A Maryland school district's new policy to prohibit schools from notifying parents if their daughters are sleeping in the same area with transgender males on overnight field trips is being contested by county officials, according to The Washington Times.



Anne Arundel County Executive Steven R. Schuh sent a letter last Wednesday to Board of Education President Stacy Korbelak asking her to reconsider the policy, the report said.

"We would like to take this opportunity to express our concerns regarding the manner in which the Board of Education is implementing its non-discrimination policy as it applies to gender identity and transgender students," Schuh, along with education officer Amalie E. Brandenburg, said in the letter.

The letter was addressed in the wake of an Anne Arundel training video, which was posted online in July, instructing teachers and administrators not to tell parents if their daughters are sleeping in the same area as transgender males on overnight field trips.

"They don't want to sleep in a room by themselves, they want to sleep with the rest of the females, so what do we do?" Bob Mosier, chief communications officer for the district, said in the video published on July 12. "And the answer is they sleep with the females. That's not the easy answer; it's the right answer."

"And in some cases it's going to cause issues, because … the private information piece doesn't allow you to share that with parents of all of the other campers," he said. "Right? So that's difficult."

Following the video, a set of guidelines was released by the Anne Arundel County school system to principals and administrators last week regarding how to accommodate transgender students, the report stated.

"Students participating in overnight field trips and camps shall have access to facilities that correspond to their outwardly and consistently expressed gender identity," the handbook says.

"Any student who is uncomfortable sharing a common sleeping area, shower, bathroom, etc. or who has a need for increased privacy, regardless of the reason, shall, upon the student's request, be provided with a designated safe and non-stigmatizing alternative," it continues.

Anne Arundel's policy toward transgender students was enacted before President Barack Obama issued an edict in May compelling public schools nationwide to regulate sex-specific intimate facilities on the basis of gender identity.