Oyster River Cooperative School District has policy that appears to explain that students can make decisions regarding their gender identity without parental consent; district has policy to implement “anti-racism” into the curriculum for students as young as kindergarten

Parents Defending Education submitted a public records request to the Oyster River Cooperative School District seeking any guidance regarding transgender issues. The district provided PDE with a policy titled “Transgender and Gender Nonconforming Procedure” that appears to explain parents do not need to be involved with their children’s gender identity issues at school. The policy states that students “or” parents can contact administrators: “A transgender student and/or their parent(s)/guardian(s) should contact the student’s counselor or building administrator.”

The policy also mandates staff and students to use the preferred pronouns of other students: “A student who has been identified as transgender under this policy should be addressed by school staff and other students by the name and pronouns corresponding to their gender identity that is consistently asserted at school.” Students are additionally allowed to use the restrooms and locker rooms that match their preferred gender identity.

The district also provided PDE with a policy titled “ORCSD Racism and Anti-Racism Policy” that serves as “both a denouncement of racism and a public commitment to continually support social justice and equity for all in the ORCSD community by becoming anti-racist.” The policy then quotes known political activist Ibram X. Kendi. The district mentions perceived “implicit bias” and “cultural and institutional racism” in this policy.

The policy explains that students will be taught that racial bias is in “banking, health care, education, food security and availability, and incarceration.” The policy later states: “Expect that staff and students be role models against hate language, and speech in any form.” The district will also teach students about “microaggressions” and “global citizenship.” The district will additionally start hiring employees based on attributes such as race: “Embracing hiring practices that recruit from diverse candidate groups. The District recognizes that this recruiting requires us to go beyond traditional/typical local postings to make working in Oyster River attractive to all candidates specifically including minority candidates.”

A companion document to the policy states that students will be taught “anti-racism” in each grade starting in kindergarten. The following vague statement is also provided for teachers: “Teachers will respect the emerging fluency in language for all students, particularly English Language Learners (ELL students).”

Another document states that “anti-racism” will be added to the curriculum for students: “A committee of district educators, made up of representatives from all levels, will annually review k-12 curriculum through the lens of anti-racism, equity and social justice.” The district also explains that “staff are expected to be role models against racism and hate speech.”