Standards committee advances civics and grading rule changes, approves paraeducator updates

The Utah State Board of Education Standards & Assessment Committee voted Jan. 8 to advance multiple rule changes on first reading, sending them to the full Board for second and final consideration.

Jennifer Wadsworth, policy adviser, told the committee the draft R277700 replaces the prior US government and citizenship requirement with an "American constitutional government and citizenship" course, to begin in 2026 as a full credit instead of two half-credits. The rule also allows up to 0.5 units of that credit to be fulfilled through a school-sponsored activity focused on policy analysis, government systems, civic engagement or the junior reserve officer training program.

Committee members asked whether the new standards presuppose a single-year sequencing or if a student could take only the later portion. Megan Everett, director of teaching and learning, said the writers intended a one-year course and identified a natural mid-year break, but staff noted state code does not mandate which half must be taken first and local districts have some flexibility.

On high-school grading, staff presented R277717 clarifications aimed at distinguishing "comparable course" versus "comparable course component" for grade replacement, and added a definition of "teacher-led" ("a course led by a licensed educator"). Kathy Grama, graduation and concurrent enrollment specialist, described examples raised by LEAs about substituting CTE courses for one another and staff said the rule aims to limit substitutions to those that meet the same graduation requirement.

Separately, the committee approved updated instructional paraeducator standards incorporated by reference into R277324. Deputy Superintendent Leah Voorhees said the standards were revised after stakeholder input; Tanya Semrad, autism and significant cognitive disability specialist, and other staff answered questions about implementation and definitions. The committee voted to remove the phrase "learning styles" from a skills item and to amend wording requiring paraeducators to "adhere to the legitimate exercise of constitutional, legal or civil rights of children, youth and their families." Staff said local education agencies (LEAs) remain responsible for training and supervising paraeducators and that the paraeducator manual and Canvas modules will be updated to reflect the new standards.

All four rule-related items discussed in committee were approved on first reading and forwarded to the full Board for second and final reading; committee members recorded the votes in the transcript and the chair indicated the motions passed (unanimously in the transcribed record).