Bill Text: VA HB362 | 2022 | Regular Session | Prefiled
Bill Title: School boards, local; instruction on climate change.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2022-02-15 - Left in Education [HB362 Detail]
Download: Virginia-2022-HB362-Prefiled.html
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of Virginia:
1. That the Code of Virginia is amended by adding a section numbered 22.1-212.1:3 as follows:
§22.1-212.1:3. Instruction on climate change required.
A. To assist local school boards in the implementation of programs of instruction that comply with the provisions of subsection C of §22.1-253.13:1, specifically relating to citizenship and environmental issues and geography necessary for responsible participation in American society and the international community, the Department, in collaboration with environmental groups and other relevant state agencies such as the Department of Environmental Quality and the Department of Health, shall develop an interdisciplinary program of instruction on the causes of and potential solutions for climate change.
B. Each local school board shall incorporate the interdisciplinary program of instruction developed by the Department pursuant to subsection A into curricula and instruction in the local school division in each core academic subject area at the grade levels that it deems most appropriate.
2. That the Department of Education shall develop an interdisciplinary program of instruction on the causes of and potential solutions for climate change in accordance with the provisions of this act no later than July 1, 2023.
3. That the Department of Education shall implement and oversee a one-year pilot program by which it provides training and technical assistance to a diverse cross section of local school boards in order to prepare such school boards to incorporate the interdisciplinary program of instruction on the causes of and potential solutions for climate change developed pursuant to subsection A of § 22.1-212.1:3 of the Code of Virginia, as created by this act, across select schools and select grade levels in the local school division during the 2023–2024 school year.
4. That the provisions of the first enactment of this act shall be fully implemented by each local school board during the 2024–2025 school year.
