STRONGLY OPPOSE

Strongly oppose! Make a trans bathroom, sure. But this is ridiculous. I will homeschool if this passes.


Strongly Support: A Cisgender Opinion

As a cisgender member of the LGBTQ+ community, I believe it would be immoral not to support this change. Too often, I see transphobia even from within our community, let alone from the rest of the world. The comment section for this policy is a good example. Steps are needed to ensure protection, support, and respect for the transgender community, and for the education of their peers. I believe this policy to be a good start. As for those worried about bathrooms, I attended a college with gender-neutral bathrooms. Not once have I heard about any incidents. I fully support this step towards safety for all, whether they be part of a minority or the majority.


Support Transgender students and respect their parents- OPPOSE this Bill.

As a parent of 3 young boys, I strongly oppose this proposed regulation.  I support transgender students and their struggle.  I cannot in good conscience support deceiving their parents and encouraging these children to lead double lives at school and at home.  I also cannot support giving children the option to choose their gender, at school no less, and have that be reinforced by adults in authority.  Our children have a hard enough road to travel to adulthood already, please don't give them any more reason to be confused about who they are.


Oppose!

Oppose oppose! If you have a daughter then you would strongly oppose this!!! Put yourself in someone else’s shoes! This is wrong to let boys who claim to be “girls” in with girls. You must not care about women/girls to even consider it.


Strongly support!

Creating protections for transgender and non-binary students is essential to make sure all young people have the ability to feel safe and thrive in their school.


As a child, around 8 years old, I struggled for approximately 5 years with strong desires to be a boy.  This policy that is being proposed for our schools is of great concern.  Growing up, I didn’t fall into the stereotype girl category.  This caused dissatisfaction with who my body indicated I was.  However, I also did not grow up in a culture that encouraged exploration into the possibility that I might be a boy trapped in a girl’s body or that I should possibly transition into a boy.  As I grew older, I was encouraged to accept the body I was given.  Eventually, I actually became thankful for my body and glad that I am a female. (I still prefer power tools to jewelry, and cutting the grass to cooking) I see the destructive nature of this policy in that it does not really help children learn how to accept the wonderful bodies they have been given— uniting their minds and bodies as one.  Instead, it encourages the exploration and questioning of their sex being different than their bodies. This can cause a child much confusion, frustration, depression and suicide. This policy did not address the long term effects of children pursuing transitioning.  A very helpful website with discussion and resources from people who have struggled with this is livingout.org. This policy is demanding that a certain type of speech be used by teachers, staff and students.  This is not free speech, it is censured speech.  If a certain speech is not used, according to this policy, a person can be accused of discrimination and harassment.  All students, teachers and staff should treat each other with respect because each person is of great value.  There must be protection of freedom of speech, freedom of not violating ones’ conscience or belief, and protection against discrimination and harassment for ALL and not just a certain group. This is where tolerance comes in for all students, teachers and staff.  This does not mean everyone has to agree on issues, but part of learning is listening to different views respectfully. Schools should provide individual bathrooms that are available to all students. Opening up the restrooms and locker rooms to anyone who claims to belong to that sex but is biologically different is a violation of privacy and safety of those of that sex. Since this policy does not provide protection for all students, teachers and staff, it should not be approved.


Strongly Against

Against


OPPOSE!

Do we have no interest to keep our children's innocence? I will not allow my children to be subject to this disgusting idea that a child can decide to be a boy one day girl the next. Children's brains are not developed enough to make such decisions. Are we ignoring the science when it comes to our kids now? You're born a male or female. This shouldn't even be an argument. We adults need to show concern and love to those that are confused, but we don't need to have our non confused children involved in this.


Transgender

STRONGLY OPPOSED!!!


TRANS RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS

how disgusting is this community? how can you call yourselves good people? move over transphobes - get ready for a wave of equality.


Strongly oppose

Strongly oppose


I disagree

I disagree with any sports program that allows transgendered Females (Males to Females) to compete against biological females. It is not fair to the Biological Females since a Biological Male has an advantage due to testosterone making him stronger, more muscular, and usually more aggressive, giving him an advantage. I have a 11 1/2 year old Granddaughter who wrestles here in Virginia. Up until she was 10, she wrestled opponents of both sexes. At puberty, Boys become bigger and stronger, giving them an unfair advantage. I believe males should compete against males and females against females, transgendered against transgenders in contact sports at puberty, when these changes begin. Paul Christensen Leesburg, VA.


Strongly oppose!!

I strongly oppose this legislation!  This is not in the best interest of children and is outright unsafe for young girls who don't feel comfortable having boys in their dressing rooms and bathrooms.  There is no way to question any motives and even if a boy isn't transgender but had in mind to harm or assault girls in the restroom or locker room, he would not be questioned at all.  Why would we create these kinds of problems?


Oppose.

How is this even a discussion when we have so many public schools that are failing our minority students?!    African American kids deserve a quality education in a safe environment.   THAT should be the #1 priority of Virginia Public schools.


More support means a better future

Trans rights are human rights. The more we educate ourselves and our children, and create safe spaces for young people figuring out their place in the world, the better off our world will be.


STRONGLY OPPOSE

STRONGLY OPPOSE


Oppose!

strongly oppose


Strongly Oppose

This transgender model policy is in direct violation of parental rights along with trying to play God. The Virginia Department of Education's job and purpose is to provide children with an education. It is not the VDOE's job to be the parent. Instead you are developing policies that cave into the immature development and mindset of a child's gender choices and in turn labeling parents, teachers and peers as abusers for not giving the child what they want. These children need professional counseling and support from their families to help them understand why they feel they way they do. In addition, the VDOE is not God and should not attempt to redefine what God alone has created. Your model policy does not respect or value the belief of Christians or other faiths that firmly believe that God created people as distinctly male and female. You cannot force us to believe otherwise and deem us as abusive when our faith values are very clear that gender is not fluid. It is not the public school's job to affirm the psychological whim of a child. They are children. You are the adults. Please make adult decisions and implement policies that unify and help children and their families, not separate them by encouraging children to keep secrets from their parents.


STRONGLY DISAGREE. THIS IS NOT OK.

How does this even make sense? I totally disagree with everything this stands for. "Parents who encourage their God-given sex will be at risk of being reported for child abuse or neglect".....I am speechless and will certainly consider another alternative to school if this is passed.


Oppose

I strongly oppose this legislation.


Strong Support - this could save children's lives

Protecting children should be an obvious thing when it comes to school administration. LGBTQ+ kids have been bullied at higher rates than cis-het children for decades. I appreciate the thorough research and careful consideration put into development of these guiding policies, and truly believe that by making schools a more supportive environment for these children, that there will be very real impacts to reduce anxiety, depression, and suicide among children.  A child should feel safe at home and at school, and policies like these are fundamental in creating that environment for LGBTQ+ youth.


Support trans students

Trans people suffer enough harassment on a daily basis as it is. Support trans rights!!


strong support / will save lives.

trans students aren't the cause of "transgenderism", they're simply the language, community, and courage for trans youth to be "out". no child should face repercussive discriminatory action for exploring their personhood. these measures will save trans lives.


OPPOSE! PROTECT OUR CHILDREN!

This is disgusting! We and born male and female! Stop destroying our children! If children want to be gay, FINE! But they cannot change how they were born!


Strongly support ALL students in Virginia!

I strongly support ALL students in Virginia!


Statewide Transgender Policy

No child should be harmed or harassed for gender dysphoria. But this proposed policy pushes mandatory transgender political policy onto schools, teachers who disagree, children, and families. This is not about protecting kids from bullying. It is about bullying kids, teachers, and parents into promoting transgender policy against their wills and against their religiously informed consciences. This is bad policy for all Virginia's children. Children are highly moldable. This policy will convince many children to go with the crowd and have sometimes irreversible things done to their bodies before they are old enough to understand the lifelong repercussions. It also inserts the state in between the parent and the child. This is bad scientific policy. It contradicts basic DNA science and biology and encourages boys and girls to reject their own bodies. Boys and girls differ genetically in 6500 ways. Encouraging them to reject their genes is not good science or social policy. This policy is bad for Virginia's teachers. Thousands of them have conscience objections to this policy. This policy would force them to choose between serving as an educator or finding other work. We cannot afford to lose thousands of teachers at once. This is also a First Amendment issue. How much money does Virginia want to spend defending an indefensible policy when thousands of teachers sue? This policy is bad for families. Parents who love their children unconditionally yet disagree with this policy could be labeled as abusers. What happens then? Will the already overloaded state family services come in and remove the children from those homes? This policy creates an atmosphere of distrust between parents and schools. Schools are required to use the pronoun of the child's choice, despite the parent's wishes. How are parents supposed to trust teachers and administrators if they know they are required by law to lie to them? Hundreds of thousands of parents will pull their children from Virginia schools rather than subject their families to such conditions. This policy would put every biologically female student in Virginia schools in danger of sexual assault and subject adolescent girls to intolerable psychological harm as they begin to experience their periods. My three daughters graduated from Virginia schools. Boys will do ANYTHING to get sexually close to a girl, including identifying as trans. This policy will encourage sexual assault and rape. Further, no girl or woman wants a biological male--no matter how he identifies himself--in the bathroom with them when they are menstruating. And young women who try to use the boys restroom are putting themselves more at risk for bullying and rape, not less. On behalf of boys and girls, teachers and administrators, parents and families in all of Virginia, including the ones who believe they are protecting gender dysphoric children, please reject this proposed law. Respectfully, Dane Skelton Pastor, Faith Community Church South Boston, Virginia


Strongly Oppose

I strongly oppose this bill. We already have policies in place that cover discrimination, bullying and harassment of students, there is absolutely no reason to have a policy for one specific group of students. You are also proposing to take away a parents rights to know what is going on with their minor children and even threaten to remove that minor child if the parents are not supportive. We are quickly moving to a point where parents are not allowed to guide and teach their children without government intervention!


