WEST VIRGINIA LEGISLATURE
2024 REGULAR SESSION
Engrossed Committee Substitute For Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 468
BY SENATORS RUCKER, AZINGER, DEEDS, GRADY, HUNT,
MARTIN, SMITH, STOVER, STUART, TAYLOR, KARNES, AND
MAYNARD
[Originating in the Committee on Rules; reported February 24, 2024]
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1 A BILL to amend and reenact §18-2-9 of the Code of West Virginia, 1931, as amended, relating
2 to the required instruction in human growth and development and the Holocaust; providing
3 for courses to include human growth and development related to pregnancy and human
4 development inside the womb; requiring methods of presenting this instruction; requiring
5 age-appropriate instruction and reading on the Holocaust.
Be it enacted by the Legislature of West Virginia:
ARTICLE 2. STATE BOARD OF EDUCATION.
§18-2-9. Required courses of instruction.
1 (a) (1) In all public, private, parochial, and denominational schools located within this state
2 there shall be given prior to the completion of the eighth grade, at least one year of instruction in
3 the history of the State of West Virginia. The schools shall require regular courses of instruction
4 by the completion of the 12th grade in the history of the United States, in civics, in the Constitution
5 of the United States, and in the government of the State of West Virginia for the purpose of
6 teaching, fostering, and perpetuating the ideals, principles, and spirit of political and economic
7 democracy in America, and increasing the knowledge of the organization and machinery of the
8 government of the United States and of the State of West Virginia. The required courses shall
9 include instruction on the institutions and structure of American government, such as the
10 separation of powers, the Electoral College, and federalism. The required courses shall include
11 instruction that provides students an understanding of American political philosophy and history,
12 utilizing writings from prominent figures in western civilization, such as Aristotle, Thomas Hobbes,
13 John Locke, and Thomas Jefferson. The courses of instruction shall offer an objective and critical
14 analysis of ideologies throughout history including, but not limited to, capitalism, republicanism,
15 democracy, socialism, communism, and fascism. The required courses shall emphasize the use
16 of primary sources and interactive learning techniques, such as mock scenarios, debates, and
17 open and impartial discussions.
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18 (2) The state board shall, with the advice of the state superintendent, and after
19 consultation with other entities, prescribe the courses of study, including the basic course
20 requirements for middle school and high school, and the academic standards listed in subdivision
21 (1) of this subsection for these courses of study covering these subjects for the public schools,
22 and publish an approved list of instructional resources pursuant to §18-2A-1 et seq. of this code.
23 The curriculum used in the delivery of instruction shall cover the standards adopted for such
24 courses. The other entities for consultation may include such organizations as the Florida Joint
25 Center for Citizenship, the College Board, the Bill of Rights Institute, Hillsdale College, the Gilder
26 Lehrman Institute of American History, the Constitutional Sources Project, educators, school
27 administrators, postsecondary education representatives, elected officials, business and industry
28 leaders, parents, and the public. Officials or boards having authority over the respective private,
29 parochial, and denominational schools shall prescribe courses of study for the schools under their
30 control and supervision similar to those required for the public schools.
31 (3) The state board shall provide testing or assessment instruments for the history and
32 civics courses of instruction required by this section. These testing instruments shall:
33 (A) Be aligned with the academic standards required by this section;
34 (B) Be mandatory for students enrolled in those courses of instruction;
35 (C) Be cumulative by including questions about knowledge learned in prior history and
36 civics courses; and
37 (D) Measure students’ factual and conceptual knowledge including how the facts
38 interrelate and the reasons behind historical documents and events.
39 (4) To further this study, every high school student eligible by age for voter registration
40 shall be afforded the opportunity to register to vote pursuant to §3-2-22 of this code.
41 (b) The state board shall cause to be taught in all public schools of this state, including
42 each public charter school, the subject of health education, including instruction in any of the
43 grades six through 12 as considered appropriate by the county board, on: (1) The prevention,
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44 transmission, and spread of acquired immune deficiency syndrome and other sexually transmitted
45 diseases; (2) substance abuse, including the nature of alcoholic drinks and narcotics, tobacco
46 products, and other potentially harmful drugs, with special instruction as to their effect upon the
47 human system and upon society in general; (3) the importance of healthy eating and physical
48 activity in maintaining healthy weight; and (4) education concerning cardiopulmonary
49 resuscitation and first aid, including instruction in the care for conscious choking, and recognition
50 of symptoms of drug or alcohol overdose. The course curriculum requirements and materials for
51 the instruction shall be adopted by the state board by rule in consultation with the Department of
52 Health and Human Resources. The state board shall prescribe a standardized health education
53 assessment to be administered within health education classes to measure student health
54 knowledge and program effectiveness; and (5) Education concerning human growth and
55 development by means of an oral, written, or digital lesson, lecture, or presentation about human
56 biology related to pregnancy and human development inside the womb. Human growth and
57 development instruction shall occur in grades eight and 10. Beginning in the 2024-2025 school
58 year, the course standards, as adopted by the state board by rule pursuant to §29A-3B-1 et seq.
