Edison School District Moves To Revoke State Transgender Policy

EDISON, NJ – One of New Jersey’s largest school districts has moved to repeal the state-recommended policy that offered protections to transgender students.

During the Sept. 30 meeting, the Board of Education voted 5-3 to repeal Policy 5756, under which districts were not required to inform parents if their child confides in a teacher about their gender identity or sexual orientation.

The vote was not on the agenda and no public discussion was held.

During the meeting, BOE member Visha Patel put forward the motion to abolish the policy, seconded by Shannon Peng. Patel said the policy undermines the rights of parents to know what’s happening with their child.

“It undermines the fundamental role that parents play in guiding the children,” Patel said. “I urge the board members to consider abolishing this policy and reinforcing the importance of open communication between schools and families.”

Patel noted that BOE members Anjana Patel and Chris Lugo were concerned about the policy even before they got on the board and that it was their campaign agenda. Lugo said the district was taking into consideration the legal gains and pitfalls of repealing the policy, by learning from other NJ school districts that dropped the policy.

“It does put us in a bind and for no fault of our own – it's put into state law, unfortunately,” Lugo said. “We stand in alignment with the parents and their rights to be informed with the decisions their children are making, especially decisions that can have catastrophic consequences.”

Peng said that Policy 5756 was not about gender identity, instead it was about parents being informed.

“Parents need to know about their children in order to provide the best support... It’s the parents who are responsible for their children until they turn 18,” Peng said. “Every day that this policy remains in effect, the parents are kept in the dark.”

Brian Rivera who voted against the policy, said it was a very tricky situation.

“The attorney gave us a recommended option and that's why we pretty much haven't discussed it. I wasn’t sure if we are allowed to,” Rivera said. “The attorney provided an option, and it was an option that protects the district, protects the staff members, protects the child. I’m for parental rights, but I’m also here to protect everybody.”

Peng, Patel, Anjana Patel, Biral Patel and Chris Lugo voted in favor of abolishing the policy, while Brian Rivera, Virginia White and Joseph Romano votes against. Doug Schneider was absent.

According to Michael Gottesman, founder of the New Jersey Public Education Coalition (NJPEC) Edison holding a vote and repealing the policy without a public debate was a potential violation of the Open Public Meetings Act.

“As a result of this, the entire repeal may be deemed ineffective. It will have to be addressed at a future meeting while following the legally required procedure,” Gottesman said. “There was no public discussion prior to the passage of the motion because the motion came out of nowhere, after the public comment portion of the meeting had already been completed, and during the Board final comments. So they really did it in ‘stealth mode’."

Gottesman said that Edison's repeal of the policy sets a bad precedent as it is the fifth-largest school district in the state and has a diverse community.

“The Board hired outside counsel to obtain an opinion on repeal and had this opinion for several months. So, this was something being discussed behind the scenes. However, not all of the Board members had seen the opinion at the time of the vote. Outside counsel apparently gave them three options for dealing with policy. I would assume that they were advised to leave the policy in place, modify it or repeal it. Based on Board member Rivera's hesitancy and his vote against repeal, I believe that the attorney advised against repeal,” Gottesman said.

“Since it appears that the board had the legal opinion for months, why didn't this Board go through the lawful process of putting the motion to rescind on the agenda and allow the public to comment? It is obvious that members of this Board had seen what had happened when other districts attempted to rescind the policy and the public outcry against it. I believe that in order to avoid that occurring at their board meeting, they cut the public entirely out of the situation and the decision.”

According to advocates, Policy 5756 does not prohibit notification of parents. It just does not mandate it.

“And the reason it is not mandated is because many students dealing with gender identity are afraid to come out to their parents for fear of punishment or violent reaction,” Gottesman said.

Calling the vote politically motivated, Gottesman said, “It should be noted that School Board elections are nonpartisan and that school board members should also be nonpartisan.”

The policy is not just about keeping parents informed. It includes allowing the student to dress in accordance with their gender identity and use their chosen name and pronouns in school.

Other NJ school districts that have repealed the state transgender policies include Barnegat, Long Valley, Colts Neck and Freehold.

Meanwhile three districts — Middletown, Marlboro and Manalapan-Englishtown — were sued by New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin last June. Hanover has since voted to repeal the policy, but is being challenged by the state for violating that injunction because of the repeal.

In a statement released Tuesday afternoon, school Superintendent Edward Alderelli said that any policy adoption, revision, or abolishment requires two readings and approval by the BOE. A policy cannot be abolished until it is voted on again at a subsequent Board meeting. As such, Policy 5756 continues to remain in effect.

"As Superintendent, I am both committed and required to adhere to all New Jersey state laws regarding anti-discrimination including the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (NJLAD). I will continue to ensure that all students in Edison Township Public Schools are served fairly and in accordance with the law," Aldarelli said.

"We are currently discussing this matter with the Board of Education attorneys, and I will keep the community informed of further developments.

Following Aldarelli's comment, BOE President Biral Patel released a statement saying the BOE wants to ensure "complete and correct process is followed and full transparency is maintained" in any further Board action on the matter.

"I believe the Board must perform a thorough review of the pros and cons of this Policy before having a final discussion on it," Patel said. "We have enormous faith in Superintendent Dr. Alderelli to guide our District and under his leadership we are striving to ensure Board members make the right decisions for students, parents, staff members and the entire Edison Township Community."

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