Outgoing Jamestown School Superintendent Tim Mains discussed the legal ramifications of a district-wide transgender policy during a presentation to the Jamestown School Board on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2017.

JAMESTOWN – The Jamestown School Board received its final presentation regarding transgender student policy during its board meeting at Lincoln School on Tuesday night.

Following up on a presentation last month about challenges transgender students face, outgoing superintendent Tim Mains took time to present the legal implications of transgender policy for students, including discussing a recent case that is currently before the U.S. Supreme Court regarding a transgender student in Virginia, who’s challenging his school district’s decision to not provide equal rights for transgender students, as it pertains to federal Title IX law. Mains also discussed implications of current policy already being used in other districts in New York State, along with proposed policies.

Following the presentation, he said regardless of what happens in the courts, the Jamestown School Board should move forward at some point in implement its own policy for its transgender students.

“We already have transgender students that are identifying as transgender at the high school, and it’s likely that we are going to have more students coming forward,” Mains said. “We could have students in our elementary schools and middle schools. So before the number increases, I think it’s important for everyone to know that there is an appropriate way to support those students, and a policy will help us do that.”

Jamestown School Board president Paul Abbott said that he would like to see what happens in the courts, prior to finalizing and approving any type of policy for the district’s trans students.

“The first step to developing any intelligent policy is gathering as much information as you can,” Abbott said. “Certainly we are going to look to the courts and what decisions they render as far as this goes, and we’ll sort of use that for guidance, as Mr. Mains suggested.”

Abbott added that despite any court ruling in favor of our against required transgender policy, the district may still proceed with one of their own.

“We certainly have to comply with anything the courts require us to do legally, but as is the case with any state or municipality, you can afford rights that go beyond what you are required to provide,” he said.

Abbott also said that he doesn’t have timeline in place for when such a policy may be enacted by the school board.

“I don’t think it would be wise to set a hard deadline on it. If it happens by [the start of the new school year], that’s great, but I’m more concerned with having an intelligent policy that’s in compliance, rather than stumbling out with something because we felt like we had to reach a certain date,” the board president explained.

MAINS’ FINAL BOARD MEETING

Last night was also Tim Mains final school board meeting at Jamestown. Last month it was announced he would be leaving the district at the end of this month  to take a new superintendents job on the other side of the state at the Pine Bush School District, located just west of Newburgh, NY.

During last night’s meeting, Abbott and the school board thanked Mains for his three-plus years of service, unveiling Mains’ portrait that will be on display in the school administration building, as well as holding a held small reception for him following the meeting.

Abbott also discussed how the district plans to proceed with finding a new superintendent, saying that the board is currently working to identify a consultant to assist with the process, and more should be known about how it will play out during the next couple months. In the meantime the district has hired Sylvia Root to serve as interim superintendent.

WRFA will focus more on the transgender policy discussion, as well as Main’s departure from the district, during our Community Matters program on Thursday, Feb. 16, at 5 p.m.

The town hall meeting is open to the public and is being promoted as an “open mic” event, which will give an opportunity to all attendees to voice their concerns and discuss the issues facing the transgender and gender non-conforming community.

There will also be a discussion on the kickoff of the “Pass GENDA in 2017” campaign. This will include basic information about this important state civil rights bill as well as some initial training in telling your story, followed by a discussion of possible campaign events around the state.

The event will begin with a meet and greet, with refreshments, starting at 5:30 p.m. The actual Town Hall will run from 6 to 9 p.m. at the Universalist Congregation of Jamestown (1255 Prendergast Ave., Jamestown NY).

The town hall is created, organized, and led by the New York State Trans & GNC Town Halls Project. For more information visit www.Facebook.com/NYTransTownHalls.

The New York State Assembly Chambers

ALBANY – The Democratic-controlled New York State Assembly has voted 81-46 on a gender non-discrimination bill. The bill, however, has gone nowhere in the Republican-led Senate, a fact that some of the Assembly Republicans alluded to in the debate prior to voting against the measure.

According to the Albany Times-Union, prior to the Assembly vote Richard Gottfried (D-Manhattan) debated with Republicans who expressed fears that such a measure would give free rein to men who, claiming to be transgender, might work their way into women’s locker rooms or other spots where they could launch a sexual assault. Gottfried and others say there’s been relatively little evidence of that and he noted that a man could simply dress as a woman in order to gain access to locker or rest rooms.

Monday’s discussion was notable for if no other reason than the legal battle between the federal government and the state of North Carolina related to the same issue.

NY Governor Andrew Cuomo

ALBANY – Governor Andrew Cuomo has announced that the New York State Division of Human Rights has adopted new regulations that ban discrimination and harassment against transgender people.

The regulations affirm that transgender individuals are protected under the state’s Human Rights Law. As a result, all public and private employers, housing providers, businesses, creditors and others should know that discrimination against transgender persons is unlawful.

If the Division determines there is probable cause to believe harassment or discrimination has occurred, the Commissioner of Human Rights will decide the case after a public hearing, and determine appropriate awards for the individual.

In addition, civil fines and penalties can be up to $50,000 or up to $100,000 if the discrimination is found be “willful, wanton or malicious.”

NY Governor Andrew Cuomo

ALBANY – Gov. Andrew Cuomo is calling on the state Education Department to do a better job of protecting transgender students from harassment and discrimination in the classroom.

In a letter to acting Education Commissioner Elizabeth Berlin, the governor expressed outrage over the department’s failure to implement and monitor provisions of the Dignity for All Students Act relating to gender identity.

The letter follows a report by the New York Civil Liberties Union that says discrimination and harassment of transgender students are pervasive and education officials have failed to carry out a legislative mandate to protect them.

The governor also called for a review to be published within the next three weeks of the department’s compliance with the Dignity for All Students Act.