by Sen. Theresa Manzellla, SD44, Hamilton
Proper parenting is THE MOST important job in the world. Bar none. I salute parents who seek to raise their children to be contributing members of society, morally upright and responsible. Thank you for your tireless efforts. It’s never been an easy job, but the task grows considerably more difficult as the culture war rages on and our society slides down the slippery slope of eliminating absolute truth, and with it, the bright lines that separates right from wrong.
In the 2021 session I sponsored SB 400, which restricts a government entity from interfering with a parent’s fundamental right to direct the upbringing, education, healthcare, and mental health of their child. That bill, which is now MCA 40-6-701, also removed immunity protections from government entities and gives Montana parents the ability to sue when they believe their fundamental rights have been violated, and recoup costs if they win. Breaking the immunity protection is huge.
In the most recent session, I sponsored the Parental Rights in Education Act – SB518. This law encourages parental involvement in education by instructing the school board trustees to develop policies to improve parent and teacher cooperation in homework, attendance, and discipline, and to provide parents with information about how to participate in the governance of the school district.
Schools must now develop procedures by which a parent may learn about the course of study and all extracurricular activities their child is involved in. Procedures by which a parent may withdraw and excuse their child from any class or instruction that offends the parents’ belief system is now law, as well.
Additionally, if a child wishes to use pronouns in school that do not align with the child’s biological sex, written parental permission is now required. The law also protects a teacher’s right of conscience by protecting them from being forced to use pronouns that do not align with a child’s biological sex. This issue has been adjudicated in several courts across the county. You can pretend if you want to, but you can’t force others to pretend with you, and if you’re a minor, you’ll need your parents’ permission.
The new law does not “make nicknames illegal” which is a rumor being perpetrated. All but one Ravalli County legislator voted in support of this good parental rights bill; and that one was my opponent for SD44.
I encourage all citizens to review the Office of Public Instructions website at opi.mt.gov. Superintendent Arntzen supports parents as the child’s first teachers and has created a very comprehensive website for your perusal. Under the tab labeled ESSR (Every Student Succeeds [federal] Act) Report Card you will find that our Montana, K-12 students score an average of 21% proficiency rating in math, 29% proficiency rating in reading, and a 24% proficiency rating in science. That’s with the state investing over $13K per student. You can easily find the report card on your specific school.
With those kinds of results, it seems obvious that we need to set aside the identity politics…Critical Race Theory…Social Emotional Learning…and promotion of gender dysphoria, and instead focus on reading, writing and arithmetic, and truth in history.