SLO County school board will discuss trans bathrooms, sports
The Paso Robles school district will officially discuss questions about transgender bathrooms and trans students’ participation in sports at a school board meeting in February.
The decision to agendize the discussion comes after months of the topic resurfacing at school board meetings, with conservative trustee Kenney Enney pushing for the district to consider a resolution on the issue.
The board previously refused to take up the resolution suggested by Enney, or take other action on the topic, largely due to the ongoing legal tension between federal directives and California law when it comes to the rights of transgender students and athletes.
The board decided Tuesday to bring the issue forward as an information item in February — meaning trustees will discuss the issue but not take action to approve any changes to the current policies or stances of the district.
Paso Robles students speak out at school board meeting
Tuesday’s decision came in light of public comment on both sides of the issue.
Aster Watson, president of the Paso Robles High School Queer Student Union, spoke before the board in allegiance with transgender students who he said “have been facing discrimination due to misconceptions and prejudices that I, as a representative of my community, cannot stand for.”
Watson recounted his own experiences with students who he said have threatened to hurt him, thrown trash at him, verbally harassed him and mimed explicit actions in mockery.
“These are things that have actually happened to me, not assumptions of what might happen,” he said.
Watson said he received support from teachers but felt that other school staff weren’t responsive to the allegations. He never learned if the students faced consequences, he said.
Randall Jordan, chairman of the SLO County Republican Party, urged the board to defy state law on the issue.
“You should have your own backbone and be able to say, ‘This is not right, and we’re not going to stand for it,’” he said.
Several female students also showed up to speak on the issue.
Student Chloe Breese said she and her friends felt “uncomfortable, anxious and unheard” regarding their concerns about transgender students’ inclusion in girls bathrooms, locker rooms and athletics.
“Wanting a level playing field and physical safety should not be dismissed as discrimination,” she said. “We are not asking to exclude or harm anyone. We are asking for balance, fairness and a solution that respects everyone involved. It should be possible to support transgender students while also protecting rights, privacy and safety for female students.”
Because the topic of transgender facility use was not on the agenda Tuesday, the board discussed the item at the end of the meeting during trustee comment.
Enney urged the board to put the topic on the agenda and suggested renting trailers to provide separate dressing rooms for transgender students — something superintendent Jennifer Loftus addressed later in the meeting.
When it comes to facilities use for trans students, Loftus said, solutions aren’t simple.
“The law is that you have to provide both male and female restrooms and gender-neutral, and at the end of the day, every student gets to decide which they want to use,” she said.
She continued: “And so just bringing in a trailer ... that solution is not just an easy fix.”
Trustee Jim Cogan said he thought the board should wait for the Supreme Court to make a decision before making any decisions on the issue. The Supreme Court is currently deliberating the merit of state laws that ban transgender athletes from participating on women’s sports teams, like in West Virginia and Idaho.
Cogan specifically highlighted funding that could be lost if the district decided not to follow state law.
“I don’t want to put any of our funds in jeopardy in a role that isn’t really ours,” he said.
Most of the trustees indicated they were open to having the topic return to the board as an information item in February, where they will be able to hear and discuss information from the school district.
Loftus said bringing back an information item on the topic could allow the board to look at the law, look at what the district’s options are within the law, and allow trustees to consider solutions that would be “palatable to our community and supportive of our students.”
Loftus also added that the district does investigate claims of harassment and bullying brought forward by students, and she indicated she wanted to learn more about the incidents outlined by Watson earlier in the meeting.
The board ultimately directed staff to bring the information item back in February.
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