SB 854 climate change instruction for K-12 OPPOSE

SB 854 VOTE: NO

SUBMIT TESTIMONY

Email Legislators

In CommitteePublic Hearing 03/09/2023 3:00pm HR B
Status (overview) of bill: https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Measures/Overview/SB854
Committee assigned to bill: https://olis.oregonlegislature.gov/liz/2023R1/Committees/SED/Overview

This bill requires each school district board to develop written plan establishing climate change instructional program for kindergarten through grade 12 with standard developed by Department of Education. Requires Superintendent of Public Instruction to withhold grants if  noncompliant. Provides grants from Student Investment Account include meeting requirements for climate change instructional program and to describe in grant application how school district is meeting climate change instructional program requirements. Requires career and technical education programs to integrate climate change instruction to support climate-focused sustainability career pathways.

The program is to “educate” students on how to confront the current and expected impacts of climate change from diverse decision-making perspectives, and skills to address psychological and mental health challenges associated with ongoing change, effects of life choices, human rights implications, how to reduce the effects, climate’s disproportionate impact on the environment and natural resources of historically underserved populations, discuss economic and political factors contributing to climate change – do they contribute, where is the science?

Who holds the truth about climate change? Science is never settled, and it requires facts. There is a documented statement from the U.N. that the climate crisis was invented to suck money out of nations. Climate changes, but to use it for indoctrination and propaganda to shape the mind of kids towards a political agenda is not education.