Last week, several groups focused on the well-being of Michigan’s youth sent an SOS to parents and grandparents of children attending public schools in the state about a radical proposed change in sex education for young students in the Great Lakes state.
Citizens for Traditional Values warned: Currently Michigan public schools’ health standards for Sex-Ed curriculum INCLUDES a provision to allow parents the right to make the decision whether their child takes the class or not.
Public schools require all students to take a health class for graduation. This is separate from Sex-Ed curriculum. The health class curriculum covers things such as healthy eating habits, sleeping habits, the benefits of physical activity, mental and emotional health, healthy relationships, time management, etc.
Regarding Sex-Ed, Michigan legislators passed a law in 2004 to protect parents’ rights and specifically made it elective and not a requirement for graduation. The law protects parents’ rights to opt-out their children from the class, if desired.
In addition, they provided a safeguard that IF a school was to teach Sex-Ed, it would require an advisory board that included local clergy, parents and members of the community on it.
The Michigan State Board of Education (SBOE) is in current negotiations to change this:
They want Sex-Ed curriculum to become a required part of health education in Michigan public schools. This not only violates the current law that keeps Sex-Ed classes separate, but it also eliminates a parent right to opt-out their child. Why? Because Health Class – would then include Sex-Ed – is required for graduation.
Kevin Kijewski, a Republican candidate for Michigan Attorney General and former superintendent of the Archdiocese of Detroit, blasted the proposed change, calling it unlawful and “reckless.”
Kijewski will testify in front of the Michigan Department of Education today, where he plans to stand up for parents whose voices are being ignored.
Mr. Kijewski shared his opinion on this crucially important proposed change in Michigan’s education with the Gateway Pundit.
“As the former superintendent of the Archdiocese of Detroit, where I oversaw education for nearly 30,000 students across 90 schools, I have always prioritized legal boundaries, parental rights, and age-appropriate content.
My experience managing Michigan’s largest private school system taught me the importance of respecting families and upholding the law.
That’s why I’m speaking out against the proposed updates to Michigan’s Health Education Standards Framework, a reckless plan that circumvents state statutes, erodes parental authority, and exposes schools to legal peril.
Last week, I sent a formal letter to the Michigan State Board of Education, urging them to reject these updates as they violate the law and erode parental rights.
Today, I will tell the Board the same thing face-to-face, amplifying the voices of Michigan parents who demand adherence to the rule of law.
This framework isn’t about promoting health; it’s a backdoor attempt to impose controversial ideologies on our children without consent.
Under Michigan law, specifically MCL 380.1507, sex education is an elective, not a mandatory part of health education required for graduation.
The statute clearly mandates parental notification, opt-out rights without penalty, and the establishment of a sex education advisory board comprising parents, educators, community health professionals, and students to ensure transparency.
Public hearings are required for any revisions. These safeguards protect families by emphasizing abstinence as a positive lifestyle and prohibiting certain practices, like distributing family planning devices in schools.
The law was enacted to prevent the imposition of sensitive, value-laden topics on unwilling students.
Yet, the proposed framework flagrantly violates these protections by embedding sex education topics – such as gender identity, expression, orientation, and decision-making around sexual activity – into required health classes starting as early as grades 6-8.
For instance, by middle school, students would be mandated to define gender identity as distinct from biological sex, discuss changing attractions, analyze pregnancy and STI prevention methods including contraception, and even evaluate sexual behaviors.
This integrates advanced discussions on coercion, diverse sexualities, and advocacy for related policies into high school curricula. Such content, which mirrors restricted sex education material, is unlawfully integrated into a graduation requirement, eliminating the elective nature and parental opt-out options guaranteed under Michigan law.
This back-door approach circumvents the statute’s intent, bypassing advisory board oversight, parental notification, and community input, while exposing schools to legal liability for non-compliance.
It expands health education beyond non-sexual topics like nutrition, exercise, mental health, and basic safety, as intended by law.
By mandating instruction on gender fluidity and sexual relationships starting in early grades, it prohibits opt-outs and violates state law.
Even more alarming, this proposal flies in the face of U.S. Supreme Court precedents affirming parental rights. In the recent ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor, the Court ruled 6-3 that a school district’s policy prohibiting opt-outs from sexually charged topics burdened parents’ religious exercise by compelling exposure to materials conflicting with their faith-based beliefs on gender and sexuality,without a compelling government interest justifying the restriction under strict scrutiny.
By mandating health classes without required opt-out provisions, Michigan’s framework similarly imposes ideological content that many parents, including those with religious objections, view as antithetical to their values – such as the simple fact that biological sex is immutable.
This compulsory approach directly contravenes the Court’s emphasis on protecting parental rights against state overreach, violating the Free Exercise Clause and inviting federal constitutional challenges.
The Court has long recognized the fundamental right of parents to direct their children’s upbringing.
As the Court stated in Wisconsin v. Yoder, “The history and culture of Western civilization reflect a strong tradition of parental concern for the nurture and upbringing of their children. This primary role of the parents in the upbringing of their children is now established beyond debate as an enduring American tradition.”
Michigan’s framework represents a deliberate erosion of these rights, centralizing control in defiance of legislative intent and silencing families.
This isn’t just a policy disagreement;it’s a dangerous circumvention that prioritizes radical ideologies over the law. Michigan parents deserve an education system focused on health and safety, not one that seeks to indoctrinate young minds without transparency.
As Michigan’s next Attorney General, I want to be crystal clear: I will rigorously enforce state law, protect parental rights, and pursue accountability – including litigation against any district or state actor for violating Michigan law.
One of the first things I plan to do as Attorney General is to launch a Division of Parental and Student Rights to defend families, investigate overreach, and stop violations, restoring trust in our schools.
A rally is planned today:
JOIN THE FINAL PUSH to preserve parental control on sex ed and to STOP INSTITUTIONALIZED GROOMING — using your tax dollars! https://t.co/jQnwx5bIZS
— MIDistrict9 (@MIDistrict9) October 13, 2025
The Michigan Board of Education must reject this framework and avoid legal violations that harm our schools and families.
I will always support Michigan parents in their fight to protect our kids, uphold the rule of law, and restore sanity to education. Let’s end this charade and move Michigan forward.”
The Michigan Department of Education will host a meeting on Tuesday, October 14, at 1 pm.
If you would like to request an opportunity to provide a comment during the meeting, please register before 1:00 p.m. ET on October 14, 2025. Anyone who would like to appear in person is asked to arrive early. Activists are hoping to fill the room with citizens who object to this radical change.
The live stream for the meeting can be seen beginning at 1 pm ET HERE.
From Michigan.gov:
- To provide public comment by telephone during the meeting, please complete this form. Following submission of the form, you will receive an immediate confirmation e-mail from Microsoft. Please check your junk mail, and email MDE-SBE@michigan.gov if assistance is needed.
- To provide public comment in person during the meeting, please complete a public comment form when you arrive at the meeting location.
Members of the State Board of Education may be contacted by using information provided at www.michigan.gov/sbe.
Kevin Kijewski is an attorney in Birmingham, MI, who is seeking the Republican nomination for Michigan Attorney General. He was previously endorsed by the Gateway Pundit. You can follow him on X (formerly Twitter) using @KevinKijewski.
Kevin Kijewski is the Antithesis of Michigan’s Partisan Hack AG Dana Nessel — That’s One of Many Reasons The Gateway Pundit Is Proudly Endorsing This Rule of Law Candidate For MI Attorney General
The post Former Archdiocese of Detroit Superintendent of Schools Blasts Michigan Department of Education for Its Latest Ploy to Force Young Children to Study a Sick Sex Agenda Without Parental Consent appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.