The La Mesa-Spring Valley School District no longer has to comply with a 2023 agreement meant to protect the civil rights of a gender non-conforming elementary school student.
The U.S. Department of Education announced on Monday that it was dissolving several agreements with school districts and a college related to Title IX cases, including the East County school district.
It is the latest in a series of Trump administration rollbacks on trans rights, this time by removing sex-based harassment and discrimination protections in schools for intersex, nonbinary and trans students.
“Today, the Trump administration is removing the unnecessary and unlawful burdens that prior administrations imposed on schools in its relentless pursuit of a radical transgender agenda,” Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey said.
But district superintendent David Feliciano said “the remedy was already made” following the complaint, which stemmed from an incident that occurred in 2022.
“This letter has no effect on our district policies and procedures and our understanding is that it has no effect on the training or policies required at the state level,” he continued, referring to the communication from the federal government. “We remain committed to ensuring a safe and supportive learning environment for all students.”
To protect the privacy of the student complainant, the East County elementary school whre the incident occurred and the names of the principal, teacher, parent and students involved were not included in the resolution agreement.
Under the agreement, the district explained to the Title IX complainant, the parent of a nonbinary student, how to make a formal complaint of sex-based harassment. Plus, the district agreed to investigate a formal complaint, if submitted, in compliance with Title IX regulations.
In addition, since much of the complaint revolved around how the district handled a bathroom bullying incident, the district agreed to revise its grievance process and train staff on Title IX. Plus, the district was to provide all staff with a guidance memo on Title IX that included the identity of the Title IX coordinator while explaining grievance procedures.
Feliciano said the district did not dispute the resolution agreement “because it involved training we were already providing to staff around cultural proficiency, especially as it relates to the LGBTQ+ community.”
The complaint involved a nonbinary student who was using a stall in the men’s bathroom. They accused other students of climbing the walls to try and watch the student go to the bathroom.
The victim maintained the bathroom incident was part of a larger pattern of bullying, according to statements made to a teacher and in a meeting with school administration.
The harassment made the student afraid to use the gendered bathrooms at school. Although they ultimately ended up using the nurse’s bathroom for the remainder of the school year, the student was afraid of being further “othered” by using that bathroom, according to the complaint.
The school did increase monitoring of student bathrooms and instituted daily check-ins with the student by the principal. However, the investigation found the school failed to explain to the student how to file a sex-based harassment complaint, which would have spurred a thorough investigation of the alleged bathroom incident.
A second part of the complaint contends that the school had not allowed a student-initiated GSA Club, formerly the Gay Straight Alliance club. Officials dismissed that part of the complaint. Conversations concerning the club had started at that time, during 2022, but officials had yet to come to an agreement on meeting times.
According to the investigation, the student wanted to start the club after feeling isolated and alone at school.
GSA did not immediately respond to a request for comment about whether a chapter of the club had started at a La Mesa-Spring Valley school after the resolution agreement.
Federal Department of Education officials claim that Title IX, which “prohibits discrimination based on sex in education programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance,” was used improperly to prevent discrimination on the basis of “gender identity,” not sex.
A narrower, binary definition of male and female categories now will guide civil rights law.
City News Service contributed to this report.
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