Good Morning, Jay. This is yet another hot button issue with which Boards of Education throughout the state have been struggling since 2016.
Policy 5756 is, itself, just a Board Policy. It is your internal rule which your Board adopted and follows. However, the facilities access language in your Policy comes directly from state law. N.J.S.A. 18A:36-41, adopted into law on July 21, 2107. That
law expressly requires various accommodations and rights for transgender students. To clarify things (and with the hope that you are not reading this on your phone), I am attaching the entire content of the State law below.
Although the law speaks about the Commissioner of Education establishing guidelines, the law is also clear that those guidelines "shall include" certain key provisions, which are highlighted in the text below.
We can discuss this with the Policy Committee, but in this case, your hand is really forced by the State law.
18A:36-41. Guidelines concerning transgender students
a. The Commissioner of Education shall develop and distribute to school districts guidelines concerning transgender students. The purposes of the guidelines shall be to provide direction
for schools in addressing common issues concerning the needs of transgender students, and to assist schools in establishing policies and procedures that ensure a supportive and nondiscriminatory environment for transgender students.
b. The guidelines developed by the commissioner shall include, but not be limited to, information and guidance regarding the following:
(1) definitions of terms relevant to an understanding of transgender issues, including gender identity, gender expression, and transgender person;
(2) maintaining a safe and supportive learning environment that is free from discrimination and harassment for transgender students, including students going through a gender transition;
(3) confidentiality and privacy concerns, including ensuring that school personnel do not disclose information that may reveal a student's transgender status except as allowed by law, and
advising schools to work with the student to create an appropriate confidentiality plan regarding the student's transgender or transitioning status;
(4) procedures for school records, including maintaining a separate official record for each student that contains the student's legal name and biological gender and changing a student's
official record upon receipt of documentation of a legal change in name or gender;
(5) ensuring that a transgender student is addressed at school by the name and pronoun preferred by the student that corresponds to the student's gender identity, regardless of whether a
legal name change or change in official school records has occurred;
(6) issuing school documentation such as student identification cards in the name preferred by the student that corresponds to the student's gender identity, and permitting a transgender
student to dress in accordance with the student's gender identity;
(7) providing a transgender student with the same opportunities to participate in physical education as other students, and permitting the student
to participate in physical education in accordance with the student's gender identity;
(8) permitting a transgender student to participate in gender-segregated school activities in accordance with the student's gender identity;
(9) use of restrooms and locker rooms, including not requiring a transgender student to use a restroom or locker room that conflicts with the student's
gender identity, and providing reasonable alternative arrangements if needed to ensure a student's safety and comfort;
(10) ensuring that school counselors are knowledgeable regarding issues and concerns relevant to transgender students; and
(11) permitting and supporting the formation of student clubs or programs regarding issues related to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth.
c. The guidelines shall include information on organizations or other resources available to students and parents that provide support to transgender individuals.
d. The commissioner shall periodically review the guidelines developed pursuant to this section, and shall update or modify the guidelines, as appropriate, in accordance with current State
or federal laws and regulations concerning the rights of transgender students.