1

A bill to be entitled

2

An act relating to education; authorizing district school

3

boards to establish a school, class, or educational

4

program in which enrollment is limited to pupils of a

5

single gender; providing conditions to such authorization;

6

requiring that pupils' participation in single-gender

7

classes be voluntary; providing an effective date.

8

9

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:

10

11

     Section 1. Single-gender schools, classes, and programs

12

authorized.--

13

     (1) Subject to subsection (2), a district school board may

14

establish and maintain a school, class, or program within a

15

school in which enrollment is limited to pupils of a single

16

gender if the school district also makes available to pupils a

17

coeducational school, class, or program that has substantially

18

equal academic standards and a school, class, or program for

19

pupils of the other gender which has substantially equal academic

20

standards.

21

     (2) If a district school board establishes a single-gender

22

school, class, or program as described in subsection (1), the

23

school district may not require participation by any of its

24

pupils in the single-gender school, class, or program. The school

25

board must ensure that participation by pupils in a single-gender

26

school, class, or program is voluntary.

27

     Section 2.  This act shall take effect July 1, 2008.