Creating the right place and the right time: A model for implementing comprehensive sex education in schools

California leads the nation in terms of policy that addresses the provision of comprehensive sexuality education in schools. Senate Bill 71 (SB 71) is the piece of legislation that many California agencies rely upon to uphold standards of comprehensive sexuality education. Despite the progression of educational legislation, the true implementation of sexuality education in classrooms is varied in quality and consistency, changes from school to school, and continues to face challenges from abstinence-only providers competing for education sites.

Through concentrated efforts and strategic relationship-building, Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino Counties (PPOSBC) has been able to achieve local policy change in Orange County, California.

This session will describe the processes that led to the acceptance of PPOSBC as a comprehensive sexuality education provider by the Irvine Unified School District. The described process has led to the development of an action model which is used by the agency to pursue further local school board changes throughout the rest of the county. Participants in this session will hear about successful policy work in a challenging political climate and the extended difficulties of on-the-ground implementation once a policy success is achieved.