Bill > S260

This bill aims to enhance the educational outcomes of expectant and parenting students by requiring the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education to create and publish a model policy for schools to adopt, along with a resource list for supporting these students. It also mandates the establishment of "expectant and parenting student liaisons" in public schools located in municipalities with high teen birth rates or a significant number of births to young women, with funding provided for these positions. These liaisons, modeled after an evidence-based program, will work with students to develop individualized graduation plans that include flexible scheduling and alternative credit options, and connect them with necessary academic and social-emotional supports, including informing them of their rights under Title IX, which is a federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in education. The bill also requires schools to report data on parenting students' academic achievement and graduation rates, and prohibits school staff from forcing or coercing students to disclose their pregnancy or parenting status to their parents or guardians.