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Virginia releases updated transgender student model policies

2023-07-19 00:00:00.0 华盛顿邮报-华盛顿特区原网页

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Virginia’s education department announced updated model policies for the treatment of transgender students in schools Tuesday afternoon, offering the first update since an early version released last year was put on hold to review tens of thousands of public comments, many of them opposing the guidelines.

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The first version, issued in September by the administration of Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), required transgender students to use school facilities and programs that match the sex they were assigned at birth and makes it harder for students to change their name or pronoun at school.

The final model policies include many of the same guidelines with an emphasis on parents’ rights “to make decisions with respect to their children.” The policies, a version of which each of Virginia’s schools systems would be required to adopt, require schools to use student names matching the sex on their official record. They also outline that teachers and other school personnel may not refer to a student by a different name or pronoun unless parents request the switch in writing. And students would be required to use school facilities matching the sex on their official record.

Model Policies to Ensure Privacy, Dignity, and Respect for All Students and Parents in Virginia’s Public Schools

“All children in Virginia deserve to have a parent engaged in their life and to be treated with dignity and respect,” Youngkin said in a statement Tuesday. “The VDOE updated model policies reaffirm my administration’s continued commitment to ensure that every parent is involved in conversations regarding their child’s education, upbringing, and care.”

The 2023 policies take effect Wednesday, according to the document. It will be up to each school division to adopt its own policy following the guidelines in the model.

“These policies provide families the opportunity to weigh in on their child’s decisions and be a partner in their education,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Lisa Coons said in a statement. “We encourage all school divisions to review the policies and implement them into their local policies in collaboration with their school boards and community stakeholders.”

Tuesday’s announcement is the first significant update since implementation was delayed to give the state education department time to review more than 70,000 public comments on the policies received last fall. The model policies were initially met with sharp criticism and pushback from students. But they were praised by supporters who saw them as the governor delivering on his campaign platform of ensuring parental rights in education.

Youngkin’s policies made Virginia a flash point in a national discussion — mostly by conservative lawmakers — regarding regulations and restrictions around the treatment of trans youths in schools. And it matched a trend of increased legislation and targeting of trans youths. A Washington Post analysis found that in 2022, more legislation had been filed to restrict the lives of trans people than at any other point in the nation’s history.

Research suggests there are about 4,000 transgender students in Virginia, a state with 1.2 million public school students.

The state’s current model policies, which were enacted under Youngkin’s predecessor, Gov. Ralph Northam (D), and took effect in 2021, allow transgender students to use restrooms, locker rooms and changing facilities that match their gender identity. The current guidelines also stipulate that schools let transgender students participate in school programs matching their gender identity and require that school districts and teachers accept and use students’ gender pronouns and identities.

LGBTQ advocates fiercely opposed the model policies at the time of their announcement, worrying about the safety and security of LGBTQ students in schools, especially transgender youths, who research has shown are far more likely to attempt suicide.

“Today, Governor Youngkin and the VDOE made a dangerous, politically motivated decision to ignore the thousands of Virginians who submitted public comments in opposition to his proposed model policies — policies which single out transgender and nonbinary youths in our schools,” Narissa Rahaman, executive director of Equality Virginia, said in a statement Tuesday.

Supporters of the policies urged school leaders around the commonwealth to adopt and implement the new policies.

“Now, we call on school boards to begin replacing the policies they set in place under the old guidelines, with the improved guidance that is parent centered,” Todd Gathje, vice president of government relations of the conservative faith-based Family Foundation of Virginia, said in a statement.

“Parents in more than 100 counties can once again have their rights respected, as these revised policies once adopted will appropriately include parents in the discussion, the statement said.

The guidelines outline four main topics: respecting all students; giving parents the right to make decisions with respect to their children; serving the needs of all students; and schools partnering with parents.

The guidelines also prohibit school policies from encouraging teachers to conceal information about a student relating to gender from the student’s parent, and suggest making single-user bathrooms and facilities available in accessible areas for all students.

School systems in more liberal areas of the state, including some in Northern Virginia, signaled after Youngkin’s policies were issued that they would oppose the guidelines. There had also been the possibility of legal challenges from opponents arguing that the guidelines violate the Virginia Human Rights Act, which protects individuals in public settings, including schools, from discrimination on the basis of gender identity.

Fairfax County school officials said in a statement Tuesday that the district is aware of the model policies and is reviewing the document.

“FCPS remains committed to an inclusive learning environment for each and every student and staff member including those who are transgender or gender expansive. Our schools will continue to be safe and respectful learning spaces,” Superintendent Michelle Reid said in the statement.

During this year’s legislative session, two bills related to the treatment of transgender students in schools survived a floor vote in the Republican-controlled House, marking the first time that measures targeting transgender youths have been passed by a Virginia legislative chamber.

Senate Democrats defeated both bills, one that would have required students in public schools to compete in sports under the gender they were assigned at birth, and another that would have required school administrators to notify parents if a child identified as a gender different from their biological sex.

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