Condom policy in city schools draws ire from activist group

The Philadelphia School Board got a quick reminder on how it feels to be a student when members of ACT UP presented Superintendent of Schools Constance Clayton with a report card at last week's Board of Education meeting. "The report card was based on what she has or has not done in the past five months. She failed everything," said AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power member Norman Baker, who has addressed the school board at its past two meetings. ACT UP is "an organization united in anger commited to taking direct action to end the AIDS crisis," said Baker, who was a member of the committee which made recommendations to the school board about the policy last spring. Two weeks ago, Baker appealed to the school board to begin implementation of a high school condom availability program which was adopted by the board last June. He told Clayton to "perform a little magic" and begin implementation within two weeks. The policy has not been implemented yet. "Within the next two to four weeks it is my estimate [that the condoms will begin to be available]," Director of Health Services Herbert Hazan said last week. His current projection is that at least some high schools will begin distribution before Christmas recess. However, other school board officials are not sure that this is possible. Hazan added that the school board has been working vigorously to implement the policy and does not consider Baker's speech an ultimatum. He equated ACT UP's report card tactic with a school "giving a student a report card three or four weeks into a school year." "A fair segment feels we're on the right track, including parents," Hazan said, after Tuesday's meeting, when a dozen people spoke out on both sides of the distribution issue. "I don't believe that ACT UP is speaking for the entire Philadelphia community." In order to begin the distribution of condoms throughout the approximately 30 public high schools in Philadelphia, each individual school must establish a partnership with a community health organization such as a hospital or medical school. Representatives from the health care organization will then hand out the condoms. According to a spokesperson in the superintendent's office, the program "also includes the right of parents to veto their child's right to participate in the program." The number of high schools that currently have partnerships is unknown, according to a spokesperson for the Department of Health Services. The new policy includes the enhancement of the human sexuality curriculum in grades kindergarten through 12, though AIDS education is already taught at every grade level. New topics to be stressed will include adolescent sexuality, prevention of teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. New York City, Chicago and Baltimore currently have similiar programs for the distribution of condoms. Los Angeles began hearings about a possible policy this week.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.