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TO AMEND SECTION 59-29-80, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO COURSES IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION, TO PROVIDE IN ACCORDANCE WITH ADOPTED SOUTH CAROLINA PHYSICAL EDUCATION CURRICULUM STANDARDS, STUDENTS IN PRE-KINDERGARTEN THROUGH FIFTH GRADE MUST BE PROVIDED A MINIMUM OF ONE HUNDRED FIFTY MINUTES A WEEK OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. The General Assembly finds that:
(1) South Carolina ranks tenth in the United States for the number of overweight and obese people;
(2) the number of overweight children in South Carolina has tripled since the 1960's;
(3) South Carolina ranks first in the number of strokes, third in heart disease, and tenth in diabetes;
(4) regular physical activity helps to improve strength and endurance, prevents obesity and controls body weight, helps build healthy bones and muscles, and reduces anxiety and stress; and
(5) newly completed research shows a significant relationship between academic achievement and physical fitness.
SECTION 2. Section 59-29-80 of the 1976 Code is amended to read:
"Section 59-29-80. (A) There shall be established and provided in all the public schools of this State physical education, training, and instruction of pupils of both sexes, and every pupil attending any school, in so far as he is physically fit and able to do so, shall take the course or courses provided by this section. Suitable modified courses shall be provided for students physically or mentally unable or unfit to take the course or courses prescribed for normal pupils. However, in any public school which offers a military or naval ROTC program sponsored by one of the military services of the United States, training in such a program may be deemed equivalent to physical education instruction, and may be accepted in lieu of such instruction for all purposes, academic or nonacademic, as may hereinafter be provided.
(B) In accordance with adopted South Carolina Physical Education Curriculum Standards, students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade must be provided a minimum of one hundred fifty minutes a week of physical education. At least seventy-five minutes a week of the one hundred fifty minutes must be developmentally appropriate, health enhancing physical activity that allows for interactive behavior and promotes motor skill development. These activities must be designated by a certified physical education coordinator. However, volunteers and parents to monitor and assist with these daily activities must be used until funding is appropriated to ensure a physical education coordinator to student ratio of one to three hundred. Unstructured recess time of seventy-five minutes a week may be used to satisfy the one hundred fifty minute-a-week requirement.
(B)(C) A student may be exempted from physical education requirements by seeking a waiver from the local school board of trustees. The local board may grant such a request based on the following criteria:
(1) The student must present a statement by his attending physician indicating that participation in physical education will jeopardize the student's health and well-being; or
(2)(a) The parent and student must show that the student's attending physical education classes will violate their religious beliefs and would not be merely a matter of personal objection; and
(b) the parent or student must be members of a recognized religious faith that objects to physical education as part of its official doctrine or creed.
The local board shall encourage the student to take, as an alternative to physical education, appropriate instruction in health education or other instruction in lifestyle modification if an exemption is granted pursuant to this section."
SECTION 3. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
This web page was last updated on Tuesday, June 23, 2009 at 2:10 P.M.