Eighty to ninety parents and students at James L. Day Middle School showed up at a walkout on Tuesday, Sept. 2. The supporters said they were supporting girls’ private spaces and were against the idea that they may have to sign “Mental Health Accommodation” forms or “Religious” forms to be allowed to dress only in front of their same biological gender.
There is at least one trans girl who is more comfortable dressing in the girls’ locker room than the boys, where there were reports that the student may have been bullied.
The demonstration began at 7:45 a.m. at the school at 40775 Camino Campos Verdes.
The issue comes as schools across California and the nation grapple with debates over gender identity, privacy, and student rights. Parents involved in the protest say they want to ensure that girls are not penalized for modesty or pressu
red into seeking mental health or religious exemptions. Instead, they argue, students who are uncomfortable with their biological gender could be given special accommodations, such as gender-neutral changing areas and bathrooms.
The parents and friends supporting “trans rights” said the school was obeying California law.
At the center of the protest are forms that were supported by a majority of Temecula Valley Unified School District board members, Dr. Melinda Anderson, Emil Barham and Mr. Schwartz. The forms, set to be considered again at the board’s Sept. 9 meeting, would allow biological girls to claim a mental health or religious exemption if they are uncomfortable undressing in front of male students who identify as female.
Trustees Jen Wiersma and Dr. Joseph Komrosky have opposed the mental health and religious forms from the start and have backed a privacy form instead.
“The reason Joseph and I brought forward the privacy option in May was to give every parent the option to opt out of mixed spaces in a locker room that would be uncomfortable for their student and ensure the district would not incur liability by singling out a campus or student,” Wiersma said. “My proposal was a privacy form modified for TVUSD that should have gone in the annual parent notification packet, but the majority of the board didn’t listen and wanted to go with the mental health and religious focus. Privacy is a right for every student. It has nothing to do with religion or mental health. Privacy doesn’t reveal personal information. It was the best solution to a bad bill, and the majority of trustees — Anderson, Schwartz and Barham — rejected it.”
Board President Melinda Anderson said trustees are trying to follow the California Education Code while navigating conflicting state and federal rules.
Navigating state laws that defy Title IX, prioritize LGBTQ rights over women’s and parental rights, and conflict with executive orders banning boys from playing in girls’ sports is complicated, Anderson said. “We are looking at all options to find protections for girls. The ideas are being reconsidered and changed.”
Wiersma said the controversy could have been avoided if the privacy notice had been adopted months ago.
Komrosky said he hopes trustees will work collaboratively at the next meeting to resolve the issue.
“My hope is that the board adopts a privacy policy and rejects the mental
health and religious forms,” he said. “There are many solutions being worked out in real time with site administrators, district administrators and teachers. In the end, I want each and every student to have a safe and good education, and our district to emphasize back-to-basics education while avoiding the pitfalls of gender ideology. I would request that the community please be in prayer for us while we are working on this.”
An anonymous parent said school officials are already making accommodations.
“I have been told by multiple sources that the students change out in three separate groups, so no one is changing with anyone they aren’t comfortable with,” the parent said. “The school is doing a great job trying to make everyone happy.”
School administrators were present at the walkout, staying across the street, but chose not to comment.
Organizers of the walkout confirmed the school had made accommodations, but said they oppose the forms.
“This is true, the school has made accommodations, but we oppose the lunacy of mental health and religious forms for the majority of the students,” organizers said in a statement. “No student should have to sign a document or feel uncomfortable undressing or using the restroom. The solution is male, female and unisex dressing rooms and restrooms.”
Komrosky said the mental health and religious forms were adopted by a 3-2 vote in June with Anderson, Barham and Schwartz in support.
“At the last meeting [July], the forms were tabled to return on Sept. 9,” he said. “I was the only trustee to vote no. I never want to see these forms again. Mrs. Wiersma and I wanted a privacy form from the beginning so that nobody was targeted.”
Tuesday’s protest also follows an email sent to Superintendent Woods and the school board by Sonia Shaw, a parent and frequent speaker at board meetings.
In her letter, Shaw alleged that girls at Day Middle School were being marked tardy for refusing to change in front of a boy in the locker room and that school counselors attempted to pressure female students to undress in his presence. The opposition at the walkout said this was not true.
The organizers said, “Everyone, including our girls, deserves safety, respect, and dignity. Having boundaries is a healthy and necessary part of growing up — they should be celebrated, not shamed. Every girl has the right to decide who she feels comfortable around, especially when it comes to something as private as undressing.”
Organizers say the walkout was meant to call attention to what they describe as school policies and practices that put students “in the middle of political ideologies” and pressure them into silence.
“This is outrageous, unsafe, and a blatant violation of student privacy and parental trust,” Shaw wrote. “No child should be forced into this situation, and no staff should ever pressure or intimidate students into surrendering their basic rights to safety and dignity.”
Shaw demanded that the district stop the practice, provide alternative accommodations, investigate the staff involved and communicate corrective actions to parents. She warned that if the situation is not addressed, she would rally parents and hold a press conference.
The father of the trans student said the school offered the health office as an option, but that it is located across the campus and his student was uncomfortable with everyone being unable to use the space while they were changing.
District officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
“Our girls are precious,” the flyer states. “They should not be pressured into silence or made to feel guilty.”
