By VERNON ROBISON
Moapa Valley Progress
Regional education advocates are urging parents of Moapa Valley school children to attend, and speak up at, an upcoming public meeting that they fear could affect the fundamental atmosphere and experience for students in school.
On Monday, January 29, the Clark County School District (CCSD) Board of Trustees is holding a meeting in Las Vegas to hear the recommendations of a special workgroup tasked with drafting a gender diversity policy for the district. Though the full agenda for the meeting was not yet posted in time for publication, many are expecting the board to take final action in adopting the new district-wide policy.
Local parent Erika Whitmore, who has long been engaged in the district’s gender diversity policy process, as well as sex ed curriculum issues, expressed concern that the proposal could try to address urban problems that are not an issue in rural Moapa Valley. In so doing, proposed policies could adversely affect local schools and students, she said.
“We need to realize that this may be the last chance that we have to give input on this policy,” Whitmore said last week. “The state is looking at this process very closely and particularly looking to the parents for input. It is just a really critical time to make our feelings known.”
The CCSD workgroup on a Gender Diverse policy was formed in response to a request from CCSD Trustee Carolyn Edwards. Last spring, Edwards asked district staff to consider a written policy on the matter. She asserted that the district is handling a growing number of gender diverse students on a case-by-case basis. Doing so was time-consuming for administrators and might not ensure that the needs of every student are met, she said.
The group met for several months last year and drafted a set of recommendations. In December, the group held a series of six public meetings to get public input on their proposals.
In those meetings, the work group presented an overview of their proposed recommendations. They included some broad policies meant to protect the rights of gender diverse students throughout the CCSD.
One section recommended a policy allowing students to use their preferred name and gender on an “unofficial” school record to be incorporated into the CCSD Student Information System. Students would also have the right to be addressed by the pronoun corresponding to their preferred gender identity.
Another policy in the workgroup report would require that students have access to the restrooms or locker rooms of the gender with which they identify.
Another proposed rule would result in the ability of transgender students to participate in school athletic teams of their preferred gender regardless of their biological gender.
Many trans-gender advocates came to the public meetings to speak out in favor of the proposed policies.
But parents from throughout the district, including many from Moapa Valley, also attended the meetings to speak against against the policies. They said that the recommendations were vaguely worded and allowed a lot of latitude in the details of interpretation. Many said that the proposals didn’t match the values they were teaching their children; both religious and moral. They also feared taht the policy would violate the privacy of the overwhelming majority of school kids in favor of catering to a small minority.
The workgroup document presented at the December meetings is presumably the foundation for the upcoming presentation before the Board of Trustees, according to Charlie Melvin, board member for the state-wide Power2Parent organization. A final draft of what will actually be presented on Monday night had not yet been made available as of this publication.
“We hope to have the draft before the meeting on Monday,” Melvin said in an interview last week. “But either way, that will be the time that parents will have to testify, once more time, before any action is taken by the board.”
For several years now, Power2Parent has been actively involved in the gender diversity issue, as well as the ongoing update to CCSD Sex Education curriculum. The group works to preserve the rights of parents to have a voice in educational decisions about their children. The group’s mission also includes fighting for the rights of all children to be treated with dignity and respect.
Melvin suggested that parents who disagree with the proposals come to the meeting prepared — not just to protest against the policy — but with proactive positions for moving the process forward in a way that is acceptable.
One example is in the proposals recommendations on how schools provide support to students who may be in the process of a “gender transition.” In this case, parents might advocate that the child’s parents must be brought into that process, Melvin said.
“We feel it is important that, if a child is gender diverse or is transitioning, parents must be allowed to consult on what is best for their child as accommodation plans are being developed,” Melvin said.
Melvin added that another point for possible parent input might be on how school curriculum handles gender fluidity.
“All children should be treated with dignity and with respect,” she said. “Teaching the fluidity of gender identity is not necessary to achieve this outcome and it goes against culturally important beliefs foundational to many demographics. The teaching of gender identity theory must be avoided.”
Another major sticking point for parents is the idea of sharing a bathroom or locker room with transgender students, Melvin said.
“In schools where bathrooms or locker rooms are not segregated by biological sex, facilities that accommodate protecting privacy and modesty must be provided for all students to use if they wish,” Melvin said.
These might include single locking stalls in bathrooms or locker rooms for changing. A private facility should be available for any student to change in, if they would prefer to use that, Melvin suggested.
Also the inclusion of parents in planning involving student privacy is necessary, Melvin said.
“Parental engagement is paramount to student achievement and positive outcomes in school,” she said. “Parents must be notified when situations arise that affect privacy.”
Melvin said that the Power2Parent group had long appreciated the support and involvement from many parents in the Moapa Valley community. She said that local parents have been instrumental in making positive changes to sex education updates at CCSD as well as other issues.
“The people in Moapa Valley have always been supportive of Power2Parent and the issues we are working for,” Melvin said. “In fact, you have probably been one of the strongest groups in support. So we wanted to make sure that we reached out to that community to involve them in this as well.”
Whitmore, who also serves on the Moapa Valley Education Advisory Board (MVCEAB) strongly urges local parents to make a showing at the meeting. She realizes that local people have been called upon repeatedly to make the sacrifice of time and money to travel far distances and sit in lengthy meetings. But she emphasized that this is what is needed for positive results to come about.
“It is not the first time, nor the last, that we have to defend our values for our kids and families,” Whitmore said. “But if we don’t show up, we will get exactly what we deserve. We have to come forward and be heard.”
The special CCSD Board of Trustees meeting is scheduled for Monday, January 29 at 6:00 pm at Valley High School theatre on 2839 S. Burnham Ave. in Las Vegas.
More information about the Power2Parent organization can be found at power2parent.org.
