February 19, 2025 

Dear Colleagues,

February is Black History Month, an intentional time and an ongoing opportunity to connect health and sexuality education classrooms to the achievements, triumphs, and struggles of Black and African American individuals and communities. Whether it’s by discussing former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm’s pioneering work on reproductive justice and equal rights, or Byllye Avery’s journey to create the National Black Women’s Health Project; these discussions help students understand how history shapes current public health challenges and opportunities. By making these connections, educators align instruction with the Health Education Standards, and guide students to consider their own health stories– and those of others– in relation to policies, rights, and access.

Each February is also an opportunity to raise awareness about teen dating violence through Teen Dating Violence Awareness and Action Month. This month, education and community partners across the country focus on advocacy and education to stop dating abuse before it starts. This year’s theme is “Respect That” and highlights the importance of dignity and respect as violence prevention messages.

Students in Oregon experience dating violence at high rates: one in twelve 11th graders reported having experienced physical dating abuse in the past year; one-quarter of Black/African American 11th graders had been “purposely controlled, manipulated, or hurt mentally or emotionally” by a dating partner; one-third of students with a disability experienced emotional abuse in the past year; and nearly one in ten of all students reported having been “monitored, shamed, or embarrassed” with privately shared content on social media. Educators across Oregon are poised to  help shift this narrative by modeling respect, engaging in open communication, teaching consent, and the  Health Education Standards, and connecting students to Oregon resources and materials.

This newsletter provides more information on creating safer and more inclusive school communities for students. 

Header photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash, Newberg, OR

Section photo courtesy of National Institutes of Health Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.   

Update: Title IX and State Nondiscrimination Law Implementation

The Oregon Department of Education reaffirms its commitment to equity and excellence for every learner. Recent actions and communications from the federal government have led to questions about Oregon school districts’ ongoing obligations to implement or comply with state and federal laws with respect to the protected classes of sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity. 

This bulletin clarifies that Oregon law prohibits schools funded by money from the Oregon Legislature from discriminating on the basis of sex, sexual orientation and gender identity in any public education program or service, school or interschool activity, and provides information on Title IX regulations.

Update: Arts, Care & Connection lessons are officially launched!

The Arts, Care & Connection (ACC) initiative is a free resource providing K-5 educators with high-quality, artist-led learning modules. This initiative is part of ODE’s Well-Rounded Access Program, funded by a five-year, $9.8 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education. The ACC lessons are designed to be flexible while allowing educators to co-teach with virtual teaching artists. Modules are currently available online, with additional lessons added throughout 2025.

For the 2024-25 school year, educators implementing ACC lessons can receive free classroom art materials. Visit this feedback guide for more information. The team is also seeking teachers for focus groups to discuss experiences in arts education. Interested educators will receive a stipend for their time and contributions to the project – contact ODE.WRCoursesGrant@ode.oregon.gov for more information.