‘Parental rights’ vote splits Lander school board

LANDER — The policy requiring Lander school staff members to report directly to parents when students confide their sexual orientation or gender identity was met with some pushback when it was first aired.

But when it was approved with a split vote last month, most board members defended its intent. Parental rights are important, they said.

Some refer to it as an “outing policy,” meaning LGBTQ+ students would be forced “out of the closet” when they disclose to a teacher or counselor.

The policy is rooted in legislation passed during the last legislative session: Enrolled Act Number 8, which went into law without the governor’s signature.

The policy mandate was in part a response to a lawsuit in Rock Springs by parents upset that their transgender child was using a preferred pronoun at school without their knowledge.

While some argued that being forced to disclose such changes to parents could pose a risk for students, the majority of the board said it is important for parents to know what’s going on with their child.

“[These are] serious conversations about serious life choices that students make that do affect their health,” noted board member Scott Jensen, pointing to increased risk of mental health issues and suicidal ideation among LGBTQ+ kids. “They need the guidance of the people that love and care about them. It’s not for the school to decide. Parental rights, parental trust is a foundational pillar of public education.”

Board member Aileen Brew attempted to add an amendment to the policy that specifies that a student’s sexual or gender identity is not in and of itself a reason to disclose to parents.

“I feel that this instance is not a clear case of mental health or medical conditions, and I wanted to offer that protection for our students,” she said.

The amendment failed on a split vote.

Does forcing kids to come out to their parents pose a risk? That question was debated.

Lander graduate Layha Spoonhunter said they did not come out until their mid-20s out of a fear of how their parents would respond.

“[Forcing a kid to come out] can lead to detrimental and even deadly consequences … You must protect all students, especially our LGBTQI students,” they told the board.

However, if a person is worried about danger in the home, “there is legal recourse,” Jensen said, pointing to requirements that law enforcement or family services workers be contacted in the event of a child abuse or neglect situation.

When a child is struggling, “Parents need to know. We should not be in the business of hiding things from parents,” he said.

Brew said the fear might not be about outright abuse, but rejection.

Students who ask a trusted teacher not to disclose their status to their parents likely have a good reason, she said.

“It may not be a question of abuse at home,” Brew explained. “I think those are cases where we need to trust our teachers.”

Studies have found that LGBTQ+ students are more likely to report lower levels of parental closeness, elevated rates of parental abuse, and homelessness; when coming out to their parents, one third are met with acceptance, another third face parental rejection, and another third simply don’t disclose their sexual orientation to their parents, according to “LGBT Youth and Family Acceptance” (which can be found at the National Library of Medicine: www.ncbi.nlm.nih. gov/pmc/articles.).

Sarah Reilley asked that the board remove reference to a student’s sexual and gender identity, explaining that the legislation requiring the policy was vague and problematic.

“Unless the student’s sexual orientation or gender identity is a danger to the student, there is no reason for staff to involve parents,” she told the board. “It is the parent’s responsibility to foster a relationship with their child where they feel comfortable having these conversations, not the responsibility of the school to bridge the gap of insufficient parenting.”

Cindy Zacks said she just moved to Lander after a career in education, and that she’d been following the school board since before she even made the move, saying she’d sometimes been “alarmed” at the board.

“I was, in many cases, the first person that some of my students came out to,” she said, explaining that many of them just wanted to be able to say the words out loud to someone they trusted.

There are lots of ways that families might make it clear to a child their negative feelings about LGBTQ+ people, so it’s no wonder students might not want a school telling a parent about their sexual orientation or gender identity, Zacks said.

Students need privacy, and, she added, the middle school should have a Gay-Straight Alliance club.

Board member Taylor Jacobs, who is a school psychologist and a member of the Wyoming Board of Education, argued that there were many instances in which a school counselor or psychologist must break confidentiality with a minor, especially when a mental health concern arises.

“The local school board is not targeting LGBTQ+ students,” she said, reminding the audience that the policy is mandated by the state. “I want all students to feel valued, safe and loved. Parents’ rights are very important, and parents need to be involved with this.”