(DAILY SIGNAL) HONOLULU – Middle school students who participated in a controversial sex education program in Hawaii were rewarded with gift cards from the University of Hawaii Center on Disability Studies.
The gift cards, valued at between $10 and $20 each, were issued to 11-, 12- and 13-year-olds who participate in Pono Choices. About $52,200 of a $5 million grant from the U.S. Office of Adolescent Health was used to buy the cards.
“The Pono Choices program provides gift cards to students who have taken the course as an incentive to complete student surveys,” said Donalyn Dela Cruz, a spokeswoman for the Hawaii State Department of Education. “Student opinion is the most powerful measure in the effectiveness of the program, and we support the efforts in seeking such feedback.”