FCPS policy committee hears public pleas to retain transgender protections, outlines edits to equity policy

Frederick County Public Schools’ policy committee on June 25 heard more than an hour of public comment urging the board to retain the current language of Policy 4‑4‑3, which addresses supports for transgender and gender‑nonconforming students, and spent the remainder of its meeting discussing a draft overhaul of Policy 4‑4‑4 (Educational Equity and Excellence).

Members of the public and school staff framed their remarks around student safety, training for employees and the district’s legal obligations. Chloe Celeste, who identified herself as a 16‑year‑old recent FCPS student, told the committee, “As an openly transgender girl myself, this policy was crucial to my mental health during my time spent in school. I was simply allowed to be who I am, and the support I felt from staff was exactly what I needed to thrive.” Glory Casuto, program director at the Frederick Center, said students she works with “shared their concerns about lack of affirmation in their schools and their mental health struggles and suicidality as a direct result of lack of affirmation of their gender identities.”

Why it matters: The committee is reviewing two linked policies that set district expectations for how staff treat students across identity categories and how the system implements protections, supports and training. Any changes could affect staff training requirements, restroom and locker room access, athletics participation and the inclusionary wording that enumerates protected groups.

Public comment and staff perspective

Several speakers urged the board to keep explicit language in 4‑4‑3 that allows students to be addressed by their affirmed…