High school student campaigns for change in sex education.
Parma Sun Post Thursday, April 29, 2010
By Ken Baka
kbaka@sunnews.com
 
PARMA-A 17-year old junior at Parma Senior High School wants the school district to enact comprehensive sex education.  That would mean birth-control lessons.  Efforts by Danny Sparks drew about 10 people to speak against the idea April 21.  Eighty-year-old Joseph Biel went to a school board meeting dressed for impact in a uniform of the Marine Corps, for which he is a chaplain.  "The only part a school should teach about sex education is complete abstinence." Biel, of Seven Hills, said.  He said opponents of Sparks' efforts knew each other from two Republican clubs, right-to-life activities or a bridge club.
 
Sparks drew publicity in February after letting news outlets know he was to address the school board and also testifying before Ohio legislators.  He argued that "as a gay student, how can I be expected to uphold a standard of abstinence-until-marriage when I live in a state where I cannot even marry?"   He described himself as one of 10 members in Ohio Advocates Youth Leadership Group, coordinated by a person who is an employee of AIDS Task Force of Greater Cleveland."  The youth group wants policies that are "favorable to young people's access to information related to reproductive and sexual health," Sparks said.  He said he is paid for expenses.
 
The school district teaches abstinence in health classes to which speakers from the group Operation Keepsake, based in Twinsburg, are invited by teachers, according to school officials and Operation Keepsake.  Jelena Loncar, also at Parma High, joined Sparks in speaking before the board in February.  She called Operation Keepsake a "joke."  She said eight sophomores at the school were pregnant.  "I demand students begin to be taught the truth about sex" she said. 
 
Abstinence-until-marriage is not a policy of the district.  It's a position, Superintenent Sarah Zatik said.  She doesn't know when it started.  It's been followed as long as she's been here and has not been subject to prior debate.  Zatik intends to create a task force to make a recommendation in January.  That follows three meetings among school officials and students.  The group is to comprise students, parents and members of the community, medical fields and organizations.  "It's not just sex education," she said.  "We want to look at our health program K-12." 
 
In the meantime, Zatik said the district's curriculum director was "looking at" not involving Operation Keepsake, Zatik said.  Curriculum Director Laura Watson said some, but not all, health teachers had invited Operation Keepsake to speak about abstinence over the years.  The state has "remained silent on adopting a curriculum beause they don't want to get caught in this crosshairs," she said.  State law under consideration includes a requirement for lessons about contraception.
 
Peggy Pecchio, executive director of Operation Keepsake, said the nonprofit group has been involved in Parma for eight of the group's 20 years as "guess speakers" and operates in part from two federal grants.  Pecchio stressed that students are free to skip the class by signing a sheet.  "So if a parent wants to opt their son or daughter out, they are free to do that" she said.
 
Sparks said, "The core of the problem is not that we want people to be able to opt out but the class should be effective to (the degree) where people shouldn't have to opt out-they should be reaching all the students in a professional manner."
 
Biel, the Marine, argued the school board should resist "secular" education of sex.  That's the job of parents, he said.