In reversal, Edison Board of Education votes against abolishing transgender students policy

By Alvin Wu + Sumedh Natu
Domestic Affairs
In reversal, Edison Board of Education votes against abolishing transgender students policy

The Edison Board of Education deliberates during its action meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 29, 2024. EDISON BOARD OF EDUCATION/Livestream

EDISON, N.J., Nov. 3 (ZFJ) — The Edison Board of Education voted 6-3 against abolishing Policy 5756, which concerns transgender students, in a second reading during a marathon action meeting lasting five hours on Tuesday, Oct. 29, in which many members of the public spoke in support of the policy.

The board previously voted 5-3 in favor of abolishment after Vishal Patel made a motion on the floor to do so. As the abolishment had not been announced on the public meeting agenda or gone through a required second reading, the policy remained in effect.

Policy 5756 was issued by the N.J. Department of Education and states that schools must accept a student’s asserted gender identity. It contains guidance to local school districts for complying with the N.J. Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD), which prohibits discrimination based on, among other protected categories, “affectional or sexual orientation.”

A particularly controversial provision requires that school personnel work to keep a student’s transgender status confidential. Supporters say that it protects students from parents unsupportive of the transition, while critics argue that parents have a right to know if their child has transitioned.

In line with board policy, the motion to abolish came up for a public discussion and second vote at the Oct. 29 meeting.

PUBLIC COMMENT

Video: Clips from the Tuesday, Oct. 29, action meeting of the Edison Board of Education. Includes public discussion about Policy 5756 by community members and board members. EDISON BOARD OF EDUCATION/Livestream 　

Public comment lasted about four hours. The vast majority of speakers were current and former students from Edison and other school districts as well as activists and mental health professionals. These people advocated in support of Policy 5756.

Supporters of the policy argued that 5756 is necessary to create a safe space for transgender students at school that many cannot find at home due to unsupportive or abusive parents.

“My family had always told me that I was going to grow out of being gay, as an Indian-identifying person,” said Gayatri Mathur, a senior from Glen Rock, who discussed high suicide rates due to cultural stigma among Indian LGBTQ individuals. “I was always afraid of telling my extended family, and I still am.”

“While we can’t always change what happens in everyone’s homes, we can ensure we set a positive example within the community. An integral part of the community is school. Whether they receive support at home or not, it is the school’s job to provide them with that space.”

Numerous representatives of LGBTQ advocacy organizations, transgender students, mental health professionals, and parents asserted that the policy is crucial in protecting the mental health of transgender youth, who face higher rates of depression and suicidal thoughts.

“I have students who were physically, emotionally, and—this is a trigger warning, please—sexually abused by their parents upon finding that their child is transgender,” said Dr. Krish (Radhika) Sehgal, a clinical psychologist at Rutgers University with over 20 years of experience working with college students. She is Indian, a parent, and queer.

“This physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, financial manipulation of the child (do what we say, otherwise we will kick you out or we will not pay for your college), leads to suicidal ideation, self-harming behavior, a lifetime of depression, and anxiety.”

She suggested that parents should consider what to do so that their children can trust them with coming out.

Policy opponents argued that 5756 infringed on parents’ rights to know what is happening with their children.

“If we say don’t tell mom and dad, where do we draw the line?” asked Anthony Morrow, Edison resident and longtime advocate against Policy 5756, quoting the Fifth Commandment from the Bible (honor your father and your mother). “What about a drug problem? Keep ‘em in the dark about that. What about a drinking problem? What about poor grades? Where do we draw the line?”

“Let mom and dad be mom and dad.”

Morrow criticized transgender people assigned male at birth competing in girls’ sports and using girls’ bathrooms. He also questioned whether children fully understand the implications of transitioning.

BOARD MEMBER COMMENT

Board president Biral Patel delivered a statement where he said that the board had not been fully informed on the abolishment of Policy 5756 when it came up last month. He said that he has since researched the issue and concluded that many community members have “largely misinterpreted or been misinformed about the policy” taking away parental rights.

“We need clear stakeholder input,” said Patel. “I am a very big believer of stakeholder input. It is essential that all the stakeholders, including the school staff, parents, students, administrators, and board members, and the community members be able to contribute to the discussion.”

Last month, board members argued over not receiving the attorney’s recommendation on what to do from the policy committee. Patel said that the attorney has since provided access to the materials to the whole board.

He then noted that the attorney recommended that the proper response to last month’s motion on the floor to abolish Policy 5756 is to refer the matter back to the policy committee so that it could analyze the situation and send it back to the full board with a recommendation on further action. Thus, all board actions on all policies should come from the policy committee.

Vishal Patel expressed his chagrin that the policy committee has kept dropping the issue after he and Shannon Peng brought it up last year. He asked for a timeline for coming up with a resolution.

Brian Rivera said that having the policy committee meet again would just repeat information that it had already heard twice already. He concluded that a vote was necessary.

Peng asked Rivera if there was a recommendation from the policy committee. Rivera’s response was that everyone had already been provided all relevant materials and that the committee’s determination was not going to change.

Peng asserted that repealing the policy would not force the school to always notify parents. Instead, she said, it would “give the school the flexibility to handle this case-by-case, and I totally trust that our staff would be dealing with these unique cases appropriately, just as they have been doing before this policy was introduced in 2019.”

“Parents, while kept in the loop, could help their children every step of the way.”

In a passionate statement, board vice president Joseph Romano argued that there is no need to do anything to Policy 5756.

“The policy is working. Let it stay,” said Romano to applause. “Let it stay! What is the problem?”

“The fact of the matter is, we know about this, we’ve gotten information. We actually got three pages of actual documentation, and they recommended to leave it alone,” he said, referring to the attorney’s advice. “Don’t amend it, don’t rewrite it, don’t play games with it.”

Romano observed that the policy is currently being litigated, and he argued that the board should leave the matter for the courts to handle.

Biral Patel disclosed that, in the policy committee meeting, the attorney advised that, when it comes to “controversial, highly contentious public issues in this instance, the Edison Board of Education is sitting within the majority of other school districts by keeping the current policy in place, having the luxury of watching and observing the ongoing litigation related to the issue, while being able to rely on the recommended practice of the state.”

“If the state is victorious, EBOE’s position has remained in good standing with the recommendation of the state,” read Patel from the attorney’s recommendation.

ROLL CALL - MOTION TO ABOLISH POLICY 5756

YESNO
Anjana PatelChristopher Lugo
Vishal PatelBrian Rivera
Shannon PengDouglas Schneider
Virginia White
Joseph Romano
Biral Patel

The motion to abolish Policy 5756 failed 6-3.

References