Other districts in the state, however, are taking the opposite approach, prohibiting trans students from using restrooms that correspond with their gender identity.

Via youtube.com The Fairfax County School Board hears testimony against the nondiscrimination policy at an April 23 meeting.

The largest school district in Virginia voted late Thursday to protect transgender students from discrimination, despite pressure from conservative groups that attempted to frame the debate around whether the policy would let boys snoop in girls’ restrooms. The Fairfax County School Board passed the amendment on a 10 to 1 vote, with one member abstaining. The vote came as opponents to the proposal crowded into the meeting Thursday night, giving standing ovations to those who spoke against the amendments. The rancor between opponents and supporters at point got so heated during the meeting that security guards were called in.



Security standing by because Fairfax County Public Schools board meeting because it is so unruly

The board's decision on Thursday also bucked a pattern set by two other school districts in the state that recently banned trans students from entering single-sex facilities that correspond with their gender identity. The two divergent approaches — and focus from national organizations on both sides of the issue — are quickly distinguishing Virginia as a key battleground in the country’s debate over transgender rights in public schools. The policy approved in Fairfax County added “gender identity” to a list of characteristics — including sexual orientation and race — that the district cannot use to discriminate against a student, employee, or job applicant. The district posted a draft of the policy here. With more than 186,000 students, Fairfax is the largest school system in Virginia, and close to nation’s capital, school board member Ryan McElveen, who sponsored the measure, told BuzzFeed News. “Whenever we make a decision, it has bearing on state and national policy, and we are hoping this will bring a new age of respect and valuing of transgender and gender-nonconforming students and employees," he said. District officials estimate that there are a couple hundred students who identify as transgender or gender-nonconforming, McElveen said. Those students are already allowed to use single-sex facilities, including restrooms, that reflect their gender identity once faculty and the parents have decided it is appropriate. “We have never had a single complaint about a student's restroom use, sports team participation, or transgender staff raised to our level [on the school board]," said McElveen, "and I think that proves we have handled our cases successfully. Our policy is not changing our practices."

FAIRFAX COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD considering transgender discrimination protection against mounting opposition