NEW PALTZ–Over the past two years, Aaron Wesdorp had moments of uneasiness using the strictly male or female restrooms at New Paltz High School, so the junior decided to do something proactive about it.
Aaron Wesdorp (right) and Lisa St. John, an English teacher and co-adviser of the Gay-Straight Alliance at New Paltz High School. Photo by Paula Mitchell.
Wesdorp, who identifies as a transgender male, drafted a petition as a sophomore last winter and began circulating it throughout the high school in April, gathering about 110 signatures.
Wesdorp then presented the petition before the New Paltz Board of Education in the spring.
“I just thought that it needed to be done, and if I didn’t do it, nobody was going to get around to doing it, so I should just put my fears aside and got it done for the greater good,” said Wesdorp, a member of the school’s Gay-Straight Alliance.
“Every student has the right to feel comfortable, and if they don’t feel comfortable using the strictly male or female bathrooms, then they should have a right to be able to use the bathroom where they feel comfortable.”
Signage outside the first-floor restroom at New Paltz High School. Photo by Paula Mitchell.
The board overwhelmingly approved a policy in June, designating two single-stall facilities on each floor specifically as gender-neutral to accommodate the 20 transgender students on campus, paving the way among Ulster County school districts at a time when the
issue is front and center stage.
Administrators from two of the remaining nine districts in Ulster County responded to a reporter’s inquiry seeking details about accommodations.
In Onteora schools, transgender students may use faculty restrooms or the one in the nurse’s office, according to Superintendent Bruce Watson.
“So far, we do not have a final adopted policy…but we’re working toward that. The first thing we want to do is communicate and make sure the student feels comfortable, and we want to make sure the parent is involved. We would work with them, and that’s what we’re here for,” he said.
“Every student is a unique human being, and we have to understand their needs and their wishes. You want to make sure you’re doing what’s right morally.”
At Highland schools, administrators said they are making adjustments where needed by providing alternative facilities and increased privacy.
“I wouldn’t characterize our bathrooms as transgender,” said Superintendent Deborah Haab. “We have bathrooms in the middle and high school that are labeled ‘Restrooms.’ Anyone can use them. They are smaller and more private than some of the other bathroom facilities in the buildings.
“Privacy curtains have been installed in the locker room shower stalls, again, at the middle and high schools. This provides a more private place to change for any student that wishes to use them.”
The staff has additionally participated in training, Haab said, and the Board of Education sat through a presentation last fall on how to support students.
Repeated phone calls to the remaining seven districts, including Kingston and Saugerties, were not returned.
In May of this year, the Obama administration issued guidance to public schools to allow transgender students to use bathrooms matching their gender identity as a way to ensure a “nondiscriminatory school environment.”
Two years ago, the Title IX civil rights law was updated to address sex discrimination “based on gender identity or failure to conform to stereotypical notions of masculinity or femininity” and “protect students who do not conform to sex stereotypes.”
Schools that do not comply risk losing federal funding.
Initially led by Texas, 23 states have filed lawsuits against the administration’s directive, accusing it of overstepping its constitutional powers and conspiring to “turn workplace and educational settings across the country into laboratories for a massive social experiment.”
Jason McGuire, executive director at New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms in Spencerport, called the Obama directive “wrong-headed” and “dictatorial” and said the president is trying to rewrite legislation.
McGuire added that his organization has been hearing from a lot of parents, who have concerns this school year that their children will end up sharing restrooms, showers and locker rooms with transgender students.
“Everyone wants to be sensitive …but the reality is somebody’s confusion or mental state does not change the basic biology. When you say, ‘I have the full right to be there with all the girls,’ I have a problem with that. The science does not support the fact that you’re born with mistaken gender identity,” he said.
“This is still a mental condition, and it should be treated as such. The problem is we’re trying to normalize this behavior. It is an effort to remove the fact that there are true biological gender differences, and that is the culture of political correctness.”
McGuire advised concerned parents to get involved at school board meetings and schedule conferences with administrators to express opposition. He said his organization stands ready to advocate for families on the state level if needed.
“As Christians, we do believe in being sensitive. We’re careful with our tone and tenor, but at the same time, we have to stand for biblical truths and the biological realities of life,” he said.
While the conservative political advocacy group is opposed to movement on transgender facilities, others like the Hudson Valley LBGTQ are applauding it.
Jeff Rindler, the new executive director at the Kingston-based agency, said while he is unaware of how many schools in Ulster County have clear-cut policies on access to facilities, he noted that plans are underway to look into that.
“We really need to do an assessment in Ulster, Dutchess and Orange (counties) and find out what schools are doing and what spaces they have,” he said.
“We’re not looking to call anyone out. What we’re looking is to find what schools are doing, and then we want to create best practices. No one is looking to not do it. They’re just trying to figure out how to do it. We want to work with the community on creating a best practice. If they’re not, it’s how we can support them.”
For now, Rindler said administrators and school staff need to become familiar with the May directive from the Education and Justice Departments.
“Some teachers have a limited understanding, and most of the teachers don’t even know who their Title IX representative is. In fact, I have found in my experience that the majority of faculty have no idea of who that is,” he said.
Rindler added that faculty at area schools need to re-acquaint themselves with the state’s Dignity for All Students Act, (known as DASA), which was signed into law in 2010. The measure aims to combat bias-based discrimination and bullying in public schools and promote sensitivity toward those of different races, weights, religions, sexual orientation and gender identities.
The New Paltz district, meanwhile, considers itself trailblazers in the area.
Lisa St. John, an English teacher at the high school and co-adviser of the Gay-Straight Alliance hailed students like Wesdorp for stepping up and being agents for change.
“The world is changing really quickly, and we need to make sure students are
comfortable, and as part of the Dignity For All Students Act…I think it’s
going to be essential,” she said.
“Many students who don’t identify with a specific gender are not ready to tell the whole world they are out. They tend to hide or pretend because that’s what our social norms request that they do, so a lot of students in the past who didn’t identify as male or female have used the nurse’s bathroom which is separate and have asked to use faculty bathrooms.
“Our administration has been extremely accommodating to all our students. In New Paltz, we are very student-centered, so when Aaron came up with this idea, of course, we let them run with it because it’s about what the students want. It’s not about what the administration wants. We have to do what’s right for kids, and if the kids are the impetus for change, all the better.”
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