Illinois: All Eyes on Sex Education; As Congress Rethinks Abstinence-Only Policy, Local Schools Debate Change

This spring, Congress will re-evaluate its support of abstinence-only sex education. Federal funding of abstinence education increased 74 percent under President G.W. Bush to $176 million annually. President Obama has said he supports an "age-appropriate, medically accurate program" that includes discussions of contraception. Last month, Congress cut $14 million from abstinence education programs.

Sex education is not required in Illinois schools, but districts that choose to teach it must emphasize abstinence. As a result, school boards across the state have created a patchwork of policies.

In Chicago and Urbana, school boards have approved comprehensive programs that address STDs, healthy relationships, condoms, and other forms of contraception. Middle schools from Gurnee to Schaumburg teach abstinence and human development but do not cover family planning.

Though nine of 10 health educators in Illinois teach abstinence, how they do so varies. According to a 2008 report in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, almost 60 percent said they present abstinence as the best option, 39 percent as the only option, and 4 percent as one alternative.

Superintendant Jay Sabatino of Community High School District 117 in Lake Villa said abstinence will likely continue to be the foundation of sex education classes, due to practicality more than politics. Preventing teen pregnancies and STDs is more than just teaching about birth control, he said. It requires discussions about maturity, willpower, and "what it means to be a responsible 13-year-old," he said.

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