FCPS advisory committee recommends puberty-education videos, flags body-image and phrasing concerns

The FAME Life Advisory Committee voted to recommend three puberty-education videos to the Frederick County Public Schools Board of Education after in-person review, but members pressed for clearer language and classroom context to avoid unintended harms. Brian Griffith, the committee’s staff liaison and supervisor of health and physical education for FCPS, told members the videos will be placed in a district repository and formally recommended to the board after committee review.

Members praised the videos’ readability and the plan to chunk them for teacher-led pauses, but several raised substantive concerns about content and imagery. Jen Metcalfe, a committee member representing Intimate Partner Violence prevention work with Hartley House, said she was concerned that the girls’ video repeatedly pairs the line “expect to gain weight” with footage of a very thin girl, which she said could “send a message” that would be harmful to students struggling with body image and disordered eating. Metcalfe said the visual choice “popped out to me” and recommended using more body diversity in footage.

Jess Valentine, a teacher specialist and nonvoting staff liaison, noted a new MSDE indicator that lessons should “describe how puberty prepares human bodies for the potential to reproduce,” and said that nuance must be reflected in teacher-led lesson plans. Several members asked that lessons explicitly front-load mental-health supports and explain biological details such as bone and muscle changes so students do not interpret general statements as universal outcomes.

The committee discussed classroom practice frequently: members emphasized that videos would be paused for teacher-led discussion and that lesson plans should address questions such as whether puberty “hurts,” what to expect physically and how to seek support. Hannah Feldman, principal at Yellow Springs Elementary School, and other educators said teachers will add context and should be given guidance to address sensitive topics.

Voting forms were collected after the reviews. The committee recorded a 14–0 recommendation on one video and a 13–1 recommendation on another; both tallies were recorded as recommendations to the Board of Education. Griffith said full state implementation of the MSDE framework is not required until 2027–28, and FCPS is aligning curriculum materials now so teachers can prepare resources and training.

Next steps include forwarding the committee’s written votes and comments to the Board of Education and previewing additional framework guidance at the committee’s next meeting on Feb. 10.