Policy 5110.2 – Nondiscrimination Guidelines Related to Students Who Are Transgender and Students Nonconforming to Gender Role Stereotypes

The following guidelines relate to students who are transgender and students who do not conform to gender role stereotypes. This guideline serves two important purposes. First, significant portions of the guidelines facilitate compliance with the District’s legal obligations. Under many circumstances, an individual’s transgender or gender nonconforming status serves as a basis for legal rights and protections. Second, even where specific actions may not be required by applicable law, these guidelines are intended to further the District’s local goals concerning the creation and maintenance of positive and supportive environments that appropriately provide for the education, safety, and welfare of all students.

Scope

These guidelines are intended to apply to students on all District grounds, in all District buildings, and in all District educational environments, including any property or vehicle owned, leased or used by the school district. This includes public transportation used by District students to go to or from school. Educational environments include, but are not limited to, non-District buildings or grounds used in connection with school-sponsored activities. While the guidelines established in this rule provide important direction to District employees, students, school families, and other persons, the guidelines do not anticipate every situation that might occur with respect to students who are transgender or gender nonconforming. When an issue or concern arises that is not adequately addressed by these guidelines arise, an individual may ask the Title IX coordinator for clarification. Any such request will be assessed on an individualized basis with consultation with parents/guardians where appropriate, and a response shall be provided within fifteen (15) after being presented to the Title IX coordinator.

Guidelines

1. Definitions

The definitions below are not intended to label students but rather to assist in understanding these guidelines and the expectations of staff in complying with District policies and legal requirements. Students might or might not use these terms to describe themselves.

Agender: A term that describes a person who does not identify with any gender.

Cisgender: A term that describes a person whose gender identity aligns with the sex assigned to them at birth.

Coming Out: The process in which a person first acknowledges, accepts and appreciates their sexual orientation or gender identity and begins to share that with others.

Gender: A person’s internal sense of self as male, female, both or neither (gender identity), as well as one’s outward presentation and behaviors (gender expression). Gender norms vary among cultures and over time.

Gender-expansive: An umbrella term used for individuals that broaden their own culture’s commonly held definitions of gender, including expectations for its expression, identities, roles, and/or other perceived gender norms. Gender-expansive individuals include those with transgender and non-binary identities, as well as those whose gender in some way is seen to be stretching society’s notions of gender.

Gender Expression: How a person expresses their gender through outward presentation and behavior. This includes, for example, a person’s clothing, hairstyle, body language and mannerisms. Gender Fluid: People who have a gender or genders that change. Gender fluid people move between genders, experiencing their gender as something dynamic and changing, rather than static.

Gender Identity: An internal, deeply felt sense of being male, female, a blend of both or neither— how individuals perceive themselves and what they call themselves. One’s gender identity can be the same as or different from their sex assigned at birth.

Gender Spectrum: The broad range along which people identify and express themselves as gendered beings or not. Genderqueer: People that typically reject the binary categories of gender, embracing a fluidity of gender identity. People who identify as “genderqueer” may see themselves as being both male and female, neither male nor female or as falling completely outside these categories.

Gender Transition: The process by which some people strive to more closely align their outward identity with the gender they know themselves to be. To affirm their gender identity, people may go through different types of transitions.

Social transition: This can include a name change, change in pronouns, and/or change in gender expression (appearance, clothes, or hairstyle).

Legal transition: The process of updating identity documents, such as birth certificates and drivers’ licenses, to reflect a person’s authentic gender and name.

Medical transition: For adolescents in the early stages of puberty, this may include the use of puberty blockers to pause puberty. Medical supports may also include gender-affirming hormones to foster secondary sex characteristics (such as breasts, facial hair, and laryngeal prominence, or an “Adam’s apple”) that are aligned with the teen’s gender identity. Some adults may undergo gender-affirmation surgeries.

LGBTQ+: An acronym for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and/or questioning. Additions to this acronym can include A, for “asexual” or “ally,” and I, for “intersex.”

Non-binary: An umbrella term for gender identities that are not necessarily boy/man or girl/woman. People who identify their gender as non-binary may feel they have more than one gender, don’t identify with a specific gender, or something else altogether.

Outing: Exposing someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity to others without their permission.

