Fairfax Schools Freak Out Over Youngkin Transgender Policy

The Fairfax County Public School system (FCPS) is having a meltdown over the Youngkin administration’s revised Model Policy for dealing with transgender issues in Virginia schools.

As previously reported, the Virginia Department of Education recently rescinded the previous administration’s model transgender policy and replaced it with a new one.  See “Youngkin Administration Revamps Model Transgender Policies,” Sept. 17, 2022.  Fairfax County’s school Superintendent immediately expressed concern and stated that the leadership team would consider how to respond.  See “Fairfax School Superintendent Reacts to Youngkin Transgender Policy; Fairfax Schools Monitor Responds,” Sept. 20, 2022.

The school system has not yet announced whether it will comply with the new policy or fight it.  In the meantime, however, some in FCPS are freaking out.  Following up on the Superintendent’s letter, high school principals felt the need to repeat and reemphasize her message.  In addition, the FCPS human resources department sent a “Dear Colleague” letter to all teachers and staff, offering counselling services to employees who might be upset.  And at least one teacher has urged her students to stage a walkout to protest the policy.

Letter to High School Students, Families and Teachers

A letter signed by “The High School Principals of Fairfax County Public Schools” was sent last week to all Fairfax high school students, teachers, staff, parents and guardians.  It states that “we [the principals] understand the angst amongst our LGBTQIA+ students, staff and community caused by the recent proposed model policy.”  The principals tell everyone they “are committed to providing every student, staff and community member a welcoming, supportive culture that is based on equity and mutual respect.”  This culture emphasizes “a vibrant, healthful, safe, enriching, and respectful environment.”

The unstated premise of the Superintendent’s and Principals’ letters is that preexisting Fairfax County transgender policy does provide a vibrant, healthful, safe, enriching and respectful environment for everyone whereas the new Model Policy does not.  In fact, the opposite is true.

The FCPS transgender policy (Regulation 2603.2) is totally one-sided, elevating the interests and supposed welfare of a tiny minority over the rights and interests of everyone else.  The regulation allows the school system to keep secrets from parents about a child’s gender identity issues, thereby violating fundamental parental rights, which are embodied in Virginia statutory law.  It permits a biological male who asserts transgender status to compete in girls’ athletic events, thereby threatening the safety and interests of  the girls.  And it gives these biological males an absolute right to use the girls’ locker rooms and bathrooms in violation of the girls’ privacy rights and safety interests.

It is false to say that the FCPS regulation provides “every” student a “welcoming, supportive culture that is based on equity and mutual respect.”  There is no mutuality about it, and it is definitely not welcoming to all.  The regulation represents the far left end of the ideological spectrum.  The Superintendent’s and Principals’ letters seem to view the issues solely from the perspective of the rare student who questions his or her gender identity, as if his or her desires must prevail over everyone else’s.  This distorted approach is what the Model Policy attempts to rectify.

Letter from Assistant Superintendent for Human Resources

The letters from the Superintendent and the high school principals apparently weren’t enough.  On September 19 the head of the Human Resources Department, Sherry Wilson, wrote to all “FCPS Colleagues” to offer counselling for the angst that the Model Policy might be causing.  She stated that “it is certainly understandable that this news may take time for some of us to process.”  Some employees, she suggested, might be feeling “anxious, frustrated, or overwhelmed.” Therefore, she reminded everyone that counseling and other resources were available through FCPS on a 24/7 basis.

What is it about the Model Policy that could cause a person who is emotionally balanced enough to interact with our kids to suffer such trauma?  The Policy does not affect the rights of FCPS teachers or staff in any way.  It merely permits parents to make important decisions about the upbringing of their children and prohibits transgender students from unreasonably interfering with the safety and privacy rights of students of the opposite biological gender.  If teachers and staff members are having a conniption about this, one must wonder about their basic emotional health.

The Human Resources letter also prompts a question:  When the FCPS transgender policy was issued, and during the time it has been in effect, did FCPS ever send letters to all teachers and staff to acknowledge that that policy might make some of them feel “anxious, frustrated, or overwhelmed”?  It most assuredly did upset many, for not everyone favors keeping secrets from parents, not everyone believes it is proper to treat a student’s expression of gender dysphoria as definitive establishment of permanent transgender identity, and not everyone supports biological males competing in girls’ sports and using girls’ private undressing areas.  But these employees presumably were expected to suppress their feelings.  This is just one more illustration of the unbalanced approach of FCPS to ideologically-charged issues like this.

Email Urging Student Walkout

At least one Fairfax County teacher has gone so far as to urge her students to stage a walk-out from classes on September 27 to protest the Model Policy.  Nicole Borghard, a history and social studies teacher at West Potomac High School posted a course update that mischaracterized the Model Policy and claimed that it “discriminates against the LGBTQIA+ community.”  Without explanation, she stated that “the policy as written may cause students to be outed.”  She informed the students that “Pride Liberation Project” was organizing a protest and walk-out for September 27, and she urged students to “please come and show your support.”

The teacher’s conduct is a clear violation of FCPS’ Controversial Issues Policy (Regulation 3280.4), which requires teachers to be impartial and objective when controversial issues arise.  Her conduct also violates Regulation 4426.5, which provides that “employees … shall not attempt to indoctrinate students with [their] personal political and social philosophy.”  And it improperly urges students to engage in unexcused absences from classes in violation of FCPS Policy 2232.4.

Two questions:

1.  Will the teacher be disciplined for her improper conduct?
2. What would happen if the shoe were on the other foot?  That is, what would happen if a teacher protested the FCPS’ existing transgender policy, and urged students to walk out to support the new Model Policy?  Would they be treated the same way that this teacher will be?

Conclusions

The FCPS leadership has not yet announced whether they will defy the Department of Education’s Model Policy.  At least for now, however, the school system is acting as if the Policy is a radical, traumatic event.

The truth is that the Policy is a middle-of-the-road roadmap for dealing with transgender issues.  It mandates nondiscrimination, non-bullying and compassion for students with gender-identity issues.  It counsels making reasonable accommodations, whenever feasible, for transgender students who would prefer not to use the bathrooms and locker rooms associated with their biological gender.

What some in the FCPS leadership object to are policies providing (i) that schools may not keep secrets from parents, or override parents’ decisions regarding the names or pronouns to be used by their children, or provide “gender affirming” counselling to students without parental consent, (ii) that students must use the bathrooms and locker rooms of their biological gender unless reasonable accommodations can be arranged elsewhere, and (iii) that students must compete in school athletic events in accordance with their biological gender.  These are common-sense rules that would be supported by the great majority of Fairfax citizens in any objective poll.

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