‘No One Will Know’: Red State Schools ‘Openly’ Violate Law On Male Students In Female Spaces, Complaint Alleges
Two Ohio school districts are facing federal complaints alleging they are “openly violating” federal civil rights laws after videos surfaced revealing administrators agreed to conceal the biological sex of a male student to allow him to participate in girls’ sports.
School leaders at the Dayton Public School District (DPSD) and Three Rivers Schools (TRS) were caught on video saying they have no problem hiding the true identities of male students who want access to girls’ spaces at school, according to complaints filed Wednesday by Protect the Public’s Trust (PPT) and shared exclusively with the Daily Caller News Foundation. The complaints are based on undercover videos recorded by Accuracy In Media (AIM) investigators posing as potential parents.
“If it says it’s female and that’s the birth certificate that we have on file, then that’s what we’re going to use,” Carla Rodriguez, student systems administrator at DPSD, told AIM investigators in the video.
“We have transgender people participating in our area,” Mauryce Neal, administrative assistant for the athletic department, told AIM, adding that they would keep the identity of the transgender student “internal” and not notify parents of other athletes.
The DPSD did not respond to DCNF’s request for comment.
At TRS, Education Management Information System (EMIS) coordinator Debbie Fox told AIM that if a male student’s birth certificate is changed to that of a female, “she will be registered as a girl” and “no one will know the difference”.
Former district Superintendent Mark Ault added that the amended birth certificate “could have some influence…It could help.”
TRS informed the DCNF that one of the employees in the video has since died and the other has retired.
Protesters demonstrate during a rally against the repeal of transgender bathroom rights in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 2017. (Photo by Mark Makela/Getty Images)
The complaints were filed with the Department of Education (ED), the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the Department of Justice (DOJ). PPT said the schools appear to “demonstrate deliberate indifference to harassment” and are “openly violating Ohio law and the principles communicated in Title IX and EO 14201.” (RELATED: ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’: Ohio Schools Caught Saying They Would Conceal Gender of Trans Students, Complaint Says)
“Another day, another group of Ohio schools are still peddling discriminatory ideology, apparently in violation of both state law and Title IX,” PPT Director Michael Chamberlain told DCNF. “This seems deeply ingrained among those who work in the state’s school systems, despite the wishes of communities and leaders at the state and local levels. This should serve as a stark warning that even schools in some parts of the country that vehemently oppose this destructive school of thought are not safe from having this school forced upon their children.”
Ohio law requires schools to base use of facilities on biological sex and prohibits sex reassignment procedures for minors, including hormone blockers. President Donald Trump also signed executive orders banning men from participating in women’s sports and declaring federal recognition of only two biological sexes.
“If changes to the law in Ohio aren’t enough to motivate these school systems to turn around, then perhaps investigations by the federal government could,” Chamberlain continued.
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