State's Trans Student Policy Repealed By Freehold Twp. School Board

FREEHOLD, NJ — Freehold Township has become the latest school district to repeal a state policy that keeps students' gender identities private from parents if they disclose it to school staff.

The board voted to drop state policy 5756 by a 6-3 vote on Tuesday, during an almost three-hour meeting in which a number of parents, students, and community members spoke out.

In a letter to parents, Superintendent Neal Dickstein said this does not mean students will be forcibly "outed" and that the district is reviewing current internal policies to support trans students.

"The absence of any policy or regulation does not remove the responsibility that we as educators have to make decisions based upon what is in the best interest of each and every student in our care," he said.

Three other Monmouth County districts are under an injunction from implementing their own policies, which require teachers to inform parents if a student is seeking a gender accommodation, such as using a new pronoun or bathroom.

State Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin's office sued the Middletown, Marlboro and Manalapan-Englishtown school districts in June over their policies, saying they "expressly target" students who are transgender, gender non-conforming, and gender non-binary.

The Colts Neck Board of Education has held off on passing a similar policy regarding students' gender identity and expression.

The state has contented that schools in New Jersey are required to accept a student's preferred gender identity and pronouns without parental consent, according to the state's Law Against Discrimination and the State Department of Education's Transgender Student Guidance issued in 2018.