Alabama schools must teach sexual risk avoidance and notify parents

Public schools teach sexual risk avoidance and emphasize abstinence in lessons about sex or human reproduction. These rules apply to Alabama public school programs or curricula that include sex education or the human reproductive process. Lessons must be age-appropriate and medically accurate. Materials or instruction may not introduce concepts related to sexual behavior to students in kindergarten through fourth grade.

Schools provide specified health, safety, and family-life information in sex education and human reproduction lessons. The listed topics include contraception, pregnancy and childbirth, abortion law, adoption, safe surrender of a newborn, abuse, and unhealthy relationships. Contraception information must explain its limits and may not encourage or promote sexual behavior among young people. Information must be accurate and current where the law requires it.

Schools may not provide certain information or materials, and boards may not use teachers or groups that fail the stated conditions. These limits apply to public K–12 schools and to people or organizations local boards use to help teach sex education or human reproduction. Schools may not misrepresent contraception, demonstrate contraceptives, explain how to obtain them, or refer students to them. Schools may not explain how to obtain abortion services, refer students to those services, or use sexually explicit images, materials, or video footage. A board may not use a person or group that does not endorse sexual risk avoidance as the primary approach, performs abortions, refers people to abortion services, or supports abortions.

Schools give parents or guardians written notice before these lessons, share the full curriculum on request, and let them opt their child out; the Attorney General may seek a court order to enforce the rules. The notice and opt-out rules apply to parents or guardians of students receiving sex education or human reproduction instruction in public schools. A parent or guardian must request the full curriculum before it is distributed to students. A student who is opted out may not be penalized.