The Allen American (Allen, Tex.), Vol. 23, No. 185, Ed. 1 Wednesday, October 13, 1993 Page: 8 of 68
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Page 8A — The Allen American — Wednesday, October 13, 1993
Election
From 1A
now also accepting requests for
mail-in ballots, Strub said.
She said she expects the elec-
tion’s overall turnout will be light
with about 17,000, or 10 percent of
the county’s 170,980 registered vo-
ters, casting ballots.
“Constitutional amendment elec-
tions do not bring a high turnout un-
less there’s something controver-
sial,” Strub said.
About half of the voters projected
to cast ballots on the referendum
election’s 16 propositions will likely • The Collin County Courthouse,
do so between now and Oct. 29 the 210 S. McDonald St. in McKinney,
last day to vote prior to election day, • The Collin County Government
she said. . Center, 661 E. 18th St. in Plano.
Courtesy of a law passed by the • The Haggard Librarv 2501
70th Texas Legislature in 1987, the Coit Road in Plano. Library ‘2501
state s voters can cast their ballots in • The Allen Library, 2 Civic Plaza
person early without giving a in Allen
reason, Strub said. • Th YMCA 2601 CC 1 * , , =
“At this time there is no other Drive in Plano ’ ShArff property taxes.stall the additional bunks and
state in the union that doesn’t re- pel k'V1IV LLL According to department figures, $255,500 to hire more jailers and to
quire voters to give a reason to vote Persons who are disabled age 65 ---------------------------------142 of the county’s inmates are now pay for additional operational, supp-
early," she said.a L Son o vole or olderor whowill be away fromithe -From 1A housed in Bell County, while 280 are ly, and medical costs resulting from
“At a McKinney bond election a county during the entire early voting million to pay for out-of-county m- being kept in the main jail. the increased prisoner population.
few weeks ago about 59 percent of period are eligible to vote in advance mate housing, with $1,177 million In addition, another 83 are being Box said the end result would be a
the people voted early ” she said. , . coming from county fines, fees and housed in the county’s minimum savings of $410,000 during the cur D
= " ===== ===== ===
from 7 a.m to 7 p m Texas 75069, requesting a ballot. As of Tuesday, 258 of the coun- accommodate 422 pnsoners when it According to Box’s figures, the
In addition, polls will also be open The etter should include the ty’s 505 prisoners were inmates who opens in order for the county to be new jail would have a large enough
10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. name of the election, the reason for would ordinarily be housed in state able to bring all its inmates in from capacity that out-of-county housing
23. voting early by mail, the address prisons. , out of the county. would not be needed during the
Collin County’s early voting sites where the ballot should be sent, and , It costs the county $41 per day to Under Box’s proposal, inmates county’s 1994-95 budget year.
are: the voter s signature. house state inmates, while the now held out of the county would be But the jail’s operating costs
The deadline to mail ballots to vo- state’s reimbursement only comes moved to the new jail in June, reduc- would still be an estimated $606 533
ters is Oct. 26 and the ballots must to $20 a day, according to figures ing the housing cost from $2,377 mil- more than projections had previous S
be received by the county office by supplied by the sheriff’s department, lion to $1.65 million — about ly called for. J P •
election day. For the owner of a $100,000 home $727,000 less than what the county
For more information, call the with no exemptions, the portion of has currently budgeted. Box said he plans to request that
elections administration office at the out-of-county housing costs To take the increased number of the state jail standards commission
(214) 548-4613 or 424-4585, Ext. taken from county tax, fine and fee inmates, the county would have to consider his request during their
4613. income translates to about $7.60 in spend$60,000 to purchase and in- meeting Nov. 17 and 18 in Austin.
They want to bowl, and they act as ciose to normal as possible,”
OUCUlAl want to impress you, she said. * T:.
PP9 iOl___________Not only do the athletes want to . Lisa Grantham, a special educa-
R. A impress, but Toon said these tion teacher at Reed Elementary,
From 1A athletes are serious bowlers also helps coach bowling. One of the
and quickly admonishes a child who want to macompeS who bowlers excitedly comes up to Gran-
is not following practice rules. Woerto will in competition tham.
