This week marked the deadline for states to submit an initial application for federal sex education funding. States were given two choices: Title V Abstinence Education funds, which require a 75 percent funding match by the state, or Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) funding for comprehensive sex education with no matching requirement.
In Virginia, Planned Parenthood sent out an alert calling for its members to contact Gov. McDonnell’s office and urge him to accept the PREP funding. That alert came just weeks after the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS), made sure that its constituency was aware of the generous offer of PREP funding. SIECUS was founded in 1964 by the former Medical Director of the Planned Parenthood Federation and brags that it has become, “a recognized leader in the field of sexuality and sexuality education, publishing numerous books, journals, and resources for professionals, parents, and the public. Both organizations stand to profit substantially from PREP funding.
Two governors, however, Gov. Bob McDonnell of Virginia and Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota, bucked that pressure and declined PREP funding, choosing abstinence education funds instead. Opponents of abstinence until marriage programs responded quickly, taking the governors to task.
“Pawlenty forgoes $850,000 in federal sex ed. funds for strings-attached abstinence dollars,” howled the headline in the in the August 31 edition of the Minnesota Independent. Abortion advocacy groups pointed out that the governor opted for $505,743 in federal funding that requires his cash-strapped state to kick in and additional $379,307 instead of $850,000 free and clear.
But PREP funding is anything but “no strings attached.” Just ask parents in Helena, Montana where SIECUS-directed comprehensive sex education could be introduced in their schools. That program teaches five-year-olds to name private body parts in “medically accurate” terms – words that would have earned previous generations a Lifebuoy lunch.
First graders are introduced to homosexual relations, and once they reach the age of 10, they will be taught the various methods of sexual intercourse of both heterosexuals and homosexuals. And they are expected to show competency in it. Not to mention that any reference to traditional male and female roles are treated throughout this curriculum as “harmful stereotypes” that must be eradicated.
The program, billed as a “health” program, was drafted in secret with parents only learning of it after its completion. Planned Parenthood, on the other hand – those who will profit from its implementation – were included on the committee.
A federal study released by the Department of Health and Human Services just recently yet dated February 2009 shows that 70 percent of parents support the abstinence until marriage message and 54 percent of teenagers agree. That study is available here.
Governors McDonnell and Pawlenty are clearly attuned to their constituents and they have acted in the best interest of children rather than lining the pockets of the purveyors of “reproductive services.”