The Suffolk school board delayed a vote on policies pertaining to transgender students that expand on model policies from the state.

Suffolk’s proposed policies are notably different from the version that was created by Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration. Other local school districts, including Virginia Beach, adopted Youngkin’s model policies as-is.

But Suffolk Superintendent John B. Gordon drafted a policy that goes beyond the state’s models. The policy includes definitions of terms like cisgender, nonbinary and gender identity. 

Gordon’s draft also includes additional local regulations that would require mental health staff get training to learn about LGBTQ identity langauge; “how unauthorized disclosures to peers, parents, school staff, and other third parties may negatively impact the student’s safety and well-being”; what resources are available to LGBTQ students and parents, and more.

His recommendations include the state’s model policies, but also emphasize the district’s role in determining if certain disclosures could harm the student and the policies must be carried out in a “non-stigmatizing way.”

Suffolk board member Judith Brooks-Buck was prepared to vote on the policies, saying she didn’t hear negative feedback aside from “ugly people saying ugly things” – a statement that drew ire from some audience members and caused the board to take a brief recess before voting.

But other board members, including Dawn Marie Brittingham, said the policy deserves more conversation. 

“If you look at our neighbors in Virginia Beach … they went through a really rigorous process before even voting on their policy,” she said. “They had … multiple work sessions completely dedicated to forging that policy.”

The state Department of Education creates model policies and districts are legally required to adopt ones that are consistent with, but may not be identical to, the state’s model. 

State lawmakers also passed a law in 2020 to force school boards to adopt then-Gov. Ralph Northam’s trans-friendly model policies. Without an enforcement mechanism, only 10% of the state’s school boards ever did.

Patricia Holloman, who’s son is a junior at Nansemond River High School, said she was pleased to see Gordon’s option.

“There's wording in there that it would include access to the single stall bathrooms,” she said. “I think that, if nothing else, that's at least a wonderful alternative to potentially keep those kids safe.”

According to the Trevor Project, a leading advocacy group for transgender kids, found that more than half of transgender and non-binary children seriously considered suicide in 2022.

In Virginia, 17% of all transgender and non-binary youth attempted suicide in 2022, according to the Trevor Project.

In 2019, the Virginia Department of Health estimated 9% of middle-schoolers attempted suicide and 7% of high-schoolers attempted suicide.

The Trevor Project found LGBTQ students were less likely to attempt suicide when their schools acknowledged and protected their identities. The national surveys looked at bathroom access for trans youth, rules around sports teams and the use of preferred pronouns.

Suffolk and Virginia Beach public schools are a member of HRETA, which holds WHRO’s license.