School board nears final vote on anti-LGBTQ+ policy

Required to pass some version of the policy by a new state law, trustees weigh delaying the vote, with a few arguing the new rules are an invasion of student privacy and a threat to student safety.

ACSD No. 1 School Board Trustee Emily Siegel-Stanton speaks during an April board meeting. The trustee has said a proposed “parental rights” policy, scheduled for third reading tomorrow, presents a threat to student privacy and safety. // Photo: Ashton Hacke

The Albany County School Board is scheduled to cast a final vote tomorrow on a proposed district policy that would force school counselors to out transgender and gender-nonconforming students to their families. The board meets at noon for a special meeting.

Trustees have not been shy about their disgust with the proposed policy, which is only on the table for Albany County Schools because of a new state law mandating districts throughout Wyoming adopt specific rules regarding “parental rights” in education.

Several board members have expressed fear that the new policy could put students in danger — up to and including the possibility that some children might be forced out of their homes by unsupportive families — and could make children less likely to tell someone at school about issues they’re facing in their social or home lives.

Trustee Emily Siegel-Stanton has been the policy’s fiercest critic, describing the state law as an unprecedented invasion of student privacy, a law so misguided that it ought to be resisted in the name of student safety.

“I wonder what this board would do — how would we handle it — if we started to get legislation that girls can’t wear pants in school?” Siegel-Stanton asked during the policy’s second reading earlier this month. “That head scarfs aren’t allowed in schools? Dreadlocks aren’t allowed in school? How are we going to handle it? When do we push back? When do we say, ‘No, we are here to provide a safe and adequate education for students and to support our staff in doing so.’ We are not here to turn our staff into the KPD with our students.”

As a mental health professional herself, Siegel-Stanton has said the policy will put school counselors in a tough spot where their legal obligations require them to abandon the professional and ethical obligations they have toward their young clients. She said hindering students’ ability to access safe, confidential counseling is likely to exacerbate an ongoing mental health crisis among LGBTQ+ youth.

During the policy’s second reading, Siegel-Stanton added she is particularly concerned about the possibility of students being made homeless. 

“Can we have resources available — like mediation, counseling — available as administrators are telling things to parents?” she asked. “We heard a really on-point comment during our public comment about students who might not be able, or don’t feel safe, going home after things were disclosed. If the student says, ‘I won’t be safe at home if this gets home,’ can we make sure to accommodate them at the Unaccompanied Students Initiative housing or partner with Cathedral Home for crisis sheltering?”

The students Siegel-Stanton is concerned for could be LGBTQ+ youth who are not accepted in their homes, or they could be students of any stripe who are dating before their parents have given them permission and seek help from trusted adults outside the home. Really, she said, the policy will negatively impact any students experiencing issues they don’t feel safe bringing to their parents.

“This is real,” Siegel-Stanton said. “Students are told, ‘If you’re having dating relationships before I’ve given you permission, you’re not welcome under my roof.’ And then the student goes to a counselor because they’re in an abusive dating situation and they know they need help. We need to have those students’ back and we need to have housing lined up for students who say, ‘I won’t be welcome at home if my family knows.’”

The local policy now before the board started with the State Legislature, which pursued a number of “parental rights” and other anti-LGBTQ+ bills during the most recent session.

In the wake of that session, a new state law dubbed “Parental Rights in Education” mandates that every school district in the state pass a local policy to enact its dictates. The state law, and the district policies it will spawn, will require school districts to notify parents of any “changes” to a student’s well-being. That’s a provision interpreted by both supporters and detractors as requiring schools to tell parents if their children ask to go by different pronouns or a new name.

The state law and the ACSD No. 1 policy based on it make exceptions to this mandatory reporting for students in abusive homes. But to make use of that exception, the district must be prepared and willing to report the case to the state’s Department of Family Services for review.

The law makes no exception for instances in which the district fears a family will kick a student out of the home or fears a family will otherwise mistreat the child in a way that falls short of legally recognizable abuse.

The new legislation might also make it more difficult to catch child abuse by giving all parents more latitude to shield their children from almost all health screenings, School health screenings are the most common way those outside the home learn of abusive situations within it.

The legislation additionally requires teachers to secure explicit permission from parents before offering any instruction about “sexual orientation or gender identity.” This last provision has earned similar legislation the moniker “Don’t Say Gay” in both Florida, where it was first tried, and Wyoming, where it was first attempted in 2023.

The ACSD No. 1 policy was passed on a 7-2 vote during its first reading, with trustees Siegel-Stanton and Cecilia Aragón voting against. It passed on second reading again with a 7-2 vote, this time with trustees Siegel-Stanton and Nate Martin voting against.

During that second reading, Trustee Martin floated the idea of not passing the policy during its scheduled third reading.

“I’m just weighing that against the harm that could be done by fast-tracking this policy — by not getting adequate input from our community, by not giving the policy adequate time before the policy committee, by not answering a lot of the very important questions about parents retaliating against their children as the result of the district snitching on them,” Martin said.

Superintendent John Goldhardt pushed back on that suggestion.

“I would advise against not passing it,” he said. “I don’t think it would be a wise move to open ourselves to litigation, or to possibly have the State Department of Education take our accreditation away, because they would have that ability to do it and that would not be good for us.”

But Martin said the district should consider delaying the policy for the safety of its students and in defense of local control. He said the risks, especially of disaccreditation, were minimal.

“With all due respect to Dr. Goldhardt, the accreditation process is not as simple as: ‘You’re accredited’ and ‘You’re not accredited,’” Martin said. “Not passing a single policy, or taking a little bit more time with a single policy, in my understanding, does not threaten the accreditation of the district.”

Board Chair Beth Bear said passing the new policy is what’s required by law and she supported the board following that law.

“We have some decisions to make,” Bear said. “We can pass a policy that we don’t like. Or we can not, and see what happens, and be in violation of the law. Those are our choices.”

The school board will gather for its special meeting noon Thursday in the school administration building at 1948 Grand Avenue. The trustees will give the “Parental Rights in Education” policy a third and likely final reading. During the same meeting, the trustees will consider three other policies related to “sex-based discrimination” and “wellness” on second reading.

There will be an opportunity for public comment. The meeting can also be streamed via the district’s YouTube channel.