BURNET — House Bill 3 recently adopted by the Legislature does not require Health Education for high school graduation, according to Burnet High School Principal Craig Spinn.
"But we are still required to offer Health Education," Spinn told the Burnet Consolidated Independent School District board during the regular meeting Monday.
"It is a kind of funny catch-22,” Spinn added.
During future months, the high school may find it "problematic in practical terms” to offer Health Education classes to students because they might "mess up schedules" for other classes, Spinn added.
However, the Legislature requires Burnet and other public high school districts to offer courses to support the Parenting and Paternity Awareness mandatory program, which aims to make teens aware of child support and other family responsibilities, Spinn said.
“We (Burnet High School instructors) typically teach that type of thing in health classes,” Spinn added.
Most likely, Burnet High School will continue to include health education as a “local requirement” for graduation, even though the state does not require the course, Spinn told the board.
Indeed, the board may require health education for graduation without approval by state education officials, Spinn added.
Also related to high school curriculum, the Legislature recently eliminated Technology Applications courses as a graduation requirement and reduced the amount of credits awarded for Physical Education classes from 1.5 to one, Spinn noted.
“I think we have most of this (graduation plan) as a settled matter, at least going into the next school year,” Spinn said, referring to the 2010-2011 academic year.
Also during the meeting, the board amended the BCISD contract with the Burnet County Elections Administration to include the Highland Haven Community Center, 118 Blackbird Drive in Highland Haven, and the Hoover Valley Volunteer Fire and Emergency Medical Services headquarters in Burnet, 303 Sherwood Drive, as polling stations during the May 8 election.
The addition will allow voters “one-stop voting” to participate in the upcoming board election, as well as the city election in Highland Haven and the election on Emergency Service District No. 3 in Hoover Valley, County Elections Administrator Barbara Agnew told the board.
During the May 8 board election, incumbent trustee Kay Behrens has filed to run again for her Place 1 slot. The board secretary will face challenger Stephen Shipley for the seat.
In addition, board President Andy Feild is running unopposed for re-election to Place 5.
Also during the meeting, the board nominated Administrative Assistant Sharon Schwartz to the Texas Association of School Boards Media Honor Roll.
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