“A lot of these kids are mentally bon here want a medal, nota rib- “I made strike two!” the child
retarded and need structure,” Toon she walks back to the first, . cried. Grantham shows him how
said. She has the same rules that are ewaks back to the first lane. A pleased she is with the effort When
==============
She smiles and says the partici- thatAthereTuse Special ramps two strikes. He is happily slapping
pants know she will make them sit athepthem bowl. But every child the hand of his fellow bowlers, a
out if they break the rules. “We’retrying to get these kids to huge smile spread across his face.
were trying to get these kids to "That’s everything,” she said.
for education and property tax relief, burdens.
Harris, who opposes income “It is simply not good government
taxes, said that critics of school- to ask people to impose an income
From 1A fin: ance reform often turn to accusa- tax on themselves — just as it would®
T , 1 tions that the Legislature would not be good business to let drivers
nawmakers say voters should secretly approve income taxes to- set the price of gasoline or good
have the last word on any income tax give schools more money. education to let students fill out their
proposal. Their opponents fear that A public vote should ease such own report cards,” said Ruthann
voters will needlessly limit the worries, Harns said, because “it’s Geer, state director of the voters’
state’s revenue choices. more difficult to pass if you leave the league
This gives the people the oppor- issue up to the people.”
tunity to say what happens,” said But Common Cause Texas and Common Cause members say
state Sen. Ike Harris, R-Dallas. the League of Women Voters argue new amendments would only make
Proposition 4 would give voters that only lawmakers should have governing Texas more difficult be-
exclusive powers to create a state that power because voters would kill cause voters and lawmakers have
income tax and tax rate, and re- any income tax — even if it reduced already amended the 117-year-ok
quires officials to use the new money heavy property tax and sales tax Constitution 339 times.
Proposals
11111101111mn1 teach students about condoms. He noted that in the health and
n the advanced ealt class at science curricula, no definition is
D 1 A the senior high, what is taught is given for homosexuality. If a student
. Top m from 1A what the teacher feels is age- has a question about it, Olson said
the ESR III, Olson said. appropriate, Olson said. Teaching the teacher might invite the student
But for the past year, ESR III has about condoms is left to teacher dis- to discuss the matter after school
been on hold in the Allen Indepen- cretion." . , Or the student might be referred to
dent School District. Exhibitions or demonstrations of his/her parents.
AIDS-related information can condoms on fingers or any other ob- “Or, depending on the teacher’s
come up in Allen classrooms as early jects are prohibited. There is no in- judgment regarding the maturity of
as the first grade, Olson said. But struction regarding the proper use of the students, the matter may be dis-
specific coverage of the topic occurs a condom, Olson said. Students are cussed in class ” Olson said
in the seventh and eighth grades, taught that condoms are not 100 per- The curriculum director said
when students learn about com- cent effective in stopping AIDS, but questions about masturbation would
municable diseases in science class, we do not make an issue of what the be handled in the rente sheer
Olson said AIDS/HIV receives failure rate is,” he said. . no mention of masturbationin the
even more detailed study in high While some school districts differ curriculum, he said,
school health and biology classes. about whether abstinence should be There is usually no formal nofife
The -health textbooks on which promoted outside the context of tion sent to parents when lessons on
teachers rely heavily for information marriage or outside the context of a AIDS are to be given “Parents are
were adopted in 1987. They were long-term, mutually monogamous encouraged to stay in touch with the
readopted for another year last relationship, teachers in Allen don’t teacher and discuss anv actions
month. The biology textbooks were differentiate, Olson said. “But our they might have. But we wouldn’t
made part of the curriculum in 1991. expectation is marriage.” know when t0 notify parents (about
In teaching students how to avoid In Allen classrooms, homosexual- AIDS instruction) since we don’t
contracting Acquired Immunity De- ity is noted as one of the early have a set curriculum ” Olson said,
,, Student risk factors for AIDS
---------------------------------------------------(1991 Figures)
90%
80%
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0
81%
72%
40%
25%
22%
20%
16%
8%
Alcohol
Sexual Illicit
Intercourse Drugs
Poverty Drop
Outs
Multiple Sexually Pregnant
Sex Transmitted
Partners Disease
Sources Indude the Texas Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, 1987, 1989; Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, 1990; Hogg Foundation,
1986, and Texas Youth Commission, Task Force on Literacy, 1987.
ficiency Syndrome, teachers empha- sources of the AIDS disease in the In the elective, advanced health tion about AIDS and sexually trans-
, size an abstinence message. United States. Teachers, however, classes, however, the Academic mitted diseases.
