.......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... .......... ..........

Copyright © 2016 Albuquerque Journal

Santa Fe Public Schools quietly has approved rules to protect transgender students from discrimination, while Albuquerque district administrators are still working on a similar policy amid outcry over bathroom and locker room access.

Leah O’Shell, SFPS’s director of family and community engagement, said the new regulations went into effect in early March, though they have not been posted online or presented to the district board.

Administrators were waiting to publicize the changes because they are creating an online bullying and discrimination reporting form that they want to roll out at the same time, according to O’Shell.

ADVERTISEMENTSkip

................................................................

Still, the policy has cleared every hurdle – the board’s formal backing is not required.

Under the regulations, transgender students receive a number of protections, including the right to use bathrooms and locker rooms that align with their gender identity; a child born biologically male who identifies as female is able to go into girls’ facilities.

Transgender students can also list their preferred name on a new form that uploads to the district computer system.

A similar policy proposal at Albuquerque Public Schools has ignited heated debate – roughly 20 people spoke against allowing transgender kids to choose their bathrooms at the April 6 board meeting – but O’Shell is not expecting this kind of backlash in the City Different.

“I really don’t feel like in Santa Fe we’ll get that much push back,” she said, citing openly gay Mayor Javier Gonzales and a recent ordinance that makes single-stall bathrooms gender neutral.

SFPS started looking at gender identity issues last year after a few parents asked to switch their transgender children to different schools over concerns about bullying, O’Shell said.

Administrators consulted with the Envision Fund, an LGBT group created by the Santa Fe Community Foundation, and modeled their policy on one created by San Francisco’s school district.

To receive the bathroom and locker room accommodations, transgender students or their parents meet with school administrators.

“We don’t put anything in writing, we just make sure that the student is comfortable and able to use the facility of their choice,” said Theresa Baca, SFPS chief of staff.

In the fall, district staff “from principals to secretaries” will receive training about the new regulations.

“I think this is a wonderful thing for our students to have,” O’Shell said.

Outcry at APS

The sentiment at APS is more mixed.

Outcry began March 9 during a Board of Education policy committee meeting where administrators presented a draft transgender procedural directive for input.

Board member Peggy Muller-Aragón said she worried that the proposed bathroom rules would expose children to “the body parts of the opposite sex,” potentially traumatizing them and setting the district up for lawsuits.

In response, about 100 supporters of transgender rights arrived at the next regular board meeting on March 16 and filled an hour of public comment with calls for action.

Ten people objected to the proposal that night, followed by roughly 20 on April 6.

Many of the critics said that kids will feel uncomfortable sharing restrooms and locker rooms with transgender people. A few expressed the view that being transgender violates natural boundaries between male and female, even comparing transgender feelings to mental illness.

As in Santa Fe, the APS board does not have to approve the directive. Instead, it will come before acting Superintendent Raquel Reedy’s leadership committee for the final go-ahead sometime before the end of the school year.

Administrators are also working on details regarding what steps students must take to declare themselves transgender.

APS has cited legal arguments for crafting their directive: The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has started investigating complaints of transgender discrimination, deciding in favor of a Chicago-area transgender student last year.

The office concluded that the Palatine, Ill., district violated Title IX – a federal requirement for gender equity in education – because the transgender high school student was denied access to the girls’ locker rooms.

Rio Rancho approach

Meanwhile, Rio Rancho Public Schools has no plans to create any new regulations for transgender students, instead continuing to address each situation individually, according to Tonna Burgos, executive director of student services.

While transgender students are protected under the district’s anti-discrimination policy, there are no specific written directives about things like bathroom access.

In practice, transgender students are allowed to use the bathroom and locker room of their choice, Burgos said.

She estimated that RRPS assists one or two transgender students each year.

“We have been really supportive,” Burgos said. “The students are the focus. Everyone has a right to feel safe.”