Some Oakdale Middle School parents are outraged after their kids were asked to take a survey at the school-based health center. Some questions, parents say, cross the line.
A few questions at the end of the survey read, “Have you ever had any type of sex — vaginal, anal or oral sex? Have you ever been attracted to the same sex? Girl to girl or guy to guy? Or do you feel that you are gay, lesbian or bisexual?”
Parents feel that these questions, being asked of 7th to 8th grade students, are too mature for them to be answering. Some even stated these topics should be discussed in the home with parents or at their local doctor’s office if necessary.
Parents took to Facebook calling out the survey and citing concerns that the survey should not be given without parent consent and the questions are going to force parents to answer questions and have conversations they feel their child may not be ready for.
Only students who have used the SBHC were given the survey, as they were registered. This survey was not given to all students who attend OKMS.
After the response from parents on Thursday, the APSB met with the SBHC and decided to remove three of the questions on the survey that raised concerns with parents. They will be using a survey written for younger students in the future. The AP SBHC was one of the centers chosen as a pilot program for this survey. It is the first year these questions have been asked, and they will not be asked again in the future. The survey was done in a private session with the counselor present.
When media outlets reached out to the Allen Parish School Board about parents’ concerns, they released a statement that reads:
“School-Based Health Centers provide comprehensive medical and behavioral health services on or adjacent to schools. Prior to receiving services at a School-Based Health Center, parents must sign a consent form agreeing to the available services which include risk screenings in accordance with the American Academy of Pediatrics’ guidance for well-child visits. (In this case the father/ex-husband signed the form and the mother was unaware of thisshe was upset that she didn’t sign also).
“The screening tool was designed by Dr. Jennifer Salerno and is utilized by school health centers nationwide. It was offered as a reliable screening method by the state Office of Public Health for use in selected Louisiana school health centers. The screening questionnaire is conducted as part of a child well visit. The mother did not agree with the wording in 2 or 3 of the 21 question screening survey. The Allen Parish School board agrees with the mother and is working to change/remove these particular questions.
“Finally, the Oakdale School-Based Health Center is one of over 60 sites in the state of Louisiana who receive grant funding in part from the Department of Health, Office of Public Health, Adolescent School Based Health Center. This funding is used for the salaries and the operation of the School-Based Health Center. In return for the funding, these school-based health centers have certain medical and behavioral health services that must be provided at each site.”
Should a parent or guardian find themselves wanting to discuss this issue further or if there are more questions regarding the questionnaire they should reach out to the SBHC.
