Bellevue board keeps revised transgender student regulation after hours of public comment; consent agenda, salary packages, superintendent renewal approved

The Bellevue Board of Education approved a consent agenda that included proposed revisions to an administrative regulation on transgender students after more than an hour of public comment on April 14.

The board’s consent motion, which trustees approved unanimously, covered the administration’s recommendation to adopt items listed under the consent portion of the agenda and to receive information and proposals listed in later sections. The consent vote also included a set of negotiated and nonnegotiated salary agreements and the superintendent’s contract renewal.

The item that drew the largest turnout was the proposed revisions to the district regulation that address how staff should treat students’ gender identity, athletic participation and communication with families. Public commentators spoke for and against the change. Supporters said the revision protects girls’ privacy; opponents said it would put transgender students at risk by removing established privacy protections and by redefining participation rules.

Edward C. Ventura Jr., identified himself as speaking on behalf of Tim Royers, president of the Nebraska State Education Association, and asked the board why the regulation was on the agenda for final action without earlier notice. “Policy 205.02 on policy adoption requires the board to give notice of proposed changes by placing it on the agenda of two regular board meetings,” Ventura told trustees. “That is not listed on the agenda for today’s meeting.”

Several parents and students said the district’s current regulation, which has been in place for about a decade, provided protections they feared would be removed. Daniel Linder, who identified himself as a father of two children in the district, said his son is…