Text of KY HR 95 (2023)

UNOFFICIAL COPY 23 RS BR 1841 Page 1 of 3 XXXX 3/29/2023 10:11 AM Jacketed A RESOLUTION urging the Kentucky Board of Education to dismiss Jason E. 1 Glass from the office of Commissioner of Education. 2 WHEREAS, KRS 156.148 grants the Kentucky Board of Education with the 3 authority to appoint the Commissioner of Education as the chief state school officer and 4 provides that the Commissioner shall serve at the pleasure of the board; and 5 WHEREAS, the Kentucky Board of Education has the duty to monitor the 6 performance of the Commissioner of Education and the Kentucky Department of 7 Education and ensure that both are properly serving the children and people of the 8 Commonwealth; and 9 WHEREAS, the current Commissioner of Education politicized the Kentucky 10 Department of Education by issuing guidance to Kentucky's schools advocating for, 11 affirming, and elevating the LGBTQIA+ lifestyle in curriculum; and 12 WHEREAS, the current Commissioner of Education has interfered with the privacy 13 rights of students and endangered their safety in distinctly private facilities by authorizing 14 the issuance of guidance to Kentucky's schools that identifies the prevention or 15 discouragement of a student from using a bathroom designated for the opposite biological 16 sex as an example of "systemic and social barriers" against transgender and nonbinary 17 youth that must be addressed; and 18 WHEREAS, the current Commissioner of Education has interfered with the rights 19 of parents to be kept informed on critical issues facing their children by authorizing the 20 issuance of guidance to Kentucky's schools that states "if a student voluntarily discloses 21 their sexual orientation or gender identity to an educator with the assumption that this 22 information is to be kept private, it is best practice for the educator to maintain that 23 confidence and keep this information confidential"; and 24 WHEREAS, the current Commissioner of Education has interfered with the 25 constitutional religious and conscience rights of teachers and other school staff and 26 caused a chilling effect on their free speech rights through the authorization of guidance 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 23 RS BR 1841 Page 2 of 3 XXXX 3/29/2023 10:11 AM Jacketed to Kentucky’s schools emphasizing that teachers and other staff should "both recognize 1 and use a student’s preferred name and/or pronouns when these preferences are 2 requested" without any exception or accommodation being offered; and 3 WHEREAS, during a meeting of the House Standing Committee on Education on 4 Tuesday, February 7, 2023, the current Commissioner of Education reaffirmed his 5 position that if a teacher did not want to abide by the policies a school district has on 6 using students' preferred names or pronouns, then the teacher needs to find something 7 else to do, thus contributing to the teacher shortage in the Commonwealth; and 8 WHEREAS, the current Commissioner of Education has attempted, through 9 guidance and policy, to break the long-held tradition within the Commonwealth of 10 holding the bond between parent and child as sacrosanct by encouraging the concealment 11 of information about a child from that child's parents; and 12 WHEREAS, the current Commissioner of Education has further politicized his 13 position and alienated many parents, teachers, students, and taxpayers by utilizing his 14 office as a platform to condemn the General Assembly’s passage of SB 150 and promote 15 "a summit in support of LGBTQIA+ people and youth" that he intends for the Kentucky 16 Department of Education to hold at the taxpayer's expense; and 17 WHEREAS, the current Commissioner of Education’s actions have eroded the trust 18 and confidence of parents, teachers, other employees, and legislators; 19 NOW, THEREFORE, 20 Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the General Assembly of the 21 Commonwealth of Kentucky: 22 Section 1. The House of Representatives does hereby urge the Kentucky Board 23 of Education to dismiss the current Commissioner of Education, Jason E. Glass, from this 24 critical post of government for the improper interference with the rights of parents and 25 the negative impact of his statements and policies on teacher retention. 26 Section 2. The Clerk of the House of Representatives is hereby directed to 27 UNOFFICIAL COPY 23 RS BR 1841 Page 3 of 3 XXXX 3/29/2023 10:11 AM Jacketed transmit a copy of this resolution to the Kentucky Board of Education, 300 Sower 1 Boulevard, 5th Floor, Frankfort, KY 40601. 2