Strongly Support Trans Rights

Transgenderism is something that many students are bullied over for no reason. Trans rights are human rights, and I oppose any sort of transphobia, no matter how much it goes against the will of God. Have love for all humans.


Schools are NOT parents

Parents are the ONE AND ONLY VOICE for THEIR CHILDREN.  Schools stay out.


Support! Support our LGBT youth!

We must end the culture of shame and fear that I had to endure as a gay child in the 90s and early 00s. Trans people are valid, Trans Kids are valid!


STONGLY OPPOSE

This policy goes far deeper than  a child's sexuality. This is about the state taking away parental rights and pretending to parent the children themselves. Parents are scolded, and rightly so, because their children do not know how to behave in school and the school's hands can be tied. They are told that teachers are not babysitters but the state now wants to take all rights away from the parents and allow children to manipulate teachers and other children? I would happy be the first parent to sue the school and/ or the VDOE if a horny little boy decided he wanted to see my daughter change clothes in a locker room and was allowed to so. Their are differences in the sexes for a reason. They are kept separately for a reason. Why would the state care so little about the children they are supposed to be protecting by helping possible predators and bullys loose on innocent children. So, the state only seems to care about a few and are forsaking the whole. We have come to a new low in our society and it is being financed by our own tax dollars. If the VDOE has so little experience with children that they choose not to see the ramifications of the manipulation that is sure to follow this policy, then they need to get out of the business. The VDOE is supposed to be educating facts not legislating their own views.


Opposed

Parents should have the ability to nurture and raise their child as they see fit as long as not harm is done, ie abuse or neglect.  The government should not be allowing other people to make or influence decisions so personally connected


Trans teens are one of the most high-risk groups for suicide. Protect them.

In addition to their individual mental and emotional struggles that can occur when accepting ones gender identity, trans teens suffer huge amounts of bullying and abuse in schools, clubs, religious and community groups, and often even in their homes. This is one of the many factors that contributes to the dramatically high rate of suicide amongst young trans people. Their existence does not infringe on the rights of any other students or parents, even those who do not consider their identity as valid. No student should not have to endure abuse at their educational institution, and simple things like having bathrooms that trans students can use without fear of harassment can do a lot to alleviate the stress of being openly trans as a young person.


Virginia Transgender Policies

As a student in Rockingham County School I strongly disagree with this legislation. While it may seem inclusive for those who claim to have gender dysmorphia, it completely ignores the fact that there are others who believe there is no such thing. Parents should have a say in their child's life. Children cannot make some decisions on their own. As a Christian this goes against a lot of my beliefs. It seems as if the VA government doesnt care about people who have the same beliefs as me but rather only care about the other side. This is ridiculous. The fact that you would allow any one to "choose their gender" and go to whatever bathroom/locker room is just asking for trouble. This will cause all kinds of sexual assault issues. No doubt. This legislation is completely out of line and should NOT be adopted. I hope legislators come to their senses and see how ridiculous this is.


Strongly OPPOSE

It is incredibly irresponsible to push involuntary promotion of gender confusion in a public education setting. That should be conversation between parent, child, possibly a doctor - never the school system.


Proposed Transgender Policy

I am writing as I strongly oppose the proposed transgender policies the VA Department of Education is proposing. It goes too far in excluding parental rights (especially those of minors under the age of 18) and excluding religious freedoms. Please look to revise this. VDOE can certainly come up with something that ensures the rights of transgender individuals are protected without endangering those of others who have a personal or religious difference from them. Thank you. Geary Morris


Strongly oppose

The transgender guidelines will raise political correctness to a new level of absurdity, particularly as they relate to participation of male students in female athletic activities, and will likely hurt more students than it will help.


Support trans students

Support transgender students


STRONGLY SUPPORT

Suicide rates for trans kids are absolutely horrifying. Trans kids face discrimination in schools not only from their classmates, but also from their teachers and administrators at alarming rates. These kids deserve to be safe from that kind of hatred, and legislation like this might create one more protective factor for some of our most vulnerable Virginians.


Strongly support

As a mental health professional and transgender person, I am speaking on the importance of providing safe and healthy school climates for transgender students. it is essential that these policies be in place to support the mental health and development of students. I can imagine my school experience being a much better one had these policies been in place.


Oppose transgender policy

Strongly oppose transgender policy-especially locker room/bathroom access and not honoring parents wishes for children under 18.


STRONGLY SUPPORT

Please support trans kids & let them have a normal school experience, every kid deserves to feel safe and welcomed in school. Not sure how that’s controversial.


Absolutely Not

Please consider other options.


Against transgender bathroom plans for schools

I don’t feel this is a good option to do in our school systems.


Strongly support

i strongly support these measures and urge those opposed or hesitant to make space for trans students in their vision of the future of education. These measures will help trans students feel welcomed, and every student must feel welcomed before any student can learn and grow.


Strongly support human rights

Trans rights are human rights. Also for all of you bringing up Jesus... you do know he loved everyone? I am a huge believer in the separation of church and state but if we are going to get religious please don't use my boy Jesus as an excuse to hate.


Strongly oppose

This policy goes against parent's right and alienates non-trans gender children.  Parents must be notified if their own children have requested to referred to as something other than their natural gender.  That child needs help and the parent, not the school should choose how to help them. Additionally, our children should not be subject to changing clothes or using restroom facilities around those of the opposite gender.  This is opening a door to sexual assault that you cannot easily close. Please think of the 99.5% of children and not the tiny percentage of transgenders. Thank you.


Transgender policies

If you are going to accuse me of child abuse for buying my DAUGHTER dresses.  Are the parties who wants this to be real going to explain to her why she can't and children born as boys can???  THIS IS RIDICULOUS.  Let the PARENTS be PARENTS!!!!!!!!


Stop social engineering our public schools

This is a very sick bill.  Let kids be kids.  This will make matters worst.  My daughter already hates all the social garbage you are pushing on them.  These kids are smart and figure out how you legislatures are messing with them.  Leave them alone.  Don't you congress people have anything better to do that dream up how to make our society more sick.


Oppose

No way i'm letting a boy in the locker room with my 14 year old daughter


Strongly oppose

Strongly oppose.


STRONGLY SUPPORT

This will open a lot of opportunities for trans people and will remove the barriers that transphobia has placed in education and beyond. I know close friends who haven’t felt comfortable pursuing education opportunities because of transphobia in the school and the lack of support, mentors, and resources available to them to Malén their educational experience bearable. Please support this guidance and improve the opportunities an de lives of everyone.


Support Trans and NB Students

Gender diverse students are at great risk of bullying and mental health difficulties. This measure would help tremendously. I strongly support this policy.


Support!! Trans kids deserve dignity!

I strongly support this guidance document, which will protect trans and queer students in Virginia and help ensure they are treated with the respect and dignity which they deserve! As a trans Virginian I'm proud to support my community.


Support!

I support the guidance because all students deserve to feel safe, welcome, and supported!


STRONGLY OPPOSE

The same bath rooms are you serious


STRONGLY OPPOSE

It is hard enough to get kids to talk to there parents and now we encourage them to lie?


Oppose

Please look at other options this sounds like far left agenda, these are kids


Strongly Support!

I've got trans friends and family and this is necessary for youth to better live comfortably and safely.


In Proud Support of Trans Students

I am in proud support of trans students and believe it is integral to their safety to be loved, seen, and supported throughout their education. Normalizing different perspectives and identities can only enhance our communities. Trans students deserve the respect and support that any other student would get in school. I hope this paves the way for my children to have a safe, welcoming, caring, and open place as they move through their education and figuring out who they are!


Support

Support!


Spread Love and Kindness

I support the guidance because all students deserve to be in a safe and welcoming environment conducive to learning. They are all our children and our future regardless of how they identify themselves. They deserve love, respect and kindness in this world.


