Senate Education committee approves rules package with narrow carve-outs for social studies standards; rejects related temporary rule

The Idaho Senate Education Committee voted Wednesday to accept a pending rules docket that updates statewide content standards and graduation requirements while excluding two contested social‑studies components, the committee’s staff said.

Greg Wilson, chief of staff for the Idaho State Department of Education, told the committee the pending docket (No. 0802032401) includes updates to five content areas, changes to statewide graduation requirements and updates to the Idaho Special Education Manual. Wilson asked the committee to accept the docket with exceptions that would exclude changes to the grade‑4 social‑studies standards and the grade‑6 through 12 U.S. history standards and to retain a one‑credit communications requirement the proposed rule had removed.

The committee considered two competing motions on how to treat the…