A sexual encounter between two middle school students in a school bathroom has prompted policy changes at the district and could even mean new construction of single-stall restrooms to accommodate transgender students.

More than 70 parents -- with concerns about bathroom use and arrangements for transgender kids -- turned up at a special public forum on Thursday, seeking answers from Delsea Regional School District Superintendent Dr. Piera Gravenor

Gravenor held the open forum after local social media in Franklin Township in Gloucester County lit up over issues in the middle school.

At times during the hour-and-a-half meeting emotions began to run high as parents pressed for more details from officials.

The bathroom-use rules at the district middle school changed recently after a sexual encounter between two students -- including one who is transgender -- in a bathroom after school, parents and social media posts claimed, but Delsea administrators wouldn't give a reason, citing confidentiality rules.

"Yes, the buck stops with me. I take responsibility for everything that happens in this district," Gravenor told the crowd. But she cautioned, "there are some things -- specific students and things related to specific students -- I can't talk about."

Students were only being allowed to use the bathroom one at a time after signing in with a teacher monitor at the door keeping the door wide open, according to Thursday's night's discussion. That rule has since been relaxed to allow three students at once in some facilities, officials said, still with a monitor at the open door.

Some of the parents who spoke said they were disappointed they had to learn about the changes in the middle school bathroom policy -- and what allegedly caused it -- through social media.

Gravenor, who said she prides herself on transparency, apologized saying there would be better communication.

"I want to be honest with you, but I can't say too much," the superintendent said.

Parents were adamant about their concerns over a transgender student using the same bathroom or locker room at the same time as their son or daughter.

"You're catering to the minority, not the majority," one parent told Gravenor.

"What are we doing as a school, promoting promiscuous behavior?" another parent asked. "How do we avoid the bathrooms becoming the mistletoe?"

Gravenor said according to state law a transgender student can use the bathroom or locker room of the gender they identify with.

Andrew Lee, the board solicitor, said last year then-Gov. Chris Christie signed a law which directed the commissioner of education to draw up rules for schools on transgender students, but districts are still waiting for the directives.

The guidelines are to help schools address the needs of transgender students and establish policies that "ensure a supportive and nondiscriminatory environment" for those students, according to a NJ Advance Media report on the bill last summer.

Schools will be expressly told that they cannot force transgender students to use bathrooms or locker rooms that conflict with their gender identity. Instead, schools would be mandated to provide "reasonable alternative arrangements if needed to ensure a student's safety and comfort."

Delsea itself adopted a policy on transgender students in 2015 which says, in part, "no student will be subjected to discrimination on the basis of gender identity or expression."

Pressed on providing more single-stall bathrooms, Gravenor said she had already contacted an architect to survey facilities.

She told one parent, however, she could have 100 of these bathrooms, but cannot force any certain student to use them. Gravenor also said she was going to create an advisory panel on the issue and asked for volunteers to contact her.

"Obviously this is an issue that has come to the forefront now that I think no one has really thought about before," said Jason Brandt, a Franklin Township Board of Education member. Franklin is one of Delsea Regional's sending districts. "Nobody really has the golden answer of how to deal with these situations so I guess they just are going to have to work through it.

"I was happy the parents who came appeared to really wanted answers to their questions and ... I hope that they got the answers they wanted," Gravenor said. "I know they didn't all leave happy, but they all left with answers. This is new territory for us."

Bill Gallo Jr. may be reached at bgallo@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Bill Gallo Jr. on Twitter @bgallojr. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips