all along, and appreciates, that the board was opposed to any controversial health standards being added to the curriculum.
    “But passing this resolution was important because that’s what the state board looks at,” she said.
    She said she’s seen state board members quoted several times, saying they know of only a few schools and superintendents opposed who represented only 10% of students in the western part of the state.
    Secondly, Stromberger said it means a lot to her that the sample resolution sent to school boards came from 30 state senators.
    “That’s why I kept pushing our board to sign it,” she said.
    But that’s not the end, she believes.
    She said it’s important for parents, grandparents and community members to stay on top of what’s happening.
    She added, “The state board needs to stick to academics.”
Teacher resigns
    One of the newly-hired teachers this fall at CCS has resigned, effective after a unanimous vote Tuesday.
    The resignation from Ashton Wasenius, who was teaching 7-12 science, was approved on a 9-0 tally.
    Supt. Adam Lambert said he could not discuss personnel matters, so would not provide a reason for his departure.
    Lambert said administration is “actively looking for suitable candidates.”    
    A long-term substitute teacher is handling his classes at this time, he said.