STRONGLY OPPOSE

Poison like this is dangerous


Strongly Oppose

I agree with you that every single child—including and especially those struggling with sexual confusion—should be protected from harm and harassment. There is no question of that. And Virginia has a good anti-bullying law. But this new, proposed policy goes way beyond prevention and crosses the line into mandatory promotion of politicized, sexualized ideology. Considering that scientific studies and medical experts make clear the majority of children outgrow gender confusion by the time they reach puberty—it’s, at best, irresponsible to push involuntary promotion of gender confusion in a public education setting—and, at worst, actually damaging to kids who are still developing. We all agree that parents should unconditionally love, nurture and protect their children regardless of the circumstances—and abuse is always wrong for any reason. The disturbing reality, though, is that this policy opens the door to defining Christian, Bible believing parents—or others of faith—who aren’t deemed to fully embrace or comply with transgender politics as “abusers.” For instance, it states that in situations “when their families are not affirming,” the school should “be prepared to support the safety and welfare of transgender students” and then encourages schools to report abuse concerns to Child Protective Services immediately. This begs the question, exactly how will “affirming” be defined and who will define it? Plus, the policy encourages schools to outright deceive parents:  It says schools should “respect” students if they don’t want their parents to know about their new transgender identity. The suggested plan for implementing this “respect”— and the policy specifically spells this out—is that, in cases where parents are not embracing or facilitating their child adopting a new gender identity (like using a new name, pronoun, etc.), then teachers can use the child’s new identity at school, but in the presence of the parent use the original legal name and so forth. Encouraging kids to lead a double life and hiding vital information from parents that could make a life-saving difference in kids’ lives is clearly not wise or safe. This policy is not safe for our children.  State education officials are not including kids’ bodily safety and privacy into their definition of “safe for all.” Because according to this policy, schools must allow boys identifying as girls, for instance, to use the girls’ bathrooms or change in female locker rooms—and this can all be done without ever notifying parents. Sadly, no one ever talks about the harm done to very young girls, for example, who feel powerless to expect physical privacy in the present of biological males—not to mention young men who don’t want to change in front of biological girls. Thank you for your consideration, Heather Sanchez


Against

What about a law to protect children & parents from being subjected to this against their will


Strongly OPPOSE!! Isaiah 5:20-21

There is a reason for the separation of Church and State. Family values are the right of the people. Schools should have no part in the breakdown of family MORALS and values. It is in my strongest belief that government is overstepping and infringing on unsafe standards for our children and all school employees should this be passed. Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweetness for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! Which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him!


STRONGLY OPPOSE

There are three genders as defined by science. Male, female and intersex. Intersex births are one in one thousand five hundred and are individuals who are born with both genitalia. Recognizing transgenders as a sex is wrong, both scientifically as well as socially. This progressive idea needs to change. It doesn’t exits in other countries and it should not exist here either. Our children do not need to learn about cross dressers and transgender people who are either male or female. Transgender is not a sex and should not be recognized as such.


Strongly Oppose

Ensuring child safety is important. Seeking to indoctrinate children with an ideology is putting their safety at risk. It is not the responsibility of government or a school system to promote agendas of any kind. Government is to enforce laws, Schools are to provide learning to provide children with tools to succeed as adults. DO NOT pass this legislation.


NO WAY

This doesn't seem right on any level


Stand for the vulnerable of our state! Support! Support! Support!

Please, please stand for the character of our state by protecting trans people!


Strongly Support as an education professional

I believe that every student deserves equal access to a safe and nurturing learning environment. We know many trans students are not afforded this experience. School needs to be the environment that protects every student (especially those who have experienced more marginalization) and for all students to learn how to be healthy citizens, to respect others who are different. This bill is the bare minimum for every school district to have in their policy. It is important even further, for specific more detailed strategies to be put into individual district policies for trans students.


Absolutely NOT!!

BAD idea. Biological males, are male. Biological females, are females!


Transgender

My wife and I are strongly against any teachings on this subject to any of our grandkids. Their parents feel the same. I don't want anyone mistreated, however we all avoid that type of person. We teach our children to not downgrade or harass them either. They may mention them to us in talking, however they are not in their social circles. A good christian and private school raised child is pretty well isolated from these public school teachings. It seems that we are going to have them in the White House anyway. I don't have to defend or like them. Thank God


Absolutely Not

Every child deserves a right to learn but this is to pushy on the majority i think other options should be considered.


Support Children deserve protection

all children deserve protection.


Strongly oppose

I believe all people need to have respect and dignity.  I am not seeing how this is a good idea for children to be left to figure who they are out and if they are struggling, for their parents not to be involved.  Who else knows and loves their children more than the childs parents?  We need to have more family less governmental/school control over our children.  Please do not pass this legislation, it is not in the best interest of our children.


Strongly Oppose!!!

Strongly oppose this lunacy! Let my daughter enjoy her HS years w/out allowing boys in her locker room or restroom!  This is nuts!


Protections and Support Needed for Transgender and non-binary students

I'm writing to support protections for transgender and non-binary students in all of Virginia's public schools. These students deserve a safe place to learn and succeed, and protections will help facilitate a positive learning environment for everyone.


STONGLY DISAGREE

This is not something the BOE should even be involved in or promoting. This is not fair for parents who do not agree that an adolescent should be making these kinds of decisions. This is something that should be up to parents to educate their children on and not learning at school. Provide the transgender kids their own bathroom facilities. The last thing that needs to happen is a 15 year old boy who just decides they are a girl in a whim to go into the girls room and have the accessibility to rape a young girl. Just because a child says they feel like they are the opposite sex one day doesn’t mean they should access to that sex’s bathroom. Kids and teens question their sexuality all the time and change their minds. They need significant therapy before an accommodation like that is made for them!


STRONGLY OPPOSED

I totally agree with one of the other comments. "It is incredibly irresponsible to push involuntary promotion of gender confusion in a public education setting." Key words are incredibly irresponsible folks. The school system should never be involved in this type of thing.


Strongly Support! Support trans youth!

For the health and wellbeing of our trans children, I support this bill. There are too many children who, when denied their right to self expression, are driven to suicide at worst and at best lasting mental trauma. What are you afraid of by opposing this policy? A transgender girl will beat your daughter at basketball because she's taller? Ridiculous.


Do not pass!! Keep our kids safe

Passing this bill will put our children (especially our girls)  in danger. Please find another way to accommodate those who feel the need to be transgender. Do not allow them to use any private facility (locker rooms/rest rooms) that does not align with their biological gender. I can't even believe we have to discuss this. Just ridiculous.


STRONGLY SUPPORT this policy!

I fully support this policy, especially sections such as consistent school pronoun use [even across different learning management systems, forms, and processes], restroom/locker use that corresponds to their consistently asserted gender identity, and supporting the promotion of gender activities, and student clubs.  I also support providing LGBTQ2+ inclusive professional development for staff and curriculum considerations.  I fully believe that transgender and non-binary students (from elementary to high-school) will thrive if they feel safe and supported by their school staff and teachers.  Thank you for your support on this timely yet necessary model policy to protect trans youth.


Oppose. This is child abuse.

Strongly oppose. This is child abuse. But better yet. Homeschool your children. Any education is better than the indoctrination being done in public education.


Do what is best for all children

As a school counselor and mother of 3 kids ages 6, 10 and 12 I believe in the value of each and every child. Every child needs to feel loved, valued, heard and honored. However, this model to “help” transgender children does not help any child. It’s a sham that robs children of healthy growth, increases division among peers and hurts children who are confused by their growing bodies. Please love and counsel those who are confused!  They need guidance, support and to be heard, but not at the cost of other students’ natural born rights.  Let women flourish in sports celebrating their achievements while accessing safe locker rooms. Teach boys to be men who are loving fathers and community pillars. This false narrative is weakening our morals, institutions and nation. Enact this plan and suicides will flourish, not children.


Strongly Support!

To the parents who say sexual preference/orientation do not belong in school—being trans is neither of these. It’s gender identity, and to those saying this pushes pedophilia—a seven year old trans girl is not going to do anything but go to the bathroom in the girls restroom. It is not some liberal ideology being pushed to your kids; it is not confusing and hurtful to them. It is not taking away rights of non-trans children. This fear-mongering parents try to instill due to their misunderstandings of what it means to be transgender is dangerous. To those who also say it goes against Christian morals and values—there is separation of church and state. It’s written in this country’s founding articles. Christian bibles also say nothing against transgender people—someone who has transitioned from male to female: they are female. End of question. Assuming that due to lack of saying this is okay, that this is then going against the word of god is also dangerous because it adheres to fearmongering once more and preaches a religion of ostracizing people for who they are and it’s also attempting to enforce supposed Christian beliefs in a place that is not supposed to be bound by religion. If you want a Catholic belief oriented school, then enroll your kid in Catholic private school. At the end of the day, children just gotta take a , man, let them take that . I can assure you that your ten year old isn’t thinking about the genitalia of everyone else in the restroom while they relieve themselves. And nor is the trans ten year old relieving themselves in the next stall over. Support trans rights for they are human rights and just let kids be human.


STRONGLY SUPPORT PROPOSED TRANSGENDER GUIDELINES

I strongly support adoption of the proposed transgender guidelines for schools.


Oppose Strongly!!

If the existing ZERO bullying policy was working then this wouldn't even be necessary.  Furthermore I see no need for this at all.  School is about educating people not about anyone's identity nor sexuality.  Stop with sexualizing all that involves our children!  It's perverted and vile!


How did we come to this?