Queer: A term some people use to identify themselves with a flexible and inclusive view of gender and/or sexuality. Also used interchangeably with LGBTQ+ to describe a group of people such as “queer youth.” It is also seen in academic fields, such as queer studies or queer theory. Historically it has been used as a negative term for LGBTQ+ people. Some people still find the term offensive while some embrace the term as an identity.

Sexual Orientation: Describes a person’s emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction to other people. Some examples of sexual orientations are gay, lesbian, bisexual, asexual or pansexual.

Sex Assigned at Birth: This is generally determined by external genitalia at birth–– female, male, or intersex.

Transgender or Trans: A term used to describe people who identify as a different gender from the sex they were assigned at birth. Being transgender does not imply any specific sexual orientation; transgender people may identify as straight, gay, lesbian, bisexual, etc.

Transphobia: The fear or hatred of, or discomfort with, transgender people.

2. Discrimination, Harassment and Bullying

The District prohibits all forms of discrimination against any transgender student or any student who does not conform to gender role stereotypes. Further, existing District policies that prohibit the harassment and bullying of students apply to any such actions that are based on a student’s actual or perceived transgender status or gender nonconformity. This includes ensuring that any incident or complaint of discrimination, harassment, or bullying is given prompt attention, including taking appropriate corrective and/or disciplinary action. Complaints alleging discrimination, harassment or bullying based on a person’s actual or perceived transgender status or gender nonconformity are to be handled in the same manner as other discrimination, harassment, or bullying complaints. See Policy 5110.1 and Policy 5111.

3. Restroom and Locker Room Accessibility

In most cases, a student who is transgender will be permitted to access the men’s/women’s segregated restrooms that correspond to the gender identity that the student consistently asserts at school and in other social environments. Any student who has a need or desire for increased privacy, regardless of the underlying reason, may be provided with access to a single-access restroom where such a facility is reasonably available, but no student shall be required to use such a restroom because of the student’s transgender or gender nonconforming status.

If a transgender student makes any request regarding the use of locker rooms or any similar type of changing area, the request shall be assessed on a case-by-case basis with the goals of: (a) facilitating the transgender student’s access to the District’s physical education curriculum and other relevant programs; (b) ensuring adequate student privacy and safety; and (c) minimizing stigmatization of the transgender student. The physical layout of the facility and the degree of undress required when changing for the applicable activity are examples of factors that will be considered in making the arrangements. There is no absolute rule that, in all cases, will require a transgender student to access and use only the locker rooms and other changing areas that correspond to the biological sex that the student was assigned at birth. Requests regarding the use of locker rooms or any similar type of changing area should be addressed to the building principal. The building principal shall inform the Title IX coordinator of the request and the principal and Title IX coordinator shall consult with the Superintendent to develop a response that addresses how the use of locker rooms or any similar type of changing area will be established for that student in that building. The response shall be provided within fifteen (15) school days. This deadline may be extended for good cause with notice to the requestor.

Any student who has a need or desire for increased privacy, regardless of the underlying reason, may be provided (to the extent reasonably available) with a reasonable alternative changing area (for example, a nearby restroom stall with a door, an area separated by a curtain, a physical education teacher’s office in the locker room, or a nearby single-access restroom) or provided with an alternative changing schedule. Any alternative arrangement should be provided in a way that gives adequate consideration to relevant privacy concerns.

These guidelines related to restrooms and changing areas generally assume that a student has a special concern or is in some way uncomfortable with consistently using the facilities that correspond to the biological sex that the student was assigned at birth. However, all students have the option of consistently accessing the facilities that correspond to the biological sex that the student was assigned at birth. Accordingly, the District’s willingness to address individualized concerns and requests that relate to restroom and changing area access does not mean that any student is required to establish an individualized arrangement or plan with the school.

4. Participation in Physical Education Classes and Sports Activities

A student who is transgender shall be permitted to participate in physical education classes and intramural sports in a manner consistent with the gender identity that the student regularly asserts at school and in other social environments.

Students who are transgender shall be permitted to participate in interscholastic athletics in a manner consistent with the requirements and policies of the Wisconsin Interscholastic Athletics Association (WIAA).

5. Dress Codes

Within the constraints of the District’s dress code policy and dress codes adopted by the school, students may dress in accordance with their gender identity. School personnel shall not enforce a dress code more strictly against transgender and gender nonconforming students than other students.


LEGAL REFERENCES:

CROSS REFERENCES:

APPROVED: November 17, 2020