Dear John, On Wednesday at 11:59 pm, the public comment period for the VDOE’s 2022 anti-trans proposed model policies ended with a record-breaking 71,000 comments submitted. And today, the VDOE announced that the effective date for the new policies has been delayed 30 days until November 26th to allow for the department to review the comments. You can read Equality Virginia’s comment here. None of this could have happened without you. You attended trainings, entered your comments, shared your stories, participated in walkouts, spread the word, and - most importantly - let transgender and nonbinary students throughout Virginia know that they don’t have to face this alone. We showed up together in the thousands, and sent a strong message to Governor Youngkin and the VDOE that #TransYouthBelongVA and that we are not backing down. Each one of you makes our movement stronger, and we cannot thank you enough for your tireless advocacy over the last month. You may be wondering - now what? With the public comment period closing, the fight now moves to the local level. Pending the VDOE’s release of the finalized policy document on November 26th, school boards will be tasked with considering the new guidance and deciding if they will adopt it. We’ve shown up at school board meetings before, and we’ll continue to show up to let these representatives know that the 2022 model policies do not belong in any school division in Virginia. We have a robust plan of action for our upcoming school board work, and we’re looking forward to sharing it with you. Please join us on Wednesday, November 9th at 6:00 pm for our webinar “Community Conversation: The VDOE Model Policies and What’s Next” to learn more about our next steps, get your questions answered, and participate in the launch of our 2022-2023 school board campaign. RSVP using the button below! |
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Thank you again for all that you do, day in and day out, to protect trans youth and to create spaces that allow them to show up as their authentic selves in every area of their lives, in every town in Virginia. Together, we will ensure that transgender and nonbinary students have access to school environments where they can learn, grow, and thrive. |
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In solidarity, Kyleigh Hynes (she/her) Safe Schools Coordinator |
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