Victory! Leander ISD Board of Trustees Scrap LGBTQ Language in Dress Code
Leander, Texas – Early Friday morning, the Leander Independent School District (Leander ISD) Board of Trustees voted not to add “sexual orientation”, “gender identity”, and “gender expression” (SOGI) to their district dress code policy and instead refer to a policy that already mentions groups that are protected by federal and state law.
Texas Values team members testified at the meeting warning the school board to not add language that would create special protections for LGBTQ students and promote political ideologies in the classroom.
School policies that give special protections to “sexual orientation”, “gender identity” and “gender expression” often lead to students being punished for their biblical beliefs on marriage and gender, teachers being fired for using the wrong pronouns, biological males unfairly competing on female sports teams, and radical sex education programs like we have seen in Austin ISD.
While the school may have considered the SOGI language in the dress code, considering a SOGI dress code is the first step in adding the political ideologies in all school policies. Thankfully, Leander ISD put a halt to this effort.
As a parent or concerned citizen, you should know that the Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) is making an aggressive effort to force schools to adopt strong SOGI policies based on incorrect interpretations of law. TASB has no legal authority to enforce or suggest policies to school boards; they are a voluntary lobbying organization that charges school boards expensive membership fees. According to their website, TASB’s membership includes all 1,025 Texas school districts.
However, the fight is not over. The Leander ISD Superintendent is the former superintendent of Dripping Springs ISD, which allowed boys to use girls’ restrooms without letting parents know. If you are a taxpayer or parent in Leander ISD, please contact Superintendent Bruce Gearing and tell him to not adopt any future policies with “sexual orientation” “gender identity” or “gender expression”.
Please tell him that he cannot adopt policy language without an open meeting to the public and board discussion and that he should not adopt any SOGI language recommended by the Texas Association of School Boards.
CLICK HERE to Contact Leander Independent School Board Superintendent Bruce Gearing.
Additional Contacts in the Office of the Superintendent:
Assistant Superintendent of Campus Activities and Support, John Graham
Area Superintendents:
Laurelyn Arterbury
laurelyn.arterbury@leanderisd.org
Sarah Grissom
Devin Padavil