courses available for credit , which passed last year in Colorado and Kansas , or potentially even the Sportsmen ’ s Alliancecreated Conservation Science course ( see sidebar ).
In response to its reading of the BSCA , the Sportsmen ’ s Alliance Foundation , together with Safari Club International and Western Michigan Bowhunters Chapter of SCI , filed a lawsuit against the Department of Education . The lawsuit challenged the department ’ s misguided interpretation of the act and the subsequent loss of federal funding for the public-school programs .
The lawsuit was filed after the organizations gave notice of intent to sue and requested a response from the department , which went unanswered . The coalition believes the Department of Education , under the Biden Administration , misconstrued Congress ’ intent and was violating the spirit and letter of the law . Co-sponsors of the BSCA consistently asserted that the law was never intended to restrict funding for these essential programs .
“ Millions of school children learn valuable social and life lessons in these classes , including skills , safety and conservation . That ’ s all gone now ,” said Sportsmen ’ s Alliance Vice President of Government Affairs , Todd Adkins . “ This entire fiasco shows that what is presented as innocuous gun control can be misconstrued by the government or a presidential administration to advance an agenda that takes away individuals ’ civil rights and even safety education for children .”
Research has shown that shooting sports , hunter education and outdoor education programs have real benefits for students ’ mental and physical health while nurturing an abiding appreciation for the outdoors among the next generation of sportsmen . The Sportsmen ’ s Alliance and our partners believe it ’ s vital to protect these programs that promote our outdoor heritage .
In addition to the lawsuit , the coalition worked with members of Congress to amend the law and right this egregious wrong . Several members of Congress , from both sides of the aisle , spoke out against the Biden Administration ’ s interpretation of the BSCA and proposed legislative fixes . The Sportsmen ’ s Alliance also created a petition to send a clear message to lawmakers that American citizens wanted this education funding restored . And Congress listened ! After a unanimous vote of the U . S . Senate and 424-1 vote by the U . S . House of Representatives , the lone lawmaker voting against the measure being Rep . Veronica Escobar , D-Texas , the Protecting Hunting Heritage and Education Act , introduced by Rep . Mark Green , R-Tenn ., was sent to President Biden ’ s desk for his signature . The act prevents the Department of Education from blocking federal funding to public schools for
CONSERVATION SCIENCE IN THE CROSSHAIRS hunting , shooting , archery and other active outdoor programs .
“ We ’ re happy to see Congress come together and wholly reject the Biden administration ’ s misinterpretation of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act ,” said Adkins . “ It ’ s something that never should have happened , which is why we took the step of filing a lawsuit to protect our outdoor heritage should Congress have failed to act .”
President Biden signed the legislation , backtracking on his own administration ’ s repeated interpretation of BSCA , and the Sportsmen ’ s Alliance dismissed our lawsuit .
Now in its third year , Conservation Science , a hands-on high school science course created by the Sportsmen ’ s Alliance , could have been caught up in the Department of Education ’ s interpretation of the BSCA . The course , which uses the North American Model of Conservation and hunting , fishing , trapping , boating and recreational shooting to teach concepts of everything from anatomy and physiology to physics and economics , routinely has students using “ dangerous weapons ” as defined by the department .
Hands-on activities are a huge part of the course , and actively engage students in “ doing ” science instead of just memorizing facts . Several teachers have used labs that feature students breaking down a deer carcass and then trimming muscles groups , slicing steaks and chops or grinding the meat before using different packaging techniques for storage . Archery equipment is often used to create and test hypotheses around trajectory , drag , weight and more . The outdoors world provides a plethora of lessons appropriate to and needed by our students today .
The interpretation by the Department of Education didn ’ t just stop archery classes and hunter education classes , it had a chilling effect on entire school districts afraid of missing out on much-needed federal funding if they were to engage in any program simply perceived to run afoul of the department .
For more information on Conservation Science , visit conservationadventures . org or call the Sportsmen ’ s Alliance office at 614-888-4868 .
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