It is quite fascinating how the trajectory of this issue has rapidly exploded in today's culture.  During the 1970's the Psychiatric Journal (DSM3) acknowledged gender dysphoria as a mental illness.  But today, that has now been reversed.  As a believer in Jesus Christ and one who also believes that the Bible is accurate in its assessment of the human condition, I am now the one with the mental issue.  Because I know there is a God who will ultimately have the final say, I pray for politicians and policy makers who diametrically oppose HIs directives.  I am also so sorry that His children are too often considered bigots for not agreeing with current perspective of the times. While I am not expecting anything to change with this comment, I do find it remarkable that far too many Christians today are unwilling to speak out about these issues.  Maybe far too many believe that political correctness trumps biblical correctness.  Rather than a backbone to stand in opposition, too many parents have wishbones, believing that acceptance of alternative lifestyles will not harm their children. I hope that parents and grandparents will come to realize and make correct decisions about the education of the children.  The Educational Department making directives for Virginia schools is catering to the few at the expense of far too many.


Absolutely opposed

This policy frightens me. It is not accounting for the welfare of our children and is looking only at one side of the political spectrum while using our children as victims.  We don't allow elementary school students to drive cars, choose whether to do their homework or even if they can eat their vegetables before or after dessert. Why would we allow them to decide what gender they will be in 50 years? Most children out grow any "confusion" they have. I believe this policy can damage a young child. It takes away privacy from developing middle schoolers in the locker rooms. When I was in middle school, the last thing I would want is a biological boy anywhere close to me while I was changing! No matter how that person felt. It is not allowing for a safe and inclusive environment for all students and instead discriminates against conservative and religious families.


Oppose "Model Policies for Treatment of Transgender Students in Virginia's Public Schools"

According to the Mayo Clinic website, "Gender dysphoria is a diagnosis listed in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5), a manual published by the American Psychiatric Association to diagnose mental conditions."  Of course, no one should be bullied for any reason in our schools!  But attempts to "normalize" the idea that children can "change" their biological sex, should not be promoted in our schools.  Many "transgendered" young people now strongly regret their decision to undergo "transition." https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7541679/Hundreds-youths-gender-surgery-wish-hadnt-says-head-advocacy-network.html .  I hate to think of the lawsuits that will ensue after minors in particular are given sex-change hormones behind the backs of their parents, just as they can legally obtain birth control, IUDs, "morning after" pills and abortions without parental consent.  How can any well-meaning adult think that an 8-year-old (let alone teens in their tumultuous years) has the mental capacity to "change" their sex?  There is an old saying that God always forgives, man sometimes forgives, nature never forgives.  It seems that we are forgetting the value of living in harmony with "Mother Nature," even though so many give lip-service to that idea!  Many decry pollution of our air and water resources with chemical pollutants but ignore polluting our bodies with cancer-causing chemicals, hormones and dangerous surgeries which sometimes cause death.  Shockingly, the VDOE guidance document states, "Regardless of the circumstances, the school should support the student's need for privacy and not disclose a student's gender identity to other students or parents."  Really?  And since young men and boys who "identify" as females will use women's showers, bathrooms and even hotel rooms during school travels, the right of privacy for the great majority of women and girls will be ignored while making sexual assaults much easier.  Women's sports will also effectively end.  Just as Anorexic students with a distorted body image should be helped to see reality, so too should students with Gender Dysphoria be guided and helped to "follow the science," see reality and appreciate that biological sex is determined by DNA and chromosomes.


STRONGLY SUPPORT

I strongly support the adoption of this Model Policy for Treatment of Transgender students in Virginia Schools. Transgender rights and civil rights and human rights, and fully supporting and protecting transgender students is the only moral choice.


Decency should prevail

Safe and inclusive learning spaces are critical to the new generations success. Policies that support all students can only serve to create a better informed and mentally stable leader of the next big Fortune 500 company or the swing vote in a government organization. Instead of implanting seeds of doubt in students mind, let’s lift every single one to make strides in academic achievement. Furthermore, this incredibly well-researched proposal further cements the idea that education systems are solely responsible and wholly entrusted with the burden to serve all students, whatever background they may come from. I strongly back this proposal.


The State is the enemy of decency and normalcy

Why is the state of Virginia forcing transgender ideology on schoolchildren?  The State punishes normalcy and champions degeneracy, and has found that brainwashing children is the easiest method.  What's next?  Inclusivity for students who engage in beastiality?  Safe spaces for pedophilia?


Vehemently Disagree: You Are Not My Child’s Parent...I Am

I utterly reject the Department of Education’s proposed model regulations drafted in response to that legislation HB 145 and SN 161 purely because it violates the First Amendment rights of parents to raise and care for their children. If the Department of Education wishes to insert itself “in loco parentis” for a student struggling with gender dysphoria while at school, then presumably they’ll be willing to assume ALL medical, legal, and financial responsibilities that arise from the administration’s exclusive counsel and “care” of that child. The DOE proposal undercuts open and honest conversation between parents and their children. It also obstructs parents from active involvement in the life of their child at school. Moreover, the proposed guidance document violates the presumption of parental autonomy in Virginia. Code Sec. 1-240.1 provides that a parent has the fundamental right to make decisions concerning the upbringing, education and care of the parent’s child.


Strongly oppose

As someone who has been on God's good earth for the better part of a century, I am saddened by people's ever increasing willingness to believe in a lie and subject the truth to their own desires, rather than cold, hard facts.  No one wants to see children bullied - not in schools, not at home, or anywhere.  However, encouraging children to adopt biologically wrong views of gender during a time of raging hormones or identity confusion that comes with youth is just exceedingly damaging to our children.  Doing so encourages them to make life-altering decisions from which there is no return.  If you pass this, you will not have to live with the life-altering consequences of this policy, but the children affected by it will.  You get to walk away from it.  They do not.  Shame on you.


YES!

I strongly support this guidance.


Opposed

This plan weakens the family by blocking guidance from parents who have God given responsibilities toward their children. The family unit is an important building block of a stable society. Girls should be safe in a girls restroom, boys should be assured of privacy in theirs. Science text books and our language should not be changed for a chosen group.


STRONGLY OPPOSE! PLEASE, HAVE MORALS FOR GOD’S SAKE, IF NOT THE CHILDREN!

I urge all of you, on behalf of the CHILDREN OF Virginia. This is morally and ethically wrong on MANY accounts and you all know it is! One day, EVERY KNEE WILL BOW and give an ACCOUNT for EVERYTHING said and done! One of the comments on the board is that they “Support, but also increase mental and and health assessments.” Yes, of course. Support something SO WRONG but also give more funding for the mental health of our youth! Lord, I pray for mercy on those that love you! Our youth is already dealing with mental anguish due to schools being closed. What’s left? Go back to school (insert the date of when exactly is that) to compete against males and share your bathroom with them. I and SO MANY will leave these schools, this STATE!!! Get ready! God’s vengeance will leave you like California!


STRONGLY oppose!

As a mother who will soon be sending my child to public school, this is sickening that I have to vote on such a matter. This new regulation not only puts children of all genders in dangerous situations at school (a place where children should feel safest) but it violates parental rights.. parents, the ones who pay for our children to attend school. I pray that the board hears my voice and concern and does not pass this rule. Please, for our children’s sake and future, please don’t do this.


STRONGLY OPPOSE. This is NOT protecting ALL children. There are ways to protect them all.

This is removing parents rights & those who know their children best. Those who have guardianship & who are responsible for their child's well-being. The government should never dictate how parents should handle gender related issues with their children. This is NOT a safety issue, therefore not an issue for the government to be involved in. Parents and staff should continue to work together to teach against bullying of any kind. I am STRONGLY opposed to any form of bullying. Keeping biological males and biological females separated into gender specific bathrooms and locker rooms is non-negotiable to maintain privacy and safety. A solution could be to offer single room bathrooms. Allowing biological males in biological female bathrooms and vice-versa IS an issue on multiple accounts. For one it's a liability for all. Sadly we do live in a day of false accusations and this puts young people in a situation to be falsely accused. Ultimately though forcing children to use certain pronouns & allowing the school to influence "gender" identity and then to threaten removal from home, has taken this to a different level.


Oppose! And you should too.

While I believe in an individuals rights and the no bullying policy, to introduce sexuality and gender issues at the elementary school level is insane. To take away more rights from the parents and give it to the schools/govt is insane. Let these kids start to develop as they were born and let them decide later in life whether or not they want to change that. We should be promoting creativity and knowledge of young minds, not destroying them. Confusing the sexes is another form of divide and conquer. Parents, you know what is best for your kids. Don't give up your rights to a school system that doesn't support you.


Strongly support! Protect trans youth!!!

Strongly support this. Protect trans youth! Make school a safe place for all children by encouraging education about transness and trans-specific issues. Please educate! Please encourage trans youth to feel safe being themselves. Please encourage cis youth to be respectful and supportive. Please make the system supportive of trans youth.


STRONGLY SUPPORT

All of our kids deserve to grow up in a loving, accepting environment and that absolutely includes while at school. Bullying is an unfortunate occurrence at school for most kids so any extra precautions or policies in place to help protect marginalized groups is amazing. These policies have the real power to prevent suicides. Please enact them and help protect our kids.


