Virginia Regulatory Town Hall
Agency
Department of Education
 
Board
State Board of Education
 
Guidance Document Change: The Model Policies for the Treatment of Transgender Students in Virginia’s Public Schools guidance document was developed in response to House Bill 145 and Senate Bill 161, enacted by the 2020 Virginia General Assembly, which directed the Virginia Department of Education to develop and make available to each school board model policies concerning the treatment of transgender students in public elementary and secondary schools. These guidelines address common issues regarding transgender students in accordance with evidence-based best practices and include information, guidance, procedures, and standards relating to: compliance with applicable nondiscrimination laws; maintenance of a safe and supportive learning environment free from discrimination and harassment for all students; prevention of and response to bullying and harassment; maintenance of student records; identification of students; protection of student privacy and the confidentiality of sensitive information; enforcement of sex-based dress codes; and student participation in sex-specific school activities, events, and use of school facilities.
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1/5/21  1:40 pm
Commenter: George

Remove statement - unclear, confusing, vague, violates DOE regulatory enrollment guidelines
 

Remove this statement.  Policy contradicts the enrollment status of students and violates safety and security of other students. (will pose legal and lawsuits against schools)   This policy statement violates the PUBLIC SCHOOL EDUCATIONAL Mission.  School staff, parents are partnering for success of students and NOT hiding-consealing information.  The first sentence does not map to second sentence (remove all together or re-write for comment)

The first sentence contradicts the use of biological references in other policy statements that say remove references BUT then references it below. (what is a biological male if you are now saying remove all references to male/female) How will you know if there is a biological male in a room?  Therefore PUBLIC SCHOOLS Have an Enrollment process that provides accountability and identifies ALL students.   

Recommend removing - all together this statement is not clear and concise 

Schools would be prohibited from notifying parents if a biological male is using the same changing facility as their daughter that was designated for girls.

“In addition to adhering to all legal standards of confidentiality, school personnel shall treat information relating to a student’s transgender status as being particularly sensitive, shall not disclose it to other students and parents, and shall only disclose to other school personnel with a legitimate educational interest.” (Draft Policy, p.12)

CommentID: 88321