Manalapan-Englishtown BOE Moves To Abolish Transgender Policy Suggested By State

MANALAPAN, NJ — The Manalapan-Englishtown Board of Education voted to abolish Policy 5756 (Transgender Student Guidance for School Districts) at a board meeting Tuesday night.

The vote follows a ruling from the NJ Appellate Court on amendments that the Manalapan-Englishtown, Marlboro and Middletown school boards made to the policy, which would require school staff to notify parents when a student changes their gender identity.

During the board's Tuesday meeting, the board held a vote to abolish Policy 5756.

Here’s what you need to know:

Policy Background
Policy 5756 (also known as “Transgender Student Guidance for School Districts”) follows guidance from the NJ Department of Education.

In the policy, school districts are guided to accept a student’s gender identity and school staff are not required to notify parents of a student’s change in gender identity or expression.

The Manalapan-Englishtown School District followed Policy 5756 until their board, the Middletown Board of Education and the Marlboro Board of Education amended the policy in June 2023 to require school staff to notify a student’s parent if that student requested a gender identity change at school.

In Manalapan-Englishtown’s amended policy, it’s stated that the district would accept a student’s asserted gender identity without parental consent for kids in grades 6-8, though for students in grades Pre-K-5, the policy said the “responsibility for determining a student’s gender identity rests with the student’s parents/guardians.”

After the three districts amended their policies, NJ Attorney General Matt Platkin sued them, arguing that the districts were putting LGBTQ+ and transgender kids at risk and violating New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination.

On Feb. 10, the NJ Appellate Court agreed with an earlier ruling from the Monmouth County Superior Court, which found that the three districts could not enforce their amended policies, though the Appellate Court did rule that the districts could now consider alternative policies.

Following the Appellate Court's ruling, the Manalapan-Englishtown Board of Education introduced a motion to abolish Policy 5756.

Motion To Abolish Policy 5756
At Tuesday night’s meeting, the Manalapan-Englishtown Board of Education voted to abolish Policy 5756.

Throughout the meeting, community members and board members alike expressed their support for abolishing the policy.

One resident, Brian Graham, thanked the board for their decision to abolish and spoke about the importance of parental involvement when it comes to younger kids.

“I certainly like seeing this here on the agenda, glad that you’re going to abolish it because parents do deserve the right to be informed of many of these types of decisions,” Graham said. "I'm not sure I would agree on it if it were a high school district, but certainly dealing with younger kids that are in kindergarten or [grades 1-5], parents should be involved."

Board Member Jesse Tossetti, who said he helped draft the amended policy, thanked the board for their support over the years, and said it’s been a priority to “fight for parents.”

“I’m really happy with the result that we got and that we’re able to go forward,” Tossetti said. “So I just want to thank all my fellow board members for seeing this through to the long and short of it.”

Following the Appellate Court’s ruling on the schools’ amended policies, Board President David Ferber said the Appellate Division made clear that the trial court “abused its discretion” when ordering the districts to maintain Policy 5756, and said the Manalapan-Englishtown Board of Education believes parental involvement is in the best interest of their students.

“The Appellate Division made clear that the trial court abused its discretion when it ordered us — as the request of the Attorney General — to maintain Policy 5756, which he admitted is not mandatory,” Ferber said in a statement sent to Patch. “Therefore the board may choose to abolish the policy, as so many other NJ school districts have.”

“The Attorney General weaponized his position for political purposes, never afforded us a hearing before the Division on Civil Rights, and is wasting taxpayer dollars for a frivolous lawsuit against three school districts including Manalapan-Englishtown, which continues to be at the top of state rankings in education,” Ferber said. “We strongly believe that parental involvement is in the best interest of our K-8th grade students.”

Policy Concerns
Though many have voiced their support for abolishing Policy 5756, advocates have also raised concerns about the schools' amended policies and the potential impacts that abolishing or amending Policy 5756 could have on kids.

Garden State Equality, an LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, said up to 40% of homeless youth identify as LGBTQ+, making supportive school environments essential for kids and teens.

In an online statement, the organization said that the court's decision affirms that the districts' amended policies likely violate the NJ Law Against Discrimination and would have caused "irreparable harm" to transgender and gender-diverse students by forcing them to come out before they were ready, putting their safety and well-being at risk.

In their statement, Garden State Equality also said that the court's decision acknowledged that the current policies do not prevent parents or guardians from accessing student records.

“All students in our state deserve to feel safe, supported, and respected," ACLU-NJ Legal Director Jeane LoCicero said. "Policies that target gender-nonconforming students violate anti-discrimination laws and the protections of our state constitution."

By ruling that the districts could not enforce their amended policies, Christian Fuscarino, the executive director of Garden State Equality, said the decision has sent a powerful message to transgender and diverse youth that their safety, rights, and ability to be themselves are not up for debate in New Jersey.

“Forcibly outing students to potentially unsupportive homes does not create safer schools; it puts vulnerable young people at risk,” Fuscarino said. “This decision makes clear that every student deserves dignity, privacy, and the right to be themselves without fear.”

To watch a recording of Tuesday night’s meeting, you can click here.

Editor’s Note: For general LGBTQ+ resources, you can visit this resource list from GLAAD. For LGBTQ+ crisis/suicide prevention hotlines and warmlines, you can view this list from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation.

Related

• Marlboro BOE Moves To Abolish Transgender Student Policy Suggested By State
• Middletown BOE Removes Transgender Student Policy Suggested By State
• Middletown's Transgender Policy Could Harm Kids, May Be Illegal, 2nd Court Says
• Marlboro Cannot Enact Transgender Student Policy, NJ Court Rules
• Manalapan-Englishtown Cannot Enact Transgender Student Policy, NJ Court Rules
• Middletown Cannot Enact Transgender Student Policy, 2nd NJ Court Rules
• State Of NJ Sues 3 Monmouth County Districts Over Transgender Student Policies
• Judge Rules Middletown Cannot Enact Trans Student Policy