Webinar explores transgender issues |
On Board Online • February 9, 2015
By Courtney Sanik
Policy Consultant
Your district policy manual probably says nothing regarding transgender students - nor does it have to, according to Jay Worona, NYSSBA deputy executive director and general counsel, and Linda Bakst, deputy director for policy services. Existing policies should help the district protect the rights of transgender students and address concerns that may be aired by other students and parents.
Worona and Bakst recently presented a complimentary NYSSBA webinar entitled Transgender Students in the 21st Century. One message was that existing policies should help guide school officials even though those policies probably don't mention transgender students specifically.
For instance, your general policy on Equal Opportunity and Non-Discrimination establishes the civil rights of transgender students. Transgender students are protected by the Dignity for All Students Act because it lists actual or perceived gender, including identity and expression, as a protected class.
Therefore, your district is obligated to protect the rights of transgender students consistent with these laws as well as federal antidiscrimination laws. How it does so is up to administrators.
NYSSBA does not recommend creating board policies specific to transgender students. Instead, administrators should respond to requests by transgender students (e.g. bathroom and locker room use) in the context of existing policy and the law. At the same time, there has to be recognition of the concerns of those in the district who may be alarmed or offended by accommodations made.
The State Education Department has not issued any guidance on this matter. However, several court rulings have involved the rights of transgender students (see "Resources").
Harassment of any student is always a serious matter. Based on resolution agreements with the U.S. Office for Civil Rights when harassment or denial of civil rights claims have been made, it appears the district may be at risk if it doesn't respond to a complaint in a manner reasonably calculated to end the harassment.
Districts should make determinations of accommodations on a case-by-case basis. Not every student will request the same accommodations and some will be comfortable with a gender neutral restroom. Take into account the age and maturity of the student, the layout and set up of existing facilities and what may be feasible.
Anecdotally, districts who are facing this challenge have found that some parents of cisgender children (see "Nomenclature") are more opposed to transgender students using the opposite bathroom or locker room than the children who are sharing the bathroom.
It's important to note that although "male" and "female" are usually the only choices offered on forms, gender isn't a binary concept. In fact, Facebook offers its users more than 50 different gender identities, including "Gender Questioning."