Oregon’s Health Authority is under fire after releasing a 29-page questionnaire asking 6th-grade students—many just 11 years old—to label their gender identity and sexual orientation. The survey includes labels such as “genderfluid,” “nonbinary,” “agender,” “demigirl/demiboy,” “pansexual,” and “asexual/aromantic,” sparking backlash from parents and critics who call the questions inappropriate for children.
The 2025 Student Health Survey, created by the Oregon Health Authority (OHA), is aimed at measuring student well-being, but it also dives deep into topics many consider adult and controversial. The questionnaire is administered in public schools and collects data on mental health, substance use, school environment, and detailed demographic information. Among the most disputed parts of the survey are sections that prompt children to select their sexual orientation and gender identity from a list that includes more than a dozen options.
Under gender identity, students can choose from boy, girl, demigirl, demiboy, genderfluid, genderqueer, nonbinary, agender, questioning, and culturally specific identities such as Two Spirit. A separate question asks if they identify as transgender, with options including “Yes,” “No,” “I’m not sure,” and “I don’t know what this question is asking.”
For sexual orientation, options include straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, pansexual, queer, asexual/aromantic, questioning, or “something else fits better.”
One father, Chuck Gonzales, expressed outrage after learning his child was exposed to these questions. He criticized the state for overstepping boundaries and introducing young students to concepts they do not understand. “They have no clue what that is,” he said, referring to terms like pansexual and genderfluid. “It’s weird and sick and gross.”
Participation in the survey is technically optional. Students can skip questions, and parents may opt their children out by submitting a signed notification form. However, critics argue that many parents remain unaware of the survey or its contents. The state says the survey is anonymous and used to promote student health, but concerns remain over ideological influence in public education.
The Oregon Health Authority maintains that the goal is to ensure students’ well-being, stating, “Healthy kids learn better.” However, the nature of the questions raises concerns among families about the encroachment of radical gender ideology into elementary schools.
This development is part of a broader trend in public education where questions around gender and sexual identity are introduced at younger ages, often without clear parental awareness or consent.
