District 211: Transgender Student Not Allowed Open Access to Locker Room

A transgender student within Palatine-Schaumburg High School District 211 and the student’s family have filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights seeking unrestricted access to the locker room at the student’s school.

Though the U.S. Department of Education requires schools to provide transgender students access to a locker room, District 211 announced Monday it would continue to provide private accommodations for transgender students “to ensure a respectful school environment,” according to a statement from the school district.

“The goal of the district in this matter is to protect the privacy rights of all students when changing clothes or showering before or after physical education and after-school activities, while also providing accommodations necessary to meet the unique needs of individual students,” according to the statement. “The district’s responsibility is to provide an environment conducive to learning for all of its 12,000-plus students.”

The school district could now lose its federal funding for at-risk students and face federal litigation since the Office of Civil Rights says that not allowing unrestricted access to the locker room for transgender students is considered “inadequate and discriminatory,” according to the District 211 statement.

“In the past we have not allowed opposite sex students in the lockers rooms,” said Superintendent Daniel Cates in a Monday press conference. “And to allow opposite sex students in an area where people shower, where people change clothes, we take that very seriously,”

Cates said the complaint was issued 18 months ago and the school district has been working with OCR to try and find a middle ground since. Cates said the OCR now plans to issue an order of enforcement this next week.

“This matter is not about a single student,” Cates said. “This matter is about what the federal government shall dictate upon local school districts.”

District 211 schools currently allows transgender students to use restrooms in accordance with their gender identity, as there are private stalls available, and transgender students can also participate on sex-identified sports teams, which is consistent with Illinois High School Association policy.

“District 211 has provided individual accommodations in a manner that does not infringe on the privacy concerns of other students, and it will continue to do so,” according to the statement. “It is the District’s position that OCR’s unilateral mandate does not consider the best interests of all District 211 students and their families.”

“This is not about discrimination in anyway,” Cates said. “This is about protecting students’ privacy.”