Federal appeals court weighs whether schools must out trans students during trips

"JeffCo Public Schools argued that ending the policy would force schools to single out transgender students and expose children already vulnerable to bullying and harassment. "The stigma goes far in the other direction by forcing the identification of people who are different, which is what the net result of this policy is." "What plaintiffs seek is unprecedented, in terms of changing how the school district interacts with all other students, because of their free exercise concerns," argued school district attorney Eric Olson, according to The Denver Gazette."

"District policy prohibits schools from disclosing a student's transgender status to unrelated families, treating the information as protected student privacy data. Joe and Serena Wailes sued the district after learning their 11-year-old daughter had shared a hotel room with a transgender girl during a 2023 school trip to Washington, D.C. ADF attorneys argued the district violated the family's parental and religious rights by not informing parents beforehand."

""Our families have simply asked Jeffco not to room their children with the opposite sex on overnight school trips without notice or their consent," argued Alliance attorney Noel Sterett, according to the Golden Transcript. Olson countered that the pa"

A federal appeals court heard arguments in a lawsuit challenging a Jefferson County Public Schools policy on overnight school trips. The policy allows transgender students to share hotel rooms with classmates who share their gender identity. The school district argued that removing the policy would require singling out transgender students and could increase bullying and harassment. The district also said the policy protects student privacy by prohibiting schools from disclosing a student’s transgender status to unrelated families. A conservative legal group backed the challenge, arguing the district violated parental and religious rights by not informing parents beforehand. Families involved said they asked for notice and consent before rooming children with the opposite sex on overnight trips.

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