However, teachers use then- own do not try to promote or protect Handbook gives parents a course Olson said for the most part, Allen
judgment in deciding whether to any alternate lifestyle, Olson said, description that mentions instruc- students feel their teachers provide
enough to change students from the
risky behavior in which many of
them are currently engaged,” Olson
said.
He added that parents’ reaction to
local AIDS education runs the
gamut. "Some think it should be left
to the home; others think we should
have been doing much more and
much sooner,” he said.
He added the school district is
attempting to schedule guest speak-
ers and panel discussions on AIDS
this fall.
The HIV/AIDS Curriculum Coun-
cil is trying to identify a program that
could be taught by an instructional
team comprising school nurses,
counselors, administrators and
health professionals. The team,
would target certain topics and cer-
tain grade levels, Olson said.
And if such a program should be
started, parents would be notified in
advance, he said.
Olson said there is no information
order
cally
• Th
cond
have
: An
would
taugh
cond
100-p
ting A
.Th
only t
recor
ole w
lieve
, No
truth.
Ac<
and E
the S
12th-
12th-
sexua
# Per
olessa
Those
cent (
used i
ual in
Educators
By Age
good information on the deadly given in Allen classrooms about birth
virus. control methods or abortion. There
“But it’s our judgment as adults is no sex education class; there is no
that whatever we’re doing is not home and family class, he said.
From 1A
Self-Responsibility” curricula, and it
was sent to school districts for re-
view last fall.
According to a summary on ESR
III, it was designed to “encourage
Texas students to make behavioral
choices that will prevent infection
with HIV and other communicable
diseases, and enhance total well-
ness.”
Whether to use all, part or none of
the curriculum was left up to the
school districts. Only curricula
covering pre-kindergarten through
sixth grade was sent out, according
to TEA spokesman Joey Lozano.
The materials for seventh and eighth
grades have since been developed
but held back; a curriculum for
grades nine through 12 is still on the
drawing boards.
Lozano said the State Board of
Education was not asked to review
or approve the curriculum before it
was distributed last fall.
ESR III, with an accompanying
teachers’ guide that includes a glos-
sary of sex-related terms, Texas
Department of Health information,
legal guidelines dealing with HIV in
the schools, a bibliography and addi-
tional resources, is designed to be a
sequential, age-appropriate pre-
sentation of materials designed to
build decision-making skills.
A review of the 900-plus page
document shows that the first men-
tion of AIDS per se occurs in kinder-
garten, when children are taught
AIDS is “a serious sickness that
adults and teen-agers can get.”
There is no mention of how the dis-
ease is transmitted.
In the pre-kindergarten, kinder-
garten and primary grades, the
emphasis is on children being safe.
Youngsters are taught not to touch
another person’s blood. They learn
how skin keeps germs out. They’re
taught proper hand-washing techni-
ques. Self-esteem, valuing others’
differences and compassion for peo-
ple with special needs are stressed.
At the third-grade level, the curri-
culum provides information on com-
municable and non-communicable
diseases. Children are warned about
sharing needles, including those
used in ear-piercing. They’re
warned not to mix their blood as
“blood brothers.”
The sexual aspect of AIDS trans-
mission comes up in the fourth
grade, with a definition of sexual in-
tercourse. Children are taught
where they can go for help in learn-
Percentage of respondents who
have had sexual Intercourse
Females Males
Site: Texas
By Grade
90 -
80 -
70 -
60 -
50 -
40 -
30 -
20 -
10 —
0
15 or less 16 or 17 18 or older
By Race/Ethnicity
90 -
80 —
70 —
60 —
50 —
40 1
30 5
20
10 |
90 —
80 —
70 —
60 —
50 -
40 -
30 —
20
10 —
0
9th
10th 11th 12th
White Black Hispanic Other
Figure 5
50
By Age
Percentage of respondents who used
or whose partners used condoms
during last sexual intercourse
Females Males
Site: Texas
50
40
30
20
10
0
9th
40
30
20
10 -
Q---
15 or less 16 or 17 18 or older
By Grade
10th
50
40
30
20
By Race/Ethnicity
AIDS experts from the medical maintain health and well-being,” she
community are suggested as guest said.
speakers for this age group. Resist- Heim called “preposterous” the
ing peer pressure in order to stand charge that the curriculum “links
by one’s own values is introduced, students to reproductive service
Sixth-graders learn about the providers as early as fourth grade.”