Strongly oppose, agenda hurts children more than it helps.  Plz read this post from a Pediatrician

I strongly oppose the transgender changes that are being proposed, I ask for consideration for the board and all concerned to please read this post in its entirety.  Follows is an article written by Pediatrician Dr. Michelle Cretella on July 03, 2017, and it provides all that is needed for wise and intelligent people to understand how harmful this is for our children. “Just a few short years ago, not many could have imagined a high-profile showdown over transgender men and women’s access to single-sex bathrooms in North Carolina. But transgender ideology is not just infecting our laws. It is intruding into the lives of the most innocent among us—children—and with the apparent growing support of the professional medical community. As explained in my 2016 peer reviewed article, “ Gender Dysphoria in Children and Suppression of Debate ,” found at http://www.jpands.org/vol21no2/cretella.pdf , and professionals who dare to question the unscientific party line of supporting gender transition therapy will find themselves maligned and out of a job. I speak as someone intimately familiar with the pediatric and behavioral health communities and their practices. I am a mother of four who served 17 years as a board certified general pediatrician with a focus in child behavioral health prior to leaving clinical practice in 2012. For the last 12 years, I have been a board member and researcher for the American College of Pediatricians, and for the last three years I have served as its president. I also sat on the board of directors for the Alliance for Therapeutic Choice and Scientific Integrity from 2010 to 2015. This organization of physicians and mental health professionals defends the right of patients to receive psychotherapy for sexual identity conflicts that is in line with their deeply held values based upon science and medical ethics. I have witnessed an upending of the medical consensus on the nature of gender identity. What doctors once treated as a mental illness, the medical community now largely affirms and even promotes as normal. Here’s a look at some of the changes. The New Normal Pediatric “gender clinics” are considered elite centers for affirming children who are distressed by their biological sex. This distressful condition, once dubbed gender identity disorder, was renamed “gender dysphoria” in 2013. In 2014, there were 24 of these gender clinics , clustered chiefly along the east coast and in California. One year later, there were 40 across the nation. With 215 pediatric residency programs now training future pediatricians in a transition-affirming protocol and treating gender-dysphoric children accordingly, gender clinics are bound to proliferate further. Last summer, the federal government stated that it would not require Medicare and Medicaid to cover transition-affirming procedures for children or adults because medical experts at the Department of Health and Human Services found the risks were often too high, and the benefits too unclear. Undeterred by these findings, the World Professional Association for Transgender Health has pressed ahead, claiming—without any evidence—that these procedures are “safe.” Two leading pediatric associations—the American Academy of Pediatrics and the Pediatric Endocrine Society—have followed in lockstep, endorsing the transition affirmation approach even as the latter organization concedes within its own guidelines that the transition-affirming protocol is based on low evidence. They even admit that the only strong evidence regarding this approach is its potential health risks to children. The transition-affirming view holds that children who “consistently and persistently insist” that they are not the gender associated with their biological sex are innately transgender. (The fact that in normal life and in psychiatry, anyone who “consistently and persistently insists” on anything else contrary to physical reality is considered either confused or delusional is conveniently ignored.) The transition-affirming protocol tells parents to treat their children as the gender they desire, and to place them on puberty blockers around age 11 or 12 if they are gender dysphoric. If by age 16, the children still insist that they are trapped in the wrong body, they are placed on cross-sex hormones, and biological girls may obtain a double mastectomy. So-called “bottom surgeries,” or genital reassignment surgeries, are not recommended before age 18, though some surgeons have recently argued against this restriction. The transition-affirming approach has been embraced by public institutions in media, education, and our legal system, and is now recommended by most national medical organizations. There are exceptions to this movement, however, in addition to the American College of Pediatricians and the Alliance for Therapeutic Choice. These include the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, the Christian Medical & Dental Associations, the Catholic Medical Association, and the LGBT-affirming Youth Gender Professionals . The transgender movement has gained legs in the medical community and in our culture by offering a deeply flawed narrative. The scientific research and facts tell a different story. Here are some of those basic facts. 1. Twin studies prove no one is born “trapped in the body of the wrong sex.” Some brain studies have suggested that some are born with a transgendered brain. But these studies are seriously flawed and prove no such thing. Virtually everything about human beings is influenced by our DNA, but very few traits are hardwired from birth. All human behavior is a composite of varying degrees for nature and nurture. Researchers routinely conduct twin studies to discern which factors (biological or nonbiological) contribute more to the expression of a particular trait. The best designed twin studies are those with the greatest number of subjects. Identical twins contain 100 percent of the same DNA from conception and are exposed to the same prenatal hormones. So if genes and/or prenatal hormones contributed significantly to transgenderism, we should expect both twins to identify as transgender close to 100 percent of the time. Skin color, for example, is determined by genes alone. Therefore, identical twins have the same skin color 100 percent of the time. But in the largest study of twin transgender adults , published by Dr. Milton Diamond in 2013, only 28 percent of the identical twins both identified as transgender. Seventy-two percent of the time, they differed. (Diamond’s study reported 20 percent identifying as transgender, but his actual data demonstrate a 28 percent figure, as I note here in footnote 19.) That 28 percent of identical twins both identified as transgender suggests a minimal biological predisposition, which means transgenderism will not manifest itself without outside nonbiological factors also impacting the individual during his lifetime. The fact that the identical twins differed 72 percent of the time is highly significant because it means that at least 72 percent of what contributes to transgenderism in one twin consists of nonshared experiences after birth—that is, factors not rooted in biology. Studies like this one prove that the belief in “innate gender identity”—the idea that “feminized” or “masculinized” brains can be trapped in the wrong body from before birth—is a myth that has no basis in science. 2. Gender identity is malleable, especially in young children. Even the American Psychological Association’s Handbook of Sexuality and Psychology admits that prior to the widespread promotion of transition affirmation, 75 to 95 percent of pre-pubertal children who were distressed by their biological sex eventually outgrew that distress. The vast majority came to accept their biological sex by late adolescence after passing naturally through puberty. But with transition affirmation now increasing in Western society, the number of children claiming distress over their gender—and their persistence over time—has dramatically increased. For example, the Gender Identity Development Service in the United Kingdom alone has seen a 2,000 percent increase in referrals since 2009 . 3. Puberty blockers for gender dysphoria have not been proven safe. Puberty blockers have been studied and found safe for the treatment of a medical disorder in children called precocious puberty (caused by the abnormal and unhealthy early secretion of a child’s pubertal hormones). However, as a groundbreaking paper in The New Atlantis points out, we cannot infer from these studies whether or not these blockers are safe in physiologically normal children with gender dysphoria. The authors note that there is some evidence for decreased bone mineralization, meaning an increased risk of bone fractures as young adults, potential increased risk of obesity and testicular cancer in boys, and an unknown impact upon psychological and cognitive development. With regard to the latter, while we currently don’t have any extensive, long-term studies of children placed on blockers for gender dysphoria, studies conducted on adults from the past decade give cause for concern. For example, in 2006 and 2007 , the journal Psychoneuroendocrinology reported brain abnormalities in the area of memory and executive functioning among adult women who received blockers for gynecologic reasons. Similarly, many studies of men treated for prostate cancer with blockers also suggest the possibility of significant cognitive decline. 4. There are no cases in the scientific literature of gender-dysphoric children discontinuing blockers. Most, if not all, children on puberty blockers go on to take cross-sex hormones (estrogen for biological boys, testosterone for biological girls). The only study to date to have followed pre-pubertal children who were socially affirmed and placed on blockers at a young age found that 100 percent of them claimed a transgender identity and chose cross-sex hormones. This suggests that the medical protocol itself may lead children to identify as transgender. There is an obvious self-fulfilling effect in helping children impersonate the opposite sex both biologically and socially. This is far from benign, since taking puberty blockers at age 12 or younger, followed by cross-sex hormones, sterilizes a child. 5. Cross-sex hormones are associated with dangerous health risks. From studies of adults we know that the risks of cross-sex hormones include, but are not limited to, cardiac disease, high blood pressure, blood clots, strokes, diabetes, and cancers. 6. Neuroscience shows that adolescents lack the adult capacity needed for risk assessment. Scientific data show that people under the age of 21 have less capacity to assess risks. There is a serious ethical problem in allowing irreversible, life-changing procedures to be performed on minors who are too young themselves to give valid consent. 7. There is no proof that affirmation prevents suicide in children. Advocates of the transition-affirming protocol allege that suicide is the direct and inevitable consequence of withholding social affirmation and biological alterations from a gender-dysphoric child. In other words, those who do not endorse the transition-affirming protocol are essentially condemning gender-dysphoric children to suicide. Yet as noted earlier, prior to the widespread promotion of transition affirmation, 75 to 95 percent of gender-dysphoric youth ended up happy with their biological sex after simply passing through puberty. In addition, contrary to the claim of activists, there is no evidence that harassment and discrimination, let alone lack of affirmation, are the primary cause of suicide among any minority group. In fact, at least one study from 2008 found perceived discrimination by LGBT-identified individuals not to be causative. Over 90 percent of people who commit suicide have a diagnosed mental disorder, and there is no evidence that gender-dysphoric children who commit suicide are any different. Many gender dysphoric children simply need therapy to get to the root of their depression, which very well may be the same problem triggering the gender dysphoria. 8. Transition-affirming protocol has not solved the problem of transgender suicide. Adults who undergo sex reassignment—even in Sweden, which is among the most LGBT-affirming countries—have a suicide rate nearly 20 times greater than that of the general population. Clearly, sex reassignment is not the solution to gender dysphoria. Bottom Line: Transition-Affirming Protocol Is Child Abuse The crux of the matter is that while the transition-affirming movement purports to help children, it is inflicting a grave injustice on them and their nondysphoric peers. These professionals are using the myth that people are born transgender to justify engaging in massive, uncontrolled, and unconsented experimentation on children who have a psychological condition that would otherwise resolve after puberty in the vast majority of cases. Today’s institutions that promote transition affirmation are pushing children to impersonate the opposite sex, sending many of them down the path of puberty blockers, sterilization, the removal of healthy body parts, and untold psychological damage. These harms constitute nothing less than institutionalized child abuse. Sound ethics demand an immediate end to the use of pubertal suppression, cross-sex hormones, and sex reassignment surgeries in children and adolescents, as well as an end to promoting gender ideology via school curricula and legislative policies. It is time for our nation’s leaders and the silent majority of health professionals to learn exactly what is happening to our children, and unite to take action.


