Akron Public Schools has policy that appears to state students can transition to another gender at school without parental approval

Parents Defending Education submitted a public records request to Akron Public Schools seeking any guidance the school district has regarding transgender issues for students. The district provided PDE with a policy titled “Student Names” that was adopted on November 28, 2022. This policy appears to state that students who identify as transgender can change their preferred pronouns and names at school without parental approval:

If a student expresses a desire to use a first name (“Chosen Name”) that differs from the first name that is part of the student’s Legal Name or chosen pronouns, District personnel shall work with the student and/or parent/guardian on an individualized basis to use the student’s Chosen Name and/or chosen pronouns in the educational setting as permitted by law.

The phrasing “and/or” is often used to allow districts to bypass parents when socially transitioning a student to another gender while at school.

The school district also has a policy to allow employees to change their preferred pronouns and names. The policy does not state if other employees or students are mandated to use the new preferred pronouns or names. However, that has typically been the case in other school districts.