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NASHVILLE —<span style="color: Red;">*</span>The American Civil Liberties Union of Tennessee filed a complaint Thursday with the U.S. Department of Education against Sumner County Schools over a transgender student's access to restrooms.
The<span style="color: Red;">*</span>complaint, filed on behalf of the transgender high school freshman and her parents, alleges Sumner County Schools'<span style="color: Red;">*</span>policy<span style="color: Red;">*</span>prohibits transgender students from using restrooms that correspond with their gender identity.
The ACLU argues the policy violates the U.S. Constitution and a federal anti-discrimination law. The group<span style="color: Red;">*</span>is<span style="color: Red;">*</span>asking the Department of Education to assist in enforcing federal law.
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Republican<span style="color: Red;">*</span>lawmakers immediately blasted the ACLU and<span style="color: Red;">*</span>are moving closer to<span style="color: Red;">*</span>holding a special session over the issue.
The filing of the complaint comes after the ACLU sent a<span style="color: Red;">*</span>letter<span style="color: Red;">*</span>to the director of schools<span style="color: Red;">*</span>March 4<span style="color: Red;">*</span>requesting a meeting to resolve a situation involving the student's access to bathrooms. The student has been allowed to use only faculty and special-needs bathrooms. As a result, the student avoids using the restroom or using the girls<span style="color: Red;">*</span>restroom out of fear of punishment by the school.
“No student should have to endure the stigma and marginalization of being segregated from the rest of the student body,” Abby Rubenfeld, the cooperating attorney for the ACLU, said in a news release announcing the complaint.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>“These kinds of blanket bans prevent transgender students from being treated fairly and equally at school. This policy is not only misguided, it’s a direct violation of Title IX and the Fourteenth Amendment.”
The complaint was filed with the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights, which is the same office that released a guidance letter May 13 that was sent to all schools that receive federal funding. Although the guidance doesn't have the force of law, it outlined how the Department of Education intends to enforce<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Title IX, the federal law<span style="color: Red;">*</span>that bars discrimination in education. It also<span style="color: Red;">*</span>directs<span style="color: Red;">*</span>public schools nationwide to allow transgender students to use the bathrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity.
Todd Presnell, an attorney for Sumner County Schools, said the district's<span style="color: Red;">*</span>board of education works to provide a safe environment for all of<span style="color: Red;">*</span>its 29,000 students.
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"In this spirit, the school system expressly prohibits harassment and bullying of any student, including transgender students, and also devised a set of guidelines to meet the needs of transgender students while respecting the interests of all students," he said.
Presnell said the school's guidelines<span style="color: Red;">*</span>allow administrators to meet with the parents of transgender students to discuss any needs the student may have.
"Our schools allow transgender students to follow the dress code corresponding to their gender identity, address them with the name and pronoun corresponding to their gender identity, and provide alternative physical education options," he said. "While transgender students must use the general restroom and locker room facilities corresponding to their birth gender, our schools provide alternative, private, unisex restrooms and changing facilities."
Presnell said the district believes its guidelines comply with federal law and "meet the needs of transgender students<span style="color: Red;">*</span>while simultaneously maintaining the privacy rights of all students, regardless of gender or gender identity."
Sumner County parent Jill Rathert says she applauds the Sumner County school system for standing behind its<span style="color: Red;">*</span>policy.
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"I'm not sure why the rights and feelings of one student and family trump the rights and feelings of the majority of other students and their families," Rathert said. "No one wants a child to hurt. However, it would seem<span style="color: Red;">*</span>to me the offer of the use of alternative facilities would be a compromise for both sides. If the student feels segregated, I'm not sure using a different restroom is going to solve the problem."
Tom Castelli, legal director of the ACLU-TN, said the newly filed<span style="color: Red;">*</span>complaint comes after the student’s parents spent months engaged in discussion with school officials over the matter. Initial conversations began in August, with the ACLU joining the conversation in late February, he said.
Castelli said although there is no set timeline as far as how long it will take the Department of Education to perform an investigation into the complaint, he believed it would not be too time consuming considering the probe probably will involve only<span style="color: Red;">*</span>talking to a handful of people and reviewing the school’s policy.
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If the department finds the school in violation, Castelli said, the district will be given an opportunity to come into compliance. At that point, he said, if the district does not comply, the Department of Education could take administrative action — essentially cut off Title IX funding —<span style="color: Red;">*</span>or go through the court system.
When asked why the ACLU and the family opted for the federal complaint over a legal challenge to the school’s policy, Castelli said the latter would be “time consuming, invasive and expensive.”
“They’re not looking to get a payday,” he said.
While the Office for Civil Rights<span style="color: Red;">*</span>complaint is believed to be among the first<span style="color: Red;">*</span>filed since the federal government's guidance was issued last week, it is not the first to be filed in the country. In December, the U.S. Department of Education announced that a school district in Illinois was in violation of civil rights laws over transgender issues. The school district denied a transgender student access to the girls<span style="color: Red;">*</span>locker room at her high school, according to a<span style="color: Red;">*</span>news release.
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The Obama administration released a new directive to US school districts Friday that gives guidance about transgender students, including a rules on bathroom access. States that do not comply risk losing federal funding. (May 13) AP
As a result of the finding, the federal government and school district reached a settlement that included installing privacy curtains in the girls locker room to accommodate the transgender student.
The complaint<span style="color: Red;">*</span>comes at a time Tennessee lawmakers are weighing whether to hold a special session over the federal guidance. As of Wednesday,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>one day before the ACLU filed the complaint,<span style="color: Red;">*</span>as many as 40 House Republicans supported holding a special session.
Although Gov. Bill Haslam said he thought there was no need for<span style="color: Red;">*</span>a special session — a point that<span style="color: Red;">*</span>many senators appeared to agree with<span style="color: Red;">*</span>earlier this week — the ACLU filing might have changed things.
In a statement to The Tennessean, Sen.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Dolores Gresham, R-Somerville, said Thursday the special session should be considered.
"We will not be bullied by the ACLU or the federal government," she said.
Sen.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Ferrell Haile, R-Gallatin, also confirmed that<span style="color: Red;">*</span>the chamber is exploring its<span style="color: Red;">*</span>options.
And Rep.<span style="color: Red;">*</span>Rick Womick, R-Rockvale, who criticized the<span style="color: Red;">*</span>ACLU during a House committee meeting<span style="color: Red;">*</span>during the legislative session, said Thursday he believes the complaint probably will result in lawmakers holding a special session.
"It's typical of the ACLU sticking their nose in places that it shouldn't," he said.
Jennifer Donnals, a spokeswoman for Haslam, said the governor's office will provide assistance to Sumner County if there is an investigation.
"The governor firmly believes decisions on sensitive issues such as these should continue to be made at the local level based on the unique needs of students, families, schools and districts while working closely with the local school board counsel," she said.
Contributing: Stacey Barchenger, The Tennessean.Follow Joel Ebert on Twitter: @joelebert29
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