GSAFE Applauds Federal Title IX Guidance for Accommodating Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Students in Schools
On the eve of GSAFE’s 20th Celebration of Leadership Scholarship and Awards banquet, the U.S. Department of Education and the Department of Justice issued a “Dear Colleague” letter that provides significant guidance for schools that receive federal funding on how to support and include transgender students. The guidance makes clear schools’ responsibility to treat transgender student according to their gender identity and cannot ban transgender students from using facilities that match the gender.
GSAFE Senior Director of Education and Policy, Brian Juchems, praised the guidance.
“This is a victory for transgender students, their families, and educators,” said Juchems. “This guidance caps off what has already been for historic week for transgender people in our country. This reinforces U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch’s earlier message that the federal government clearly sees and is standing firmly behind transgender people – including transgender youth.”
“Dozens of Wisconsin school districts already use best practices that support and affirm the transgender students,” Juchems added. “For over 10 years GSAFE has worked with Wisconsin school districts to pass and implement policies that support transgender and non-binary students. We hope that these guidelines will be further impetus for all Wisconsin school districts to do the same. We will continue to support and be a resource to school districts who wish to implement best practices. ”
Along with the “Dear Colleague” letter, the Department of Education also issued a 25-page document with examples of “policies and emerging best practices for supporting transgender students.”
“It is also a strong rebuke of elected officials who doggedly push legislation that would force schools to single out transgender students for unequal and discriminatory treatment, as well as violate Title IX,” said Juchems.