Sophia Lorey of the California Family Council says last week's board meeting, particularly over its working policy that required girls to seek a religious exemption or mental health accommodation for privacy from males in shared spaces, was contentious.
"People were wearing shirts that represented their side," Lorey accounts. "We saw the girls that were there to protect themselves wearing shirts that said, 'Real girls rock.' We saw people on the other side of the issue also wearing shirts with their messaging across it. It was very clear that this was not going to be a normal school board meeting."
Earlier this month, James L. Day Middle School students and adults walked out on the first day of school to protest that a male student had been allowed to use the girls' locker room during P.E. class because he identifies as a female.
The Temecula Valley Unified School District voted unanimously (5-0) on Sept. 5 to explore further options.
As part of the newly proposed policy, if a student or parent requests privacy accommodations in a "shared space," they could contact their school’s administration for an accommodation request form or verbally ask for special accommodations – such as a separate location or an alternate time to change.
Most parents at the meeting expressed their concerns about privacy and safety, but Lorey is especially proud of female students who attended.
"Four of them spoke out at the school board meeting [and] stayed until the discussion of this policy was over," she reports. "They were tired. They had school the next morning, but they spent their night being advocates for themselves because the adults at their school board weren't."
Board members said that more discussions and policies around privacy, sexuality, and gender-related issues will be had at the district and community levels.
At their next meeting on Sept. 30, trustees are scheduled to discuss the revised policy and decide a final option.
