Virginia Regulatory Town Hall View Comments

Department of Education

State Board of Education

Guidance Document Change: Every day, throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia, educators and school leaders work to ensure that all students have an opportunity to receive a high-quality education. As a part of that work, educators strive to meet the individual needs of all students entrusted to their care, and teachers work to create educational environments where all students thrive. The Virginia Department of Education (the “Department”) recognizes that each child is a unique individual with distinctive abilities and characteristics that should be valued and respected. All students have the right to attend school in an environment free from discrimination, harassment, or bullying. The Department supports efforts to protect and encourage respect for all students. Thus, we have a collective responsibility to address topics such as the treatment of transgender students with necessary compassion and respect for all students. The Department also fully acknowledges the rights of parents to exercise their fundamental rights granted by the Fourteenth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to direct the care, upbringing, and education of their children. The Code of Virginia reaffirms the rights of parents to determine how their children will be raised and educated. Empowering parents is not only a fundamental right, but it is essential to improving outcomes for all children in Virginia. The Department is mindful of constitutional protections that prohibit governmental entities from requiring individuals to adhere to or adopt a particular ideological belief. The First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution guarantees religious freedom and prohibits the government from compelling speech that is contrary to an individual’s personal or religious beliefs. The Department embarked on a thorough review of the Model Policies Guidance adopted on March 4, 2021 (the “2021 Model Policies”). The 2021 Model Policies promoted a specific viewpoint aimed at achieving cultural and social transformation in schools. The 2021 Model Policies also disregarded the rights of parents and ignored other legal and constitutional principles that significantly impact how schools educate students, including transgender students. With the publication of these 2022 Model Policies (the “2022 Model Policies”), the Department hereby withdraws the 2021 Model Policies, which shall have no further force and effect. The Department issues the 2022 Model Policies to provide clear, accurate, and useful guidance to Virginia school boards that align with statutory provisions governing the Model Policies. See Code of Virginia, § 22.1-23.3 (the “Act”). Significantly, the 2022 Model Policies also consider over 9,000 comments submitted to the Department during the public comment period for the 2021 Model Policies.

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9/27/22 10:04 am

Commenter: Christie Voltz

Strongly oppose Gov. Youngkin’s transgender policies

The policies Gov. Youngkin’s has presented are harmful to not only our trans kids, but harmful to their families, their friends, and the adults in schools that care about them. Parent involvement is always encouraged, and parents should be the first to be contacted and communicated with about their child’s educational progress or challenges. They should also be contacted with any issue that could impact their child’s health and safely EXCEPT of the well-being of the student would be jeopardized by contacting the parent. Gov. Youngkin stated that a parents involvement should always been seen as supporting their child- except there are many examples where a parent is abusive (verbally, emotionally, physically, sexually) and neglectful. This is why school staff are all considered mandated reporters- if they see signs of abuse/neglect they are the first line of defense in calling Child services to ensure a child is safe. If a student is indicating that communicating their gender identity/sexual orientation will put them at risk, you are asking teachers to go against everything they have been trained to do. By ignoring the very real harm these policies pose to trans kids is absolutely failing these kids. And failing the teachers trying to do their job.

My child is non-binary and uses they/them pronouns. They use a name other than the one given at birth. Their school has been respectful and supportive and this my child feels safe. Now- just knowing their well-being and safety is not included in this “we care about ALL students” has made them unsure & anxious.

The VA general assembly voted into law the policies protecting trans kids- how are we debating about just reversing those when state law indicates otherwise? Alexandria City Public Schools has already indicated they would NOT implement policies rolling back trans kids protections- FCPS should follow suit and STRONGLY support ALL kids- including trans kids.

CommentID: 145733