Supporting the Transgender Student

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That was the name of one of the workshops that I attended today. We got to choose the ones we attended so this was one that I wanted to go to and to learn from. They didn't really go into what a transgender student is pretty much because everyone knows. Primarily it was about what the law says and what our district's policy is about the students, their paperwork, their rights, etc. Most of the legal part is about Title IX (no sexual discrimination), freedom of speech/expression, and one other one that I'm forgetting. That's what our district's policy was primarily based on--the law. I learned that we have to use the pronouns that the student wants us to use. (Duh) I would think that every educator would know that but apparently one is being sued by a student's parents for refusing to do so. (not in our district) I learned that they are free to use whichever bathroom they feel most comfortable in. . . including the one in the nurse's office. Same goes for changing in locker rooms. Also these students do not have to submit any type of paperwork (doctor's note, court order, etc.) in order to have these rights or to change their name/sex on their school records and diploma. One thing that DID surprise me was that the NJ high school sports association states that transgender athletes can compete on teams for their gender identity--they don't have to play on teams of their biological identity. It was good to learn about the school's policy for transgender students. I have had a few over the years and a lot of it was a gray area for me aside from respecting them and keeping an eye out for bullying.