As part of its 2024-25 DEI initiatives, the Kingston City School District (KCSD) has been strengthening its supports for transgender and gender expansive students.
During a late-October meeting of the board of education, KCSD director of diversity, equity and inclusion Kathy Sellitti shared an update on the district’s efforts at a time when transgender and gender expansive youths have become targets in a divisive culture war.
“I want to be clear that issues around transgender and gender expansive youth and all LGBTQ+ youth is a systemic one,” said Sellitti. “It’s not an issue with those children. It’s a systemic issue. We as the adults in the institution are in many places still operating on outdated and outmoded ways which excludes and otherizes certain students. Additionally, outside messages seem to make it okay to dehumanize LGBTQ plus youth people and youth in particular these days.”
Transgender individuals are those whose gender identity differs from the sex assigned to them at birth. Gender-expansive people express or identify their gender in ways that challenge traditional societal norms.
“I just want to be clear,” Sellitti said. “I don’t want to conflate sexuality with gender.”
Sellitti said the district has had the ability for students and families to request changes in name, gender, and pronouns for five years in eSchool, a system which outputs to all district electronic communication spaces. She credited director of technology and chief information officer Gary Tomczyk, Jr. and former assistant superintendent for personnel and administration John Voerg for getting the ball rolling.
“eSchool is catching up to us with this as more and more students are coming out as trans and gender expansive,” Sellitti said. “The supports that I put in place here are for trans and gender expansive youth in particular. So the process of coming out is what we’re trying to support here. It’s different for every single student who needs to come out.”
Last May, all KCSD counselors, social workers, and psychologists attended a workshop run by GLSEN, a nationwide organization focused on eliminating discrimination, harassment, and bullying related to sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression. GLSEN aims to promote cultural inclusion and awareness of LGBTQ+ issues in K-12 schools.
Additionally, all building and district administrators had a 45-minute information session focused on ensuring support for trans and gender expansive students; nurses received an information session at their first departmental meeting of the current school year; with every school building having a team of professionals able to assist when a student comes out as transgender or gender expansive.
“I don’t want folks to think that transgender or gender expansive students have a mental illness or they have a specific need for counselors, but…coming out in school there are sometimes different needs that these youth have where they have to have somebody who can help them navigate the coming-out process which is usually happens multiple times with multiple people and multiple places,” said Sellitti.
The district’s efforts at supporting transgender and gender expansive students is bolstered by the State Education Department (NYSED), which in 2023 published a 42-page document described by Sellitti as “robust” designed to help public schools in New York ensure an inclusive educational environment.
“The (NYSED) is committed to providing all public school students, including transgender and gender expansive students, with an environment free from discrimination and harassment, fostering civility and ensuring that every student has equal access to educational programs and activities,” reads the document’s introduction. “All students need a safe and supportive school environment to progress academically and developmentally. Administrators, faculty, staff and students play an important part in creating and sustaining a healthy and respectful environment.”
The NYSED document cites a 2021 National School Climate Survey conducted by GLSEN which highlighted serious concerns about the safety and wellbeing of LGBTQ students. Among the 22,295 students aged 13-21 surveyed, 68 percent reported feeling unsafe at school because of their sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. This sense of insecurity stemmed from experiences such as anti-LGBTQ comments, harassment, assaults and discriminatory policies that limited students’ gender-affirming choices. The study also measured the impact of hostile school environments on LGBTQ students, with those facing victimization often experiencing lower academic performance and mental health issues. Students surveyed also reported avoiding school and related events, feeling ostracized and isolated, suffering from decreased self-esteem, higher levels of depression, and an increased likelihood of dropping out or not pursuing higher education.
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