KCCI. EIGHT NEWS AT FIVE STARTS RIGHT NOW. IT’S NEW TERRITORY FOR IOWA SCHOOL DISTRICTS WITH ROUGHLY TWO WEEKS BEFORE CLASSES GET UNDERWAY. IT’S A MAD DASH TO MAKE SURE TEACHERS CAN COMPLY WITH NEW STATE LAWS. AND THAT INCLUDES ONE WITH SEVERAL DIFFERENT PARTS. ONE OF THOSE PARTS INCLUDES TEACHERS ONLY CALLING STUDENTS BY THE NAME AND PRONOUNS APPROVED BY THEIR PARENT OR GUARDIAN. IT’S FORCING ONE DISTRICT TO DO SOMETHING IT HAS NEVER DONE BEFORE. KCCI IS MARCUS MCINTOSH EXPLAINS THE LETTER BALLARD SENT TO PARENTS THIS MONTH. MARCUS STACY THE EMAIL WAS SENT, AS YOU MENTIONED, EARLIER THIS MONTH. NOW IT ASKED PARENTS TO FILL OUT A LINKED FORM AND EITHER EMAIL OR MAIL IT BACK TO THE BALLARD DISTRICT OFFICE AS PART OF SCHOOL REGISTRATION. ARDON IT ASKS IF A CHILD GOES BY ANYTHING OTHER THAN THEIR LEGAL NAME, INCLUDING IF THEIR NAME IS SHORTENED. NOW, WE SPOKE TO PARENTS WHO HAVE MIXED FEELINGS ABOUT THIS PROCESS, AS THIS IS THE EMAIL FROM THE BALLARD COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT. WE BELIEVE WAS SENT TO ALL THE DISTRICT’S PARENTS. A ATTACHED IS THE FORM ASKING FOR THE STUDENT’S NAMES, NICKNAMES, PRONOUNS AND OR GENDER IDENTITIES. I WAS A BIT CONFUSED, TO BE HONEST. NICK COVINGTON HAS TWO STUDENTS IN THE BALLARD COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT. HE BELIEVES THE DISTRICT MAY HAVE GONE TOO FAR, GIVEN HIS TAKE ON SENATE FILE 486, SECTION 14, PARTS TWO AND THREE. BUT THERE WAS NOTHING ON THERE THAT SAID THAT EVERYBODY WOULD HAVE TO REGISTER THEIR KIDS NICKNAMES AND PRONOUNS WITH THE DISTRICT. THE LEGISLATION ADDRESSES THE STUDENT USING A NAME OR PRONOUN DIFFERENT THAN THE NAME OR PRONOUN ASSIGNED TO THE STUDENT IN THE SCHOOL DISTRICT’S REGISTRATION FORMS OR RECORDS. WHEN THE BILL PASSED THE SENATE EARLIER THIS YEAR. SENATOR BRAD ZAUN SAID IT WAS ALL ABOUT PARENTAL CHOICE. THIS BILL HERE IS LETTING PARENTS BE PARENTS. WE’RE TRYING TO PROTECT KIDS. MATTHEW -- IS ANOTHER PARENT WITH A CHILD IN THE BALLARD COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT. AND FOR OUR POOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS TO HAVE TO COME UP WITH THE VERBIAGE, HE SEES THE DISTRICT’S EMAIL AS A LOT OF EXTRA WORK DUMPED ON DISTRICT EMPLOYEES WHO ARE PREPARING FOR THE START OF THE 20 2324 SCHOOL YEAR. I KNOW THAT’S KIND OF A DOUBLE EDGED SWORD THAT I’M SPEAKING. YOU KNOW, I’M SAYING, YES, IT’S A GOOD THING, YOU KNOW, BECAUSE THE PARENTS SOME PARENTS WANT IT AND OTHERS DON’T. AND THEN AT THE SAME TIME, I’M SAYING IT’S A WASTE OF TIME FOR THE SCHOOL DISTRICT. WE REACHED OUT TO THE BALLARD COMMUNITY SCHOOL DISTRICT OFFICE THROUGH VOICE MESSAGE AND EMAILS. AS OF NEWS TIME, THEY HAVE NOT RESPONDED. WE’VE ALSO REACHED OUT TO A HANDFUL OF OTHER CENTRAL IOWA DISTRICTS TO SEE HOW THEY ARE HANDLING THIS NEW LAW. SO FAR, ONLY WAUKEE HAS RESPONDED, SAYING THEY ARE STILL WORKING THROUGH POLICY. STACY, THANK YOU. MARCUS. SENATE FILE 496 GOES BEYOND PREFERRED NAMES AND PRONOUNS IN CLASSROOMS. IT BANS BOOKS DEPICTING SEXUAL ACTS IN SCHOOL LIBRARIES, RELIGIOUS TEXTS ARE EXEMPTED. IT ALSO BANS TEACHING GENDER IDENTITY AND SEXUAL ORIENTATION