Get a free copy of Parental Rights & Education when you subscribe to our newsletter!
Progressive school boards in the Old Dominion keep trying to compel Christian teachers to embrace transgender ideology — even though the Virginia Supreme Court has repeatedly warned that such efforts violate Virginia’s constitution.
[UPDATE] Harrisonburg City Public Schools (HCPS) has agreed to provide accommodations for teachers who oppose the district’s policy of using a child’s preferred pronouns following a lawsuit filed by teachers and Alliance Defending Freedom.
In early 2022, HCPS instituted a policy telling teachers to “always utilize a student’s preferred name and pronouns”; what’s more, the policy held that if a student’s parents did not know their child was identifying as a different gender at school, the teachers were not to tell the parents.
Parents and teachers, with help from Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), filed suit against the school district in June 2022, claiming it was violating the teachers’ rights to the free exercise of religion and freedom of speech, as well as the rights of parents to direct the upbringing of their children and make healthcare decisions for their children.
Last week, the parties agreed to a settlement.
The district will grant accommodations to teachers and plaintiffs Deborah Figliola, Kristine Marsh, and Laura Nelson, which protects them from having to use a child’s preferred name or pronouns.
HCPS maintains in the settlement that it “does not require that staff ask students to share their pronouns; (2) HCPS does not require staff to use a preferred name or pronoun; and, (3) HCPS does not support hiding or withholding information from parents.”
The district also said it would inform teachers that such accommodation is available.
In a statement put out by ADF, Figiola celebrated the settlement, explaining:
“As teachers, we care deeply about the children entrusted to our care. We could not idly stand by while the schools’ administration enforced a policy with a radical, one-size-fits-all approach to students struggling with their gender, and that allowed parents to be pushed out of the picture. We’re thrilled for this legal victory that allows religious educators in the Harrisonburg school district to do the job we love, in a manner true to our faith.”
Kate Anderson, ADF senior counsel and director of the ADF Center for Parental Rights, added,
“Deb, Kris, and Laura—like all teachers—are protected under the Constitution to do their job in alignment with their religious beliefs, including how they refer to their students and the vital information they share with parents. We are pleased to favorably resolve this case on behalf of our clients and ensure that the Harrisonburg City School Board will respect every teacher’s right to speak consistent with her faith.”
This is only the latest case of progressive Virginia school districts pushing pronoun policies in defiance of the Virginia Supreme Court, which has already ruled in favor of Christian teachers Tanner Cross and Peter Vlaming, both of whom were fired by different school districts for refusing to use preferred pronouns.
{Published on January 17, 2022} Harrisonburg City Public Schools (HCPS) in Virginia has instituted a new policy that affirms students’ transgender identity, requires staff to use their preferred name and pronouns, and also orders staff to hide this information from parents.
A key factor in the last Virginia governor’s race was the struggle between parents and school boards with issues regarding transgender-affirming policies being one of the main points of conflict. Now another school has announced that it will also use a student’s preferred name and pronoun without parental consent or knowledge.
In a presentation entitled Supporting our Transgender Students given to staff, HCPS instructed staff to always use a student’s preferred name and pronouns. Staff were told that a student’s gender transition is confidential and that all communication should be in collaboration with the student. If parents are not aware of their child’s gender transition, staff are told not to inform parents and to use the child’s given name and sex-appropriate pronoun in communication with parents. This echoes an October presentation given by the school regarding affirming transgender students.
ADF, representing teachers and parents of students at HCPS, sent a letter demanding that the school stop these policies, claiming that they violate the Constitution.
“Our clients believe that every child should be treated with dignity and respect, and that all students must be cared for by their school community,” the letter reads. “They are mindful that an increasing number of children find themselves struggling with feelings of discomfort with their sex, and some suffer from clinical gender dysphoria. And they understand that gender dysphoria can be a serious mental-health condition that requires professional help.
However, ADF added, “Our clients are alarmed that HCPS is seeking to impose an ideologically driven one-size-fits-all approach to dealing with these delicate and sensitive issues that is harmful to children, while surreptitiously pushing parents out of the conversation. Our clients are concerned that this approach not only goes against the best interests of children enrolled in HCPS, but also violates state and federal constitutional rights.”
ADF claims that the requirement that staff always use a student’s preferred name and pronoun violates their First Amendment rights by compelling speech.
In the case of Loudoun County teacher Tanner Cross, Cross refused to follow the school’s policy of requiring teachers to use a student’s preferred pronoun and was suspended, but a court ordered the school to reinstate Cross. That ruling has since been affirmed by the Virginia Supreme Court.
ADF also claimed the policy violates parents’ rights to direct the upbringing of their children.
The organization warned of the potential harm to students, noting that the vast majority of instances of minors expressing gender dysphoria or distress about their sex desist. The letter quotes Dr. Stephen Levine who called childhood transitions “an experimental procedure that has a high likelihood of changing the life path of the child, with highly unpredictable effects on mental and physical health, suicidality, and life expectancy.”
It also quotes expert Kenneth Zucker, who said, “Parents who support, implement, or encourage a gender social transition (and clinicians who recommend one) are implementing a psychosocial treatment that will increase the odds of long-term persistence.”
HCPS is inserting itself between parents and children, pretending to know what is best for them. As ADF asserts, “The HCPS policy and practices take this life-altering decision out of parents’ hands — and knowledge — and places it with educators, who have no expertise whatsoever in these matters, and with minors, who lack the ‘maturity, experience, and capacity for judgment required for making life’s difficult decisions.’”
This is wildly inappropriate and violates parents’ rights, as well as the rights of staff, while doing lasting harm to students who need to be taught to accept and value their own sex rather than be enabled and encouraged to further accept a delusion that robs them of peace and potentially their health.
As seen in this article, many K-12 schools now embrace the secular woke agenda and are hostile to Christian beliefs and parental rights. Fortunately, parents don’t have to settle for this. Liberty University Online Academy is a K-12 program designed to educate your children in the ways of the Lord while preparing them to stand firm in their faith when they graduate. Our flexible online curriculum ensures that your student is trained at your convenience and keeps YOU the ultimate educator of your children.
