Los Alamos Public Schools provides transgender training to staff that includes the Gender Unicorn; has policy to keep gender identity of students hidden from parents

Parents Defending Education submitted a public records request to Los Alamos Public Schools seeking any guidance the district has regarding transgender issues. PDE received a document back that is a presentation titled “Understanding Gender & Identity.” This presentation appears to be part of training provided to staff. The presentation states: “Youth today have access to many examples and sources of information – they recognize gender as more of a spectrum than a binary.”

The presentation also features the “Gender Unicorn.” The “Gender Unicorn” is an image that schools have used in an attempt to teach children that gender exists on a spectrum. Staff are also told to “introduce yourself with your pronouns – add to signatures and name tags, wear a button.” The presentation provides a list of notable organizations that promote LGBTQ issues to children as sources, including GLSEN, Human Rights Campaign’s Welcoming Schools, Learning for Justice, Gender Spectrum, and Trevor Project. The presentation additionally includes a video from AMAZE of a child teaching her older uncle that gender now exists on a spectrum.

The district also provided PDE with a policy titled “Transgender and Gender Non-Conforming Students.” The policy explains that the gender identity of students can be hidden from parents:

The fact that a student chooses to disclose his or her transgender status to staff or other students will not authorize school staff to disclose other medical information about the student. When contacting the parent/legal guardian of a transgender student, school staff will use the student’s legal name and the pronoun corresponding to the student’s gender assigned at birth unless the student or parent/ legal guardian has specified otherwise.

This language is often used to explain that staff should not tell parents about their children’s gender identity unless students give permission for their parents to know.

Staff are also mandated to use the preferred pronouns of students: “Students will have the right to be addressed by a name and pronoun corresponding to their gender identity that is asserted at school.” Students have access to their preferred restrooms, locker rooms, and facilities for overnight events. Students can additionally participate in sports according to their preferred gender identity. The district will “provide training to all staff annually” regarding transgender issues.