Faced with a litany of executive orders by President Donald Trump and repeated attempts at federal legislation to curtail their rights, members of the New Paltz Central School District (NPCSD) community are demanding school officials take definitive action to protect and acknowledge trans, nonbinary and other LGBTQ+ students.
Over a dozen parents and teachers spoke during a meeting of the board of education held on Wednesday, March 19, all showing support for greater action by district officials to protect a marginalized segment of the student population.
President Trump’s reelection campaign was in part fueled by stoking the anti-trans corner of the culture war, frequently targeting the small number of trans athletes competing at the collegiate level and citing firmly debunked claims that public schools were performing gender reassignment surgery. In January, just days after returning to office, Trump signed an executive order that would ban federally-funded educational institutions from respecting the identities of trans and gender non-conforming students, blocking them from using the correct restroom or participating in interscholastic athletics, and compelling schools to inform a student’s parents or guardian if the student requests to be referred to with a different name or pronoun, regardless of whether such a notification could put the student at risk of harm.
While many such efforts by the Trump administration are being fought in court, local supporters of LGBTQIA+ students have seen enough to ask that NPCSD officials take action, not only to protect those students, but also to let them know they have their back.
In a February 5 letter to the community, NPCSD Superintendent Stephen Gratto included gender identity in a larger show of support for the community.
“Recent Executive Orders around immigration, DEI and gender identity have led to confusion and concern in our community,” Gratto said in the letter. “I want to reassure everyone that nothing has changed in our unwavering support of our students or in the way our school operates.”
Gratto cited a passage on the district website which condemns “all forms of discrimination and harassment in educational programs, activities and services based on actual or perceived race (including traits historically associated with race such as hair texture and protective hairstyles) color, weight, national origin, ethnic group, religion, religious practice, disability, sexual orientation, gender (including identity and expression) or sex.”
“These are not just words,” Gratto said. “During my time at this school and in this community, I have been truly impressed by the consistent support our students have gotten from faculty, staff, administrators, parents and community members. This school cares about and supports diversity and inclusion and nothing has changed.”
In a letter to the community a few days before the school board meeting, district parent Katie Ryan urged those who support LGBTQIA+ students to have their voices heard to ensure the district goes even further.
“This means pushing the administration to make policies that ensure trans students are referred to by their correct pronoun, to protect teachers who teach gender inclusion from harassment from intolerant families, to post signage on bathrooms ensuring that everyone is welcome to use the facilities that align with their identity, and to provide support and curriculae (sic) to all teachers K-12 to include pronouns, trans inclusion, and gender equity in their instruction,” Ryan wrote, adding that there were recently unspecified issues at one of the district’s elementary schools. “Our little town is not immune to the larger wave of bigotry. The time to push our administration to move beyond lip service ‘inclusion’ to actual policies is now. As parents and community members, we must make sure the district is giving the students, faculty, and staff the support they need in this time of increased intolerance.”
Ryan was one of more than a dozen who spoke at the meeting, with many more in the crowd frequently erupting in applause. A petition signed by nearly 250 people that day was also shared. At the meeting, Ryan, a parent of two students in the district, alluded to shows of support by school officials by saying they need to do more.
“It is no longer enough to rely on vague assurances of support,” Ryan said. “Our trans students need to feel safe and valued. Our teachers need to know they have the support of the administration in teaching about gender inclusion.”
Ryan detailed a set of actions the district should consider:
• Establish a working group of parents, teachers and staff dedicated to developing policies on gender justice.
• Implement clear guidelines ensuring trans and non-binary students are consistently referred to by their correct pronouns.
• The development of policies to protect and support teachers and staff who advocate for gender diversity in their curriculum.
• Inclusive facility signage.
• The development of policies to ensure multiple lines of recourse for families in the event of peer-to-peer student discrimination.
• Robust curriculum support so pronouns, trans inclusion, and gender equity are integrated into instruction rather than leaving it up to individual teachers to develop their own materials.
“We need to shore up these commitments now to ensure that our students, faculty and staff have a safe and supportive school environment, one that values genuine self-expression, diversity and respect in line with our shared values,” Ryan said.
Jen Torborg, a parent of three students in the district, said that affirming support in tangible ways as suggested by Ryan answers a call coming from within and beyond the local community.
“It’s not just me, nor the students, nor the parents requesting this,” she said. “It’s also the request of the attorneys general from 15 states, including New York.”
Torborg cited research performed by the Trevor Project, a national nonprofit focused on suicide prevention among LGBTQ+ youth.
“Young people are not inherently prone to suicide risk because of their sexual orientation or gender identity, but rather placed at higher risk because of how they are mistreated and stigmatized in society,” Torborg said. “It’s urgent and necessary.”
Among the students who spoke was a trans seventh grader at New Paltz Middle School named Sawyer.
“I’m not transgender because somebody told me that I should be,” Sawyer said. “I’m not transgender because somebody told me to be this way. I’ve always been like this. I always knew I was different. I didn’t have the words to describe it, but I felt it deep inside. It wasn’t a trend or an idea planted in me. It was just me. And when that family found the language to explain what I had always known, it was like a puzzle piece falling into place. It didn’t create my identity. It helped me understand it.”
Sawyer said that inclusion matters, not just to make things easier for trans people, but also because it makes the world safer for everyone.
“When we create spaces where people can be themselves, we foster an environment of trust and respect for our identity,” Sawyer said. “Schools with inclusive policies see less bullying for all students. Workplaces that support LGBTQ+ students, employees create cultures where everybody feels valued. Communities that uplift trans voices are more accepting and open for everybody. Inclusion isn’t about special treatment. It’s about ensuring that no one has to live in fear of simply existing. It’s about making sure that kids like me don’t have to wait years to feel seen. It’s about recognizing that diversity is not a threat.”
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