Strongly oppose

Students who want to identify in a way other than their birth gender have had the option to use a nurses bathroom or unisex bathroom at school.  Many kids go to the office for various reasons throughout the day.  Some go for daily medication. This is normal and students don’t even question it. The rest of the students should not have to the stress of a biological opposite sex child in their bathrooms and locker rooms.  My daughter has stated that she will never feel comfortable with a boy in the restroom or locker room. Please do not do this! Also, allowing biological males on female school sports teams puts most biological females at a physical disadvantage.  Look at states that enacted this type of legislation and you will see that biological males now hold the top spots in girl sports.  This is unfair to biological females.  They are missing out on scholarships to college.  In Connecticut this has already been an issue where 2 Biological males took titles in female track.  It’s an issue of fairness. A couple of years ago, a biological man who identifies as a female won a women's world championship cycling event in California.  The list goes on.  Please don’t let it go on in Virginia.


TRANS LIVES MATTER - TRANS RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS

Stop trying to emotionally, psychologically and physically segregate people.  Trans rights are human rights- get over yourself, it’s not about you. Keep our children safe by TREATING THEM EQUALLY.


Transgender Policy

Strongly oppose this plan on social engineering. Schools have lost site of true education. All children are valuable and deserve an education. Your making our children activists and forgetting the role of parents. The schools continue to undermine parents and family values. This is nonsense. More and more parents will continue to look for alternatives in education die to this policy.


Transgender policy for public schools

Strongly oppose.  Parents need to be included in this sensitive subject.  Transgender bathroom should be private to avoid bullying and abuse.   Use common sense in each case.


SUPPORT!

I support the guidance 100%!!!


Oppose

Protect our girls! Biological females need safe spaces to use the restroom and change without biological males in the space.


Support

I've grown up as a LGBT member of the Virginia community and felt first-hand the effects that a system that doesn't include everyone has. I support the guidance to protect some of our most vulnerable populations. It is the morally just and compassionate thing to do. If we don't stand up for our students in their time of need, if we don't validate their decisions to live authentically, then we have failed them. I remember when I came out as gay to my high school. I wish there was guidance in place to help me. The least I can do is help my LGBT peers in advocating in support of this guidance.


Some of this is NOT okay

All students, not just LGBTQ students, should be afforded the same rights. This proposal loosely states that, but ultimately provides more protection/coverage for a trans student. That is not ok. You are providing protections for a tiny little population of students. Favoritism will prevail if this policy is approved as is currently written. Below are a few areas where I see fault and request that the policy be reviewed. Three ways that this policy needs to be reworked: 1. Parent/guardian MUST be told when their student decides to identify as something other than what their DNA has determined that they are. Keeping this from them must not an option. 2. Children must use the bathroom that is determined by their DNA. If they are uncomfortable doing that, then they can have an option of using a private bathroom that has a single toilet and sink. *I realize that some schools, specifically elementary schools, don't offer this option. Districts need to figure that out. 3. Students must NOT be allowed to use a staff office for privacy while changing. If a trans student is allowed to use a staff office to change clothes for PE class because they are uncomfortable around other students, then ANY student should be allowed to do the same. There are hetero students who are uncomfortable changing in front of others, but never has there been a proposal which would allow them an secondary option. Also, if you allow a student to enter a staff office for this purpose you are opening up a HUGE liability for that staff member.


Support

I support because I believe in protecting the rights of everyone & making public areas including schools a safe space for anyone regardless of sex, gender, religion, etc. Let people be people!


Strong support! Trans rights are human rights!

Protect trans kids! There are too many bigoted parents on this thread and ppl afraid to show their faces along with their terrible opinions. You all should be ashamed of yourselves.


Please support this policy

It is vital that each and every student feels safe, cared for and supported in their environment. The point of a school is to foster a learning space, where people can grow- and this kind of space cannot occur when people feel hurt, unhappy, unsafe and discriminated against. School should be a place that invites people to join important conversations and create bonds that will carry them though their lives - and so it is a place where everyone should feel supported, as only then can learning occur.


PROTECT TRANS KIDS

PROTECT TRANS KIDS


STRONGLY OPPOSE

I strongly oppose this proposal. While bullying is certainly an issue that needs to be addressed, this is not the way. This legislation will only lead to potential abuse and further stress on both the children and parents of our community. Furthermore, punishing those who speak out in future is completely absurd. In your attempt to “include all” you are blatantly excluding those who morally oppose this. Shameful.


Strongly Oppose

This defies not only science but common sense. Has there been any attempt to contact pediatric psychiatrists, from BOTH sides of the argument, to have them debate back and forth in an open forum why this is or isn't appropriate for our children? Why this is potentially harmful NOT helpful? Im assuming there has not been because if you guys did your due diligence and were after what was actually best for our kids instead of what pushed the agenda you were after - then you'd know that any psychiatrist worth their salt can provide you with abundant scientific evidence and experience in the field, much more than the supporting side can, that states that the vast, vast majority of children who have decided to present as transgender have endured previous sexual trauma as a child. Meaning that these children are exhibiting not an unconsequential free choice but instead symptoms of unresolved child abuse that caused severe mental chaos and trauma. Supporting this measure inadvertantly forces you into the circle of those who not only perpetrated the abuse but those who refused to help stop it. That cannot be your intention here and if it is, then we have way bigger problems. This is not a good thing to push on our babies, it IS harmful. I dont think I know anyone who believes we should be treating "transgender" children badly or harshly. I do not believe we should be humiliating them - I believe that the correct form of action is in line with a compassionate response that focuses on healing and treatment. Let's not forget that so called "transgenderism" is classified as a mental health disorder. It is not just a simple, non significant choice of one deciding what they want. Thats not even touching the fact that no child still under the authority of their parents, who cannot even be legally trusted to make a decision to vote, enter the military, or to be trusted to make good enough choices to be out past the state mandated 11 o'clock curfew - has the ability to make good choices for a decision that will have such a profound and permanent impact on their lives going forward. Would you trust your own children with such big decisions without your guidance? The guidance of those who love them more than anything in the world, who more than anyone else, want whats best for them? Come on! Give me a break. No good parent is comfortable with that, not even any of you, if your being honest with yourselves and yet this is what your considering? I cant understand it. This is particularly concerning because you are attempting to HARM children by validating a MENTAL HEALTH DISORDER, without the parents consent or input, at that. I will also say that your agenda, if implemented, places ALL of the civil liability on each of you and on the teachers/school officials involved if that child is harmed in the long run by these half baked, political policies and ill tell you why.  The courts have long established that unless a parent/parental unit have been proven unfit by a court of law, that their decisions and will for a child, whether agreed with or not, cannot be usurped by the state simply because the state thinks it knows better. Because of this precedent, a parents choices for their children must be deemed as "in the child's best interest!" Which again, since it seems no one has thought of the consequences, opens the school systems up to liability if the parents can prove harm done and a deliberate choice by the school officials to unilaterally decide, contrary to the parents decisions, what was best for that child, which they will be able to easily do, considering, as I stated earlier, this is a mental health disorder and the long held court precedent. For so many of you who scream at us that we MUST be guided by the science - you sure are going AGAINST the actual science. I believe that both sides of this argument must be weighed against each other equally and from an unbiased, unpolitical stand point before this is allowed to go forward. If it is weighed and argued fairly with both sides being able to present why this is or isn't appropriate - then i believe you all MUST come to the conclusion that all of us FULLY informed parents have already come to - that this is not okay to implement. It is NOT okay to usurp our authority as the rightful providers and decision makers for our children, which again were talking about rights that have been long established by the courts. This should NOT be implemented. I believe given everything I've already stated, that this cannot be implemented in good conscience by any of you. Enough of this cowardly, self preservation bull crap. These are our babies who you are offering up to be potentially destroyed by your unproven theories. Beyond that, a child should not be put in the position to have to deal with these kinds of issues. Let our children be children for Gods sake. They have their whole lives to deal with such heavy issues. Why the rush to destroy them, especially so early?


Strongly support. Treat others how you want to be treated.

I knew a child at the age of three who took deep exception to being called by his name. We didn’t know or have the words at the time but that child was struggling to cement their trans identity in a world that couldn’t comprehend what they knew in their psyche. That child struggled to build relationships through school, developed a serious eating disorder leading to hospitalization and life long health issues, as well as cutting behaviors and attempting suicide. I am utterly horrified by some of the comments I’ve seen. I have my own children now ages 3-10 and I cannot imagine about speaking about someone’s child the way that some of these people have. Treating trans kids with the most basic levels of respect and tolerance saves lives. If you’re the type of person that life is sacred, starts act conception, and wants to #savethechildren, here are children that need saving, are asking for help, and have concrete ideas about how you can help.


