ACLU-PA Complaint Draws Response From Central Bucks School Board

DOYLESTOWN, PA — The Central Bucks School Board on Tuesday responded to a complaint filed against the district by the Pennsylvania ACLU alleging a widespread pattern of LGBTQ+ discrimination by the school board and the district's upper level administrators.

“The district is resolute and united in its commitment to every single student in our community. Every single one,” said School Board President Dana Hunter reading from a statement.

“Everyone can learn, grow and be safe, welcomed, cared for and supported,” she said. “That means the district is also resolute and united in its zero tolerance for discrimination, bullying, or harassment of any kind.

“We have policies in place to protect children,” said Hunter. “Those policies are for every administrator, faculty member and support staff to follow. Should a staff member fail to follow policies, they put student well-being at risk.

“What the ACLU has done is publicly release a complaint - and I should note the district has yet to receive a notice of the complaint - with 27 pages of wholly-redacted information from seven unnamed individuals," she continued.

“The anonymous and hidden nature of this information makes it impossible for our administrators, school councilors and teachers to do the critical work of connecting with these unnamed individuals to intervene and address any possible bullying or problematic situations, to activate support and resources to implement corrective actions with the goal of bringing about positive change,” said Hunter.

“I call on the ACLU to immediately provide its full complaint - without redactions - and bring to the board’s attention any allegations of discrimination, harassment, bullying of any kind so that the allegations can be investigated and addressed appropriately,” continued Hunter.

“Please, if you are a student experiencing bullying or a family member who is concerned that your student is a target of discrimination or harassment of any kind, please come to your building principal, to your teachers, to any one of our administrators so that we can work together, support you and rectify the situation,” she said.

On Oct. 6, the Pennsylvania ACLU filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, and the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, on behalf of seven Central Bucks School District students who allege a widespread culture of discrimination against LGBTQ+ students, particularly transgender students.

The complaint, said the ACLU-PA, is based on a five-month investigation by its lawyers who interviewed dozens of students, family members, current and former teachers and other school staff, and community stakeholders.

According to the legal complaint, the picture that emerged is of a toxic educational environment for LGBTQ+ students that has been exacerbated recently by homophobic and transphobic actions and policies taken by the school board and upper-level administrators.

The alleged discrimination is based on sex and the violation of the students’ rights under the 14th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and Title IX of the 1972 Education Amendments.

“These children deserve a safe environment where they can learn and be their full selves without fear of being bullied by other students,” said Witold Walczak, legal director at the ACLU of Pennsylvania. “Unfortunately, rather than combat the toxic educational environment faced by LGBTQ+ students in Central Bucks, a new school board majority and the administration have
exacerbated the problems with new homophobic and transphobic policies that have heightened the climate of fear for this group of students and supportive staff.”