Burlington School Committee Delays Health Standards Vote Until January 2027

BURLINGTON — June 23, 2026 — Burlington School Committee unanimously delays adoption of updated health and sex-ed standards until January 2027. The committee voted 5-0 at its June 23 meeting to postpone a second reading of the 2023 comprehensive physical education and health standards, which include sexual health and LGBTQ-related content, after Assistant Superintendent Lisa Conti recommended presenting the full package together rather than adopting completed sections piecemeal. Member Monica Gillespie said community members who support inclusive health education had felt "uncomfortable coming and speaking" amid a year of predominantly conservative public comment, and argued the committee should "do the whole thing before we take the vote on it." The committee also approved two individual academic curriculum coaching stipends of $6,673 each for the 2026-27 year — one for literacy, one for math — both by 5-0 votes. Burlington will remain under its 1999 health and PE standards until at least the second School Committee meeting in January 2027; the wellness committee begins its public review of the remaining 21 sexual health unit standards on October 8.