Capistrano Unified School District could enact what’s been dubbed a parental notification policy, a procedure to alert parents if their child might be transgender, next month.
Trustee Lisa Davis said she plans to present such a policy at the board’s upcoming meeting on Wednesday, Oct. 18.
“I want parents to know that Capistrano Unified is indisputably committed to parents and guardians in all areas of their child’s growth,” Davis said Wednesday evening, during the board’s September meeting. “This policy brings parents into the conversation regarding some of the most important aspects of a child’s life.”
Although Davis did not go into details about what would be included in the policy, she said, “As educators, we are mandated reporters, so we are already mandated to report on anything that is concerning over the safety of a child.”
In other districts that have adopted these policies, situations that would warrant alerting a parent include requests to use different names or pronouns or requests to change sex-segregated programs (like athletic teams or changing facilities) that differ from the student’s “assigned biological sex at birth.” The policies also include notification guidelines if a student reports self-harm, suicidal ideation or injury to others.
CUSD’s policy, Davis said, would require all school and district employees, administrator and athletic coaches to be reporters.
“The only time we keep anything from a parent is when a parent is molesting a child,” said Davis, who was first elected to the board for a four-year term in 2020.
“We cannot have a system where we are losing trust from parents any longer,” she said.
While the proposal wasn’t slated for the Sept. 20 agenda, nearly 80 people spoke during the school board meeting, ranging from support for such a policy to threats of a recall for Davis.
CUSD has 63 campuses, making it the largest district in Orange County. The district includes the cities of San Clemente, Dana Point, San Juan Capistrano, Laguna Niguel, Aliso Viejo, Mission Viejo and Rancho Santa Margarita.
Earlier this month, Orange Unified became the first district in Orange County to adopt a parental notification policy. Its policy requires a certificated staff member or principal to inform parents if their child — under the age of 12 — requests to use different names or pronouns or asks to change sex-segregated programs. If the student is older, it is up to the discretion of a school counselor or psychologist to decide if they think it is appropriate to report the information safely to the family.
Murrieta Valley Unified, Chino Valley Unified, Temecula Valley Unified, Rocklin Unified and Anderson Union High School have also enacted these policies.
Attorney General Rob Bonta sued Chino Valley last month to stop enforcement of the policy. Bonta said it “presents students with a terrible choice. Either walk back your rights to gender identity and gender expression to be yourself (and) to be who you are or face the risk of serious harm — mental harm, emotional harm, physical harm.”
A judge has issued a temporary restraining order, blocking its enforcement for now. A hearing is scheduled for Oct. 13, five days before CUSD is set to discuss its proposal.
This story has been updated.
