Gender-diverse rules back on Nevada school leaders’ agenda

Gerardo Gonzalez, center, and his 13-year-old son, Joel, attend a hearing on proposed gender diverse regulations at the Department of Education's board room in Las Vegas on Friday, March 30, 2018. The State Department of Education is expected to set guidelines and bar minimums for districts to follow to be in compliance with the new law. Andrea Cornejo Las Vegas Review-Journal @dreacornejo

Members of the Nevada Department of Education listen to speakers during a hearing on proposed gender diverse regulations at the Department of Education's board room in Las Vegas on Friday, March 30, 2018. The State Department of Education is expected to set guidelines and bar minimums for districts to follow to be in compliance with the new law. Andrea Cornejo Las Vegas Review-Journal @dreacornejo

Judy Bowen, center, reacts after a statement was made during a hearing on proposed gender diverse regulations at the Department of Education's board room in Las Vegas on Friday, March 30, 2018. The State Department of Education is expected to set guidelines and bar minimums for districts to follow to be in compliance with the new law. Andrea Cornejo Las Vegas Review-Journal @dreacornejo

Sandy Johnson, left, mentions that her daughter, Cameron, a middle school student from Boulder City, has been assaulted twice, during public comment in support of a gender-diverse policy for the school district during a Clark County School District Board of Trustees meeting at the County Government Center in Las Vegas on Thursday, March 22, 2018. Chase Stevens Las Vegas Review-Journal @csstevensphoto

Attendees hold up signs in support of a gender-diverse policy for the school district during a Clark County School District Board of Trustees meeting at the County Government Center in Las Vegas on Thursday, March 22, 2018. Chase Stevens Las Vegas Review-Journal @csstevensphoto

State officials on Friday will once again take up a controversial regulation intended to govern how schools handle students with gender-diverse identities.

State Superintendent of Instruction Steve Canavero may sign off on an updated version of the regulation, which will provide guidelines for all public school districts in the state. Clark County is also working on its policy for gender-diverse students, which will have to comply with the state regulation.

Canavero has held public hearings on the regulation twice without taking action, as public comment on both sides of the issue has overwhelmed the sessions. The regulation is required under a law passed in the 2017 session.

The new version of the regulation addresses a concern that’s been brought up often: ensuring that students or staff who accidentally use a wrong name or pronoun for a student who identifies as a different gender aren’t disciplined.

The new draft states that districts shall only discipline employees or students whose action demonstrates intent and therefore rises to the level of bullying.

The regulation does not prescribe how schools should handle restrooms or changing areas for physical education classes, but does require that districts have methods to address gender-diverse students’ rights and needs. The regulation does not include the words “bathroom” or “locker room.”

Individual districts will likely have more detailed policies on those issues, which tend to be the most controversial among those who oppose such policies. Right now, those situations are handled on a case-by-case basis in Clark County schools.

Friday’s meeting begins at 9 a.m. and will be held in three locations to help accommodate the large crowds. The board rooms in Carson City and on Maryland Parkway in Las Vegas will be open, as will two classrooms at the University Of Nevada Cooperative Extension at 8050 Paradise Road in Las Vegas.

Contact Meghin Delaney at 702-383-0281 or mdelaney@reviewjournal.com. Follow @MeghinDelaney on Twitter.