body’s immune system. The first "In a state where teen-age pre-
mention of condoms occurs. A work- gnancy is an epidemic and the
sheet on page 206 asks students to growth in cases of HIV/AIDS among
mark as true or false the following teen-agers is skyrocketing,” Heim
statement: “Using a condom will re- wrote, “we must educate our chil- ,
duce the risk of the spread of HIV.” dren on the dangers that lie ahead *
A statement for a suggested clas- should they choose to engage in sex-
sroom transparency reads: “When ual activity.”
an infected person engages in unpro- The battle has continued and the
tected anal, vaginal or oral sex dur- State Board of Education held a pub-
ing which blood, semen or vaginal lic hearing on ESR III last month,
secretions are exchanged, HIV can The bulk of the testimony was nega-
be transmitted.” tive, according to Geraldine “Tincy”
Students are invited to practice Miller, who has served on the Board
saying “no” to risky sexual be- of Education since 1984 as the North
haviors without using putdowns or Dallas representative.
hostility. On the one hand, Miller said, ESR •
In conjunction with a Texas III was criticized for having too many
Essential Element requiring that inaccuracies regarding condoms,
children be taught to respect peo- But the curriculum also took its
ples’ rights to behave in ways consis- lumps for “not having enough about
tent with their personal and societal abstinence and the ethical approach
value systems, students are asked to sexuality,” Miller said.
to discuss the idea that people with Miller said her own concern is that
AIDS are being punished for evil there is insufficient information in
things they’ve done. the curriculum on how to resist peer
At first, ESR III enjoyed a quiet pressure and say “no” to sex. “It’s
reception in Texas school districts, there, but there’s not enough of it. .
Locally, several districts appointed It’s out of balance,” she said. •
committees to study the curriculum. Miller conceded, “Kids need to
But a few months ago, according hear objective information about
to the Texas Education Agency’s HIV/AIDS.” She said she is not
Lozano, a Houston-area teacher opposed to inclusion of information
accidentally shared with students on condoms as a means to reduce
some of the materials in the teacher the risk for contracting AIDS,
resource guide. The guide’s content “But the ESR III is leading people
is strictly for adults. to believe that something works
As might be expected, a firefight (condoms) that really doesn’t work,”
ensued. she said.
Representatives of conservative The curriculum is scheduled for e
groups like the Texas Eagle Forum action at the board’s Nov. 12 meet-
charged that ESR III gives students ing in Austin. Education Commis-
permission to have sex outside the sioner Lionel “Skip” Meno is to pre-
context of marriage. sent suggestions on whether ESR
“It corrects students who express III should be abandoned, revised or
negative opinions about homosex- possibly combined with a sex-
uality, telling them that is only their education curriculum yet to be de-
opinion,” Eagle Forum member veloped.
Stephanie Cecil wrote in an opinion “I would love to see the ESR III
published in an area newspaper. pulled down completely,” Miller
“It undermines parents and treats said. “I’d like to see us look at some
students as clients of the state by other good curriculums like Sex Re-fe
linking them with reproductive ser- spect. Take that one, or something
vice providers as early as fourth else that has been proven (success-
grade.” ful), and add to it if needed,” Miller
Other adults took the opposite said.
view. She said she thinks the Board of.
The Eagle Forum was accused of Education is “pretty unanimous” in
“subverting the public education its perception of serious problems
r i . - s . re‘ Process in Texas without regard for with ESR III. “Basically, the board
consideration of risks and consequ- productive system, children are the children at stake.” pulled it down,” she said
ences, is taught.. taught reasons to practice sexual Linda S. Heim of Dallas defended Local school district officials -
At the fifth- and sixth-grade abstinence. They explore healthy ESR III: “At every opportunity, keenly aware that the dilemma’s (@
levels, lessons previously intro- ways to spend their free time, abstinence is stressed as the only horns can hurt — are waiting to see
duced are delved into more deeply. Physical exercise is stressed, choice available for our students to what comes next.
11th 12th
ing more about diseases like AIDS.
In addition to medical personnel, pa-
rents and religious organizations are
emphasized.
The children compare viruses and
bacteria in terms of their effects on
10
0
Figure 6
Youth Risk & Behavior Survey, 1990
White Black Hispanic Other
the body. Self-responsibility, with After learning about the human
Call no
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Epperson, Wayne. The Allen American (Allen, Tex.), Vol. 23, No. 185, Ed. 1 Wednesday, October 13, 1993, newspaper, October 13, 1993; Allen, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1694953/m1/8/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Allen Public Library.