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.
Previous Comment     Next Comment     Back to List of Comments
2/3/21  2:21 pm
Commenter: Sneha

Strongly Support
 

I strongly support this policy. This policy does not infringe on the rights of those who do not identify as Transgender. There are parents claiming that this infringes on their ability to teach children what their families believe about sex and gender, it does not. All this policy does, is protect children who do identify as Transgender from harm. It provides a framework that states they cannot be discriminated against for identifying as Transgender. It states they can be identified by their desired gender in official records and by school officials. It states that they have the right to keep their medical history private and follow the dress code of the gender they identify with. It also allows them to use the school facilities of the gender they identify with. None of these policies infringe on your family's right to raise your children how you believe. None of these policies are about teaching your children what to believe. It is common sense that children should be protected from harm, transgender students have special needs that are not addressed by the current school policies. This policy will ensure that they will get that protection. There is no reason not to pass this policy and no reason to not support it. 

CommentID: 95569