PROTECT TRANS KIDS ??????

Whether the older community members “understand” it or not, our kids MUST be treated with respect and dignity. They must be allowed the freedom to be themselves so that they don’t grow up to be as scared and hateful as the other people in the comments


In Support

I strongly support this as it sets a precedent for equality, tolerance, and acceptance. The only way to move forward as a society it so accept and love our neighbor.


STRONGLY OPPOSE

As adults we have a responsibility to protect those who are vulnerable. This bill would make it INCREDIBLY EASY for predators to get away with heinous things, and with absolutely NO CONSEQUENCES. It would also COMPLETELY bind the hands of anyone in a position to protect these children! If you open Pandora’s box here, there is no going back. We MUST be able to protect the children in our care.


Strongly support

These guidelines are critical for the long-term physical, mental, and emotional health of all children. Implementing these measures will simply not require significant effort or discomfort of the teachers, administrators, and students in these schools — implementing these measures will only benefit teachers, administrators, and students. To oppose any of these measures is to bluntly tell transgender, gender non-conforming, and LGBTQ+ children that they are not allowed to be themselves. Comments opposing these measures are pro-discrimination and, in many ways, advocating AGAINST free speech among young people in NC. Do the right thing and implement these policies in NC schools.


I FULLY SUPPORT. PROTECT TRANS KIDS.

I fully support this guidance. Let these kids be - LISTEN TO THEM! Protect them and ensure their safety. Denying them of that is pure discrimination; allowing any harm done to them to go unpunished, or receive leniency, enables transphobia and transphobic hate crimes. They don't deserve that. No one deserves that. Make their spaces safer. PROTECT TRANS KIDS. ENSURE THEIR SAFETY. LISTEN TO THEM! PERIOD.


STRONGLY SUPPORT

Everyone deserves respect and the right to govern their own body. This helps make sure that happens for people; it is a no brainer. Thank you for putting forth this legislation and please make it happen!


Concern for Model Policy on Treatment of Transgender Student

In general, I oppose this proposed Model Guidance.  I think it will create more problems than it solves.  Anti-bulling policies are more than adequate to protect all students, including transgender students.  I'm concerned that the policy only takes into account the transgender student without regard to other students legitimate (i.e. not hate filled or intolerant) discomfort with sharing bathrooms, lockers or school sponsored sleepovers with the biological opposite sex.  The negative impact on girls sports teams in particular, disadvantages all girls sports gains that have been made.  The policy comes from a perspective assumes the school district's concern for the student is superior to the parent's concern and is contrary to parental rights.


Support Trans Youth!

I support this! Trans students need support and protection in their schools.


Support trans kids

I support this policy and trans kids. Supporting their rights is critical.


TRANS RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS. I fully support!!

Trans people should not feel unsafe or unaccepted in schools; a place where they legally have to attend. Schools should feel safe and supportive. I fully agree that trans information and knowledge would be incredibly beneficial to the students and staff in schools. The more people are provided with information on trans people, the better. Right now it is a severely misunderstood topic, that due to so much misinformation, brings judgement and mistreatment onto these trans people. Schools already have rules and codes against bullying/harassment of their students, and trans students and staff also deserve this protection.


Support the rights of Trans students

All students deserve to be supported, whatever their gender. Trans and non-binary students are a much higher risk for depression and suicide when they are bullied and discriminated against. This should be a non-issue. Support our students!


Absolutely oppose this wicked agenda!  Bad for everyone!!!

I absolutely oppose this agenda which will cause all kinds of evil to flourish.  This MUST not go on!


Protect trans kids from abuse.

Please support this bill to guarantee that our trans students are shown that their lives matter. The suicide rate in the trans population is so high due to the way they are treated. If mental health is truly a priority in public education, passing this bill should be a no-brainer.


Trans kids are human kids!!!

Fully support as an essential step. Support trans kids.


Strongly Oppose

These regulations are harmful to children and injurious to parent-child relationships. Children, who are in the process of formulating their own personal identities, need careful, compassionate guidance from trustworthy adults and not from ones who will cater to and capitalize on their vacillating adolescent struggles. These policies intentionally remove parents from the integral part they play in the nurturing of their own children. In most circumstances, parents are the ones who care more intimately for their children than anyone else.


I strongly support this legislation.

I will always support any initiative that allows our children to accept inherent traits and immutable characteristics and accept and love those unchangeable feelings thoughts and emotions with every other part of themselves. Continuing to treat gender nonconforming students as pariahs is unacceptable and not supported by science. Our insistence on categorising socially constructed norms as infallible biological traits is not supported by what we see in the natural world. We are bringing societal biases into flawed srguments that biological sex is determinative. Our children are paying the price. I for one welcome the opportunity to learn from the experiences of our children as we try to make sure that everyone rightly gets the opportunity to feel safe and loved.


Vote absolutely not!

Please focus on EFUCATION. These kids are the future of this nation.!


Strongly oppose.

This is silly. We are giving kids the ability to go against their parents at the whims of societal pressures. This is a blatant attack on the family. Kids are influential and this is pushing the agenda against the family.


Trans Kids Deserve Support

Grappling with trans identity as a young person is hard enough without an unsupportive learning environment. Our schools should be places where trans youth feel comfortable to express themselves, and teachers should be have guidelines for handling specific issues related to trans students. The key phrase in this guidance is "evidence-based" – and the evidence refutes scaremongering that trans students using the bathroom or locker room that aligns with their gender identity will lead to a tsunami of abuse and discomfort. Providing support and guidelines for teachers will also allow them to better mediate any issues that arise, a win-win for everyone. Don't be swayed by anti-trans rhetoric.


its not right

this is not right, i strongly disagree with this, God put us on the earth as we are, we are perfect in his eyes and shouldnt change, and it's certainly not right for elementary school kids bc theyre just little innocent children, and that goes for 6-12th to, this is NOT right


I VOTE NO!

As a concerned parent I object to these Bills! If you go through with this and open Pandora’s box I will choose to home school my children! Do not do this!


STRONGLY SUPPORT

Trans youth need our support! People opposing this should be ashamed of themselves. Our youth are our future; let’s try and raise them in a community of love, tolerance and support..there is no reason to continue to perpetuate the immoral and HATEFUL ideas of the patriachy.


This is so wrong on so many levels. /Transgender Policy

I strongly disagree with this proposal. While our schools need to focus on inclusion and less bullying across all areas, this will not help that. I strongly disagree with any proposal that silences one group. And this does that. It cuts the parents out of what is happening with sexual identity of children. It silences families that believe in sons, daughters and mom and dads. It cuts out any supper of families who do not agree with any part of this proposal by saying not agreeing is bullying. That’s not true. You can disagree and still love and include someone. Focus on inclusion of ALL. Also this seems to be a medical and mental health diagnosis which schools have no ability to make or hold up. I know because CCPS tells us all the time they cannot diagnose or even use the words dyslexic for my child, who is dyslexic, because it is a medically diagnosis and they cannot diagnosis medically. Gender should also be something a parent and medical is discussing. Once a family and medical team has established this, they may approach the school to create needs for child. But the public school should be doing nothing but including that child as every other child. This proposal doesn’t do that. Also, as a parent I have a right to know what body parts my young child may be exposed to at school. As in shared bathrooms and changing rooms. Again this proposal is not ok. Focus on inclusion not silencing groups as this does.


Support ALL students!!!

Not only should transgender students have access to a fair and equal education, they shouldn't have to fear going to school in order to receive it. Educators shouldn't let their own biases affect the quality of education given to students and this legislature appears to give more support and opportunities to a population that is so often ignored. It's time to start educating students on acceptance and kindness rather than exclusion and hate. Educating our youth, rather than shielding them from the differences among them can decrease stigmatization for generations to come. Let's NORMALIZE acceptance!! This is a step in the right direction. Teach love, not hate.


strongly oppose

strongly oppose. Agree- focus on education


Approve, Support, Protect

There is no reason, other than bigoted misunderstanding, to deny protection to children. It doesn't matter what kind of children. It doesn't matter how adults feel about it. Protect children every time.


Strong support for VDOE Trans and Non-Binary Student Protection

In my practice, I have worked with several trans and non-binary young people.  The suicide rate is so high because of the negative judgement and harassment from the rest of society. Just like gay individuals, they are being true to themselves.  This is who they are.  They need these protections right now until society can move to a more safe and inclusive space for these amazing kids.


Strongly oppose any transgender discussions in public schools

God made each one of us in his image and our gender was determined at birth.  We do not need public schools saying that you have a say so and that it's a social decision to be made by the child. That is beyond wrong on so many levels.  This is overstepping the boundaries of what public education should be. Let's focus on our children's education on core subjects and leave social items out of public schools.  Children should not be subjected to this craziness in a public school setting and these are topics to be discussed by families, not schools.  Please remove any transgender discussions from public schools and do not approve any legislation otherwise.


