COLORADO SPRINGS — Just one week after a group of school administrators and board members from across the state sent a letter to the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) urging them to comply with a federal directive and disallow boys from competing in girls’ sports, another group of school officials has sent a letter — this time to Colorado’s state Senators — urging them to reject House Bill 25-1312 “Legal Protection for Transgender Individuals.”
The highly contentious bill, which already cleared the Democrat-controlled House, would essentially remove parents’ rights from making medical decisions for their children, regardless of age, as it pertains to gender-affirming care, and it allows courts to make custody decisions based on parents’ positions on their children’s desires to transition from their birth sex to another.
It also places restrictions on schools restricting how they create policy concerning chosen names and dress codes.
An amended version of the bill passed out of it’s first Senate committee hearing on Wednesday.
The bill “includes provisions that would classify ‘deadnaming’ and ‘misgendering’ as discriminatory acts under the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act and as forms of ‘coercive control’ in child custody proceedings, reads the letter, which is signed by more than 90 school board members, principals, teachers and other school officials. “Additionally, the bill mandates that schools with chosen name policies include transgender students’ preferred names and prohibits gender-specific dress codes.”
Many of the officials on the letter represent private and public charter schools where dress codes that include skirts for girls and slacks for boys may exist. Signatories include many public-school districts from El Paso County and around the state, such as the Brush School District, Pueblo 70 School District, Delta, Elizabeth and Montezuma-Cortez school districts, among others.
The school officials say the bill will:
- Undermine parental rights and family dynamics;
- Undermine local control;
- Create ambiguity and compliance challenges for school districts;
The group said by putting them in the middle of contentious legal and social debates puts roadblocks up to meeting their goals of ensuring safe and supportive learning environments.
“The bill’s requirements regarding chosen names and dress code policies undermine our districts’ ability to create policies that align with the needs and values of the communities we serve and represent, the letter continues. “…Implementing chosen-name policies across diverse school systems may conflict with existing record-keeping standards or parental notification policies, creating confusion for educators and administrators. Furthermore, the prohibition on gender-specific dress codes may limit schools’ ability to maintain clear and equitable standards for student conduct and attire.”
The entire letter is available here.