59 of this code, shall include:
60 (A) A high-definition ultrasound video, at least three minutes in duration, showing the
61 development of the brain, heart, sex organs, and other vital organs in early fetal development;
62 and
63 (B) The Meet Baby Olivia video developed by Live Action, showing the process of
64 fertilization and every stage of human development inside the uterus, noting significant markers
65 in cell growth and organ development for every significant marker of pregnancy until birth:
66 Provided, That the Department of Education shall at all times maintain a downloaded copy of the
67 Meet Baby Olivia video developed by Live Action to distribute to public county schools, teachers,
68 or staff for purposes of viewing the video in accordance with this subsection.
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69 (c) An opportunity shall be afforded to the parent or guardian of a child subject to
70 instruction in the prevention, transmission, and spread of acquired immune deficiency syndrome
71 and other sexually transmitted diseases to examine the course curriculum requirements and
72 materials to be used in the instruction. The parent or guardian may exempt the child from
73 participation in the instruction by giving notice to that effect in writing to the school principal.
74 (d) After July 1, 2015, the required instruction in cardiopulmonary resuscitation in
75 subsection (b) of this section shall include at least 30 minutes of instruction for each student prior
76 to graduation on the proper administration of cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and the
77 psychomotor skills necessary to perform CPR. The term "psychomotor skills" means the use of
78 hands-on practicing to support cognitive learning. Cognitive-only training does not qualify as
79 psychomotor skills. The CPR instruction shall be based on an instructional program established
80 by the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross, or another program which is
81 nationally recognized and uses the most current national evidence-based emergency
82 cardiovascular care guidelines and incorporates psychomotor skills development into the
83 instruction. A licensed teacher is not required to be a certified trainer of CPR to facilitate, provide,
84 or oversee such instruction. The instruction may be given by community members, such as
85 emergency medical technicians, paramedics, police officers, firefighters, licensed nurses, and
86 representatives of the American Heart Association or the American Red Cross. These community
87 members are encouraged to provide necessary training and instructional resources such as CPR
88 kits and other material at no cost to the schools. The requirements of this subsection are minimum
89 requirements. A local school district may offer CPR instruction for longer periods of time and may
90 enhance the curriculum and training components, including, but not limited to, incorporating into
91 the instruction the use of an automated external defibrillator (AED): Provided, That any instruction
92 that results in a certification being earned shall be taught by an authorized CPR/AED instructor.
93 (e) A full week of classes during the week selected by the county board of education shall
94 be recognized as Celebrate Freedom Week. The purpose of Celebrate Freedom Week is to
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95 educate students about the sacrifices made for freedom in the founding of this country and the
96 values on which this country was founded.
97 Celebrate Freedom Week shall include appropriate instruction in each social studies class
98 which:
99 (1) Includes an in-depth study of the intent, meaning, and importance of the Declaration
100 of Independence, the Emancipation Proclamation, and the Constitution of the United States with
101 an emphasis on the amendments that are crucial to the survival of democracy and freedom, such
102 as the Bill of Rights and the 13th, 14th, 15th, and 19th amendments;
103 (2) Uses the historical, political, and social environments surrounding each document at
104 the time of its initial passage or ratification; and
105 (3) Includes the study of historical documents to firmly establish the historical background
106 leading to the establishment of the provisions of the constitution and Bill of Rights by the founding
107 fathers for the purposes of safeguarding our constitutional republic.
108 The requirements of this subsection are applicable to all public, private, parochial, and
109 denominational schools located within this state. Nothing in this subsection creates a standard or
110 requirement subject to state accountability measures.
111 (f) Beginning the 2018-2019 school year, students in public schools shall be administered
112 a test the same as or substantially similar to the civics portion of the naturalization test used by
113 the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services between their ninth and 12th grade years
114 as an indicator of student achievement in the area of civics education. The test results may be
115 reported in the aggregate to the county board for evaluation by the board’s curriculum director
116 and reported to the board members. Nothing in this subsection creates a standard or requirement
117 subject to state accountability measures.
118 (g) All public schools located within this state shall give age-appropriate instruction on the
119 Holocaust, the systematic, planned annihilation on European Jews and other groups by Nazi
120 Germany, a watershed event in the history of humanity, to be taught in a manner that leads to an
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121 investigation of human behavior and an examination of what it means to be a responsible and
122 respectful person, for the purposes of encouraging tolerance of diversity in a pluralistic society
123 and for nurturing and protecting democratic values and institutions: Provided, That beginning in
124 the 2024-2025 school year, each public school, including each public charter school, shall
125 incorporate age-appropriate reading and discussion into its Holocaust education curriculum, in
126 grades 10 or 11. The Holocaust discussion must include a reading of The Diary of a Young Girl,
127 by Anne Frank.
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Statutes affected:
Introduced Version: 18-2-9, 18-2-44
Committee Substitute: 18-2-9, 18-2-44
Committee Substitute for the Committee Substitute: 18-2-9
Engrossed Committee Substitute for the Committee Substitute: 18-2-9