STRONGLY OPPOSE

STRONGLY OPPOSE


Trans kids MATTER

Their lives MATTER. Their education shouldn’t be harmed just because of how they identify. bullying and how unsupportive parents and family treat their kids can bad enough. We have to be better and DO BETTER the Christians who oppose this do not know God. The genderless being the believe in actually preaches love to our neighbors and to protect the unfortunate above our own lives.


Vote no! Extremely concerned about this proposed legislation.

I have fully read the proposed bill.  While I believe that we should demonstrate compassion and value to all students, I do not believe this is the way. Singling out one group of students is never helpful and often overlooks the welfare of all students. The plan for overnight school trips is a bad idea - one that would be detrimental to many of the students involved.  I also have concerns for teachers who will be required to respond in ways that may be against their rights and beliefs. My greatest concerns relate to parental rights. I have no problem with designating private bathrooms for all student use, with the intent of helping transgender students.  I do however strongly oppose this bill in it's entirety.


Strongly disagree

it is absolutely disgusting and unnatural. That is not how God made us. He made male and female separate. He did not make them to be transformed into something their not. It’s wrong and we should not be normalizing it at all.


STRONGLY SUPPORT

I help facilitate a local trans support group and a group for trans youth and their families. I have heard countless stories about trans youth being discriminated against in their schools by teachers and administrators. I have also heard from parents that they have fought tooth and nail with schools to support their children. I strongly support this guidance because I want all youth to be able to have a welcoming and safe school environment.


Strongly support

when spaces become safe for Trans Kids, spaces become safer for ALL people.


STRONGLY OPPOSE TRANSGENDER PROPOSED POLICIES. These policies have NO business in our schools!

The Transgender Policies Policies proposed for students in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools has NO business in our school systems ! These policies violate the safety of other students in the school system and violate the parental rights and authority of parents by the US Supreme Court and Virginia Law  1-240.1 that affirms that a parent has a fundamental right to make decisions concerning the up bringing, education, and care of the parents child . Students who are not transgender have the right to be treated with dignity and respect and should not be forced to learn in an environment that makes them feel afraid, uncomfortable and violated . These policies do not provide accommodations for students religious faith or conscience that oppose transgender beliefs. These transgender children are loved by parents and teachers and deserve to know TRUTH in their lives . Government offices who try to implement these evil policies in our school systems ..... let it be known this day that you will answer and one day give an account to GOD himself.


Strongly support these evidence-based policies that make schools safer and more inclusive

I strongly support this admirable, well-researched, and evidence-based proposal. Public education systems are entrusted with the responsibility to serve all of our students and provide responsive, inclusive, and safe learning environments. Policies that actively support transgender students are associated with higher rates of school attendance, higher academic achievement, and improvements in both mental and physical health. As public entities entrusted with student safety, we should always act with the most vulnerable students in mind. This policy would protect previously vulnerable students and create safer, more inclusive learning environments.


I Oppose school transgender policy

I oppose this transgender policy that will effect all state schools.  This policy will take too much power from parents/guardians, and give too much power to the state.  Supporting children does not equate to giving them every thing they desire.  Children and teens are not yet capable of the rational thought necessary to determine this, and the policy will cause more harm in the long run.


Fully support

I fully support any legislation that protects and legitimizes trans youth. Statistics have proven over and over again that trans people are extremely vulnerable to violence, lack of healthcare, and discrimination, and our state should be explicit in its guarantee of basic human rights to ALL.


STRONGLY Oppose, gender is a FAMILY matter, no school or teacher has right to deal with this issue.

STRONGLY OPPOSE, since gender is a FAMILY matter. No school or teacher has a right to withhold information about someone's child from their parents, or to assume they know these students better than parents so get to deal with this issue.


OPPOSE USURPATION OF PARENTAL RIGHTS

The proposed policy in regard to privacy and confidentiality is a direct usurpation of parental rights.  School policies that promote failure to disclose any changes in a student's gender identity and/or non-comforing sexual behavior for fear of losing housing or financial support is misguided and will cause far greater damage to the family unit and create distrust and sow discord between parents and teachers. School Administrators should not be reminded that they are charged to educate our children and not harbor them from parents whom they fear do not support their transgender policies.


Transgender

We believe in teaching and raising our child when it comes to moral values. We do not rely on them government to enforce their ideas on us.


Support

I’ve been a teacher for 3 years, and I’m proud to support this guidance. My middle school is in a rural area, and most of my colleagues haven’t dealt with a transgender student. I  want to do everything right for the students to come. This guidance would allow all schools to be equipped with the policies and procedures they need to confidently provide a safe and inclusive educational experience for all students, especially our LGBT youth.


Strongly Support

Strongly support guidance that helps the state move toward greater inclusion and support for ALL students.


Support- trans kids matter

Trans kids matter- protect their right to learn and thrive! I lived in Virginia for 8 years and I have faith in this state to foster a system that sets the bar for equality. Policies and systems shape the livelihood of oppressed people. By allowing trans kids to not only exist but thrive safely in schools, Virginia would be setting them up for educational, social, and economic success throughout their lives.


Strongly Oppose

Cherry picked studies and pop psych provide no justification to impose changes that in turn would adversely affect the rest of the children in the class. Social deconstruction and re-engineering of this nature is completely inappropriate. Certainly everyone is against bullying, but isn't this exactly what you are proposing?


Strongly support!!

The goal is to support and protect all children that come through our schools. To help them in any way we can.  When a child is vulnerable in a way that makes them a target in our society, where they can actually be vilified and attacked, the support and protection need to be strong, reassuring, and reliable. This policy is vital to the success of our goal !


Oppose new policies

I will absolutely pull my children out of public schools. You can not expect my granddaughter to be in a locker room with a male and undress. Absolutely not. And to punish others for not using certain words is ridiculous i wish someone would call child protective services on me. So those kids who have certain religions are just silenced as always. You cant control peoples minds..i have a feeling you will loose alot of students. Parents are going to allow this. For students who have strong religious beliefs to make them sit in a class being taught something they dony beleive is child abuse. having a girl undress in front of males is child abuse. And i will file a law suit everyday against the schools if mine are forced to do this  if you cant ask the transgender male to undress in front of boys because it would be  abuse hiw can it not be abuse to the others. Basically our children dont matter and that is why mine will be home schooled.


in support of protections for transgender and non-binary students!

I support this guidance because I want all LBGT children to be in a school environment that is safe, welcoming and inclusive for them. Hate has no place in our school system, especially hidden behind the curtain of "religion."


TRANSGENDER RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS. People who think differently are selfish. Trans students do not cease to exist all because people are ignorant to their struggles and needs.


Strongly Support

Trans kids deserve dignity and respect, just like all humans.


I strongly disagree with this bill and the flawed reasoning on which it is based. It’ll harm kids!!


Strongly in favor, trans kids deserve protection

Trans children are deserving of protection, and these guidelines could do so much to help them. Identity is personal and makes people vulnerable. Children deserve to be called by names and pronouns they feel comfortable with and gender should not be a discriminating factor in school policies. Support trans kids, save trans lives. Save children's lives.


Strongly Support

I strongly support The Model Policies for the Treatment of Transgender Students in Virginia's Public Schools guidance because the health of our youth depends on it. Transgender people deserve to thrive in our communities and Virgina Public Schools have the opportunity to step up and lead by implementing these vital policy changes that ensure the protection of their rights. As someone who's loved ones were educated in Virgina's public schools, I know that they would have benefited greatly from these proposed changes.


100% SUPPORT OUR TRANS/NON BINARY KIDS

Childhood is a tumultuous time for any kid, especially for those who are fighting the uphill battle to simply exist as their happiest, most authentic self. Kids who feel supported and well rooted in their true selves perform high in education, are able to feel more included and engaged in the community, and it can reduce the shockingly high suicide rate for Trans/non binary youth. Basic respect and support shouldn’t need to be debated, but clearly we need to do better by our community. For those posting negative comments, I urge you to lean in and learn more about their journeys. Please, please add more inclusive protections to ensure ALL youth are well supported and better provided for. Our communities are stronger when we make space for ALL.


Strongly oppose

We believe in raising and teaching our own children and moral values we do not rely on the government or school system


THIS MUST HAPPEN!!! Trans kids need to be protected and treated as equals!

Trans kids deserve the same protections other kids get! This is ludicrous that it’s even up for debate!


Support

I support the guidance


Teach the truth with compassion

Kids deserve to hear the truth about the transgender agenda.  People who want to teach the truth to kids are labeled hateful. Biological and anatomical facts are there.  Offer compassionate support to those who struggle with gender identity and help them embrace the truth about how their bodies were created.


Please show students love and affirmation of who they are

I fully support the health and well-being of transgender students.


Strongly Support Transgender Discussions In School

The reality is that trans people exist and are valid, many studies have been done to prove this. It’s in the DSM-5. Schools are a place for sharing knowledge about the world and the LGBT+ community is much a part of the world as any other. Having these discussions can only benefit students.


Strongly oppose.

I strongly oppose to this as gender conversations and decisions should be discussed at home with parents and children. This is not something that the school should be opening to help or guide in any way. Boys are boys and girls are girls. This will open major confusion and issues for children. To each their own for anyone who wants to be different than the gender they were born but I do not feel it will be beneficial to create such confusion for children.