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Transgender issue reaches Brooke board

WELLSBURG — On Monday the Brooke County Board of Education heard from parents opposed to a transgender child’s use of the girls’ restroom at Jefferson Primary School.

About a dozen parents and others attended the meeting, presenting a petition signed by about 150 residents urging the board to establish a unisex restroom at the school for the transgender child’s use.

The child, a boy biologically who identifies as a girl, has been permitted to use the girls restroom, which has made some girls at the school uncomfortable, according to the petition.

The petition states while such girls have been permitted to use a different restroom at the school, that should be done for the transgender child.

Ashley Smart, a parent of a Jefferson Primary pupil, told the board the state Department of Education has set no policy for transgender restroom use and President Obama’s interpretation of Title IX of the federal Education Amendments of 1972 is being challenged legally.

Title IX states, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.”

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch has said the Obama administration’s interpretation was intended to protect transgender students from discrimination.

Another parent, Nate Taliani, noted West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey is among nine state attorneys general who have filed suit against the Obama administration in opposition.

Taliani also noted Morrisey has issued a letter to the West Virginia superintendent of schools, state Department of Education and all county school boards stating Title IX refers to those who are biologically male or female and makes no reference to gender identification.

He called the president’s interpretation a case of “federal overreach.”

Taliani questioned whether the president’s interpretation will lead to male and female athletes sharing locker rooms and showers.

He said he and his wife have encouraged their children not to judge those who are different “but I wouldn’t be a good parent if I didn’t stand up for my children’s rights.”

Taliani said the board is in an unenviable position.

“You are damned if you do, damned if you don’t,” he said, but concluded, “If you’re going to be damned, why not do it by having the backbone to support the rights of the majority of students?”

In a prepared statement, Board President Brian Ferguson said, “The school board has each student’s privacy and best interests at heart, and if there is concern about anything, then an individual may report the same to the principal and if accommodations can be made, they will be made.”

He continued, “However, tolerance and working together no matter our differences is an important part of the learning process in school. The board will not tolerate the targeting of any student by parents, fellow students or the news.

“In compliance with law, this board and its employees have worked tirelessly in the attempt to provide a safe and nondiscriminatory educational setting, and the board will continue to do so. The board values everyone’s beliefs and thoughts, and we will work together to provide a tolerant, safe and nurturing educational environment for our children.

“Title IX requires that an individual be allowed to use the restroom with the gender he or she identifies. The board’s ongoing practice is to follow the law, allow any student to use the restroom privately if he or she desires, and the board routinely has employees supervise bathrooms in primary schools to ensure appropriate behavior.

“Whatever their differences may be, all children in our schools are our students, and we strive to provide an environment where they may grow into educated and caring adults.”

Parents of the transgender child have been interviewed by other news outlets but couldn’t be reached for comment.

In other business, the board:

• Moved to dissolve a joint resolution with the Brooke County Commission calling for the school board to pay about $42,000 per year for legal assistance provided by the county prosecutor’s office.

Chad Haught, the board’s vice president, said a previous board approved the payments because the prosecutor, then part-time, had been charged with a larger amount of work for the board.

Haught said the prosecutor’s office is required by statute to represent the school board and will continue to do so, but dissolution of the agreement was seen as a way to cut costs at a time when enrollment and revenue is declining.

• Approved the hirings of Debbie Murdock as an aide and autism mentor at Follansbee Middle School, Jason Williamson as a game day manager for the high school’s winter sports, Michael Lanigan and Larry Hood as assistant varsity boys basketball coaches at the high school; Marilyn McGowan as advisor of the Key Club; and Kimberly Kerr as subsitute bus driver.

It also accepted the resignation of Robin Lahita, a special education aide who is retiring.

(Scott can be contacted at wscott@heraldstaronline.com.)

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