Advocate: Eastern Ky. school provides gender neutral bathrooms after negotiations

Bell County High School has agreed to provide access to several single-user, gender neutral restroom facilities to be used by any student who needs additional privacy, Kentucky Youth Law Project officials announced Thursday.

The decision comes after several months of negotiations between the Bell County School District in Pineville and Kentucky Youth Law Project Legal Director, Keith D. Elston, representing a transgender male senior at Bell County High School, Elston said in a statement. The transgender student was identified as “E.R.” in a statement from the Kentucky Youth Law Project.

Bell County High School Principal Brian Crawford confirmed Elston’s statement. Crawford said the decision was made by the school board, its attorney and the superintendent.

E.R. and his family contacted the advocacy group in 2020 to see what options were available to them, Elston said. At the time, E.R. was restricted to using only the single-user restroom in the nurse’s office, which was located at the far end of the high school in the lower level. The location was inconvenient for E.R.

On at least one occasion, E.R. was disciplined when he couldn’t make it to the designated restroom in time and had to use the boy’s restroom, the statement said.

“Public schools have a duty under the Constitution and federal law to provide reasonable access to services and facilities without regard to a person’s sex or gender identity,” Elston said in a statement.

The United States Supreme Court, in a 2020 case entitled Bostock vs. Clayton County, held that intentional discrimination against an individual based in part on that individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity is necessarily sex discrimination in violation of federal laws that prohibit discrimination “because of,” or “on account of” sex.

While the Bostock case was specifically about employment discrimination against gay or transgender employees under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the language of Title VII mirrors that of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any federally funded education program or activity.

As a result, courts generally apply the same interpretation to either law, according to the Kentucky Youth Law Project.

“We are very thankful for the assistance the Kentucky Youth Law Project provided and their dedication to helping school be a better place for transgender and gender non-conforming kids,” E.R. said in a statement.

Elston said in a statement he was especially grateful that the school district was willing to work with his organization to address the issue.

“It is always better for students when the schools are willing to work with community organizations to develop a more inclusive policy,” he said in a statement.

Elston said E.R.’s parents have been very supportive of the efforts to open up gender neutral bathrooms.

“I am so impressed with E.R.’s courage and tenacity,” Elston said in a statement. “He insisted on standing up for his rights, and with his parents love and support, he has opened the way for other transgender and gender non-conforming students to be treated fairly and equally by their school and community.”

This story was originally published April 8, 2022 at 7:18 AM.