Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Comment Transgender Policy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Dozens of speakers urge protections for girls’ sports; others warn of outside groups targeting district
Summary
At the June 16 public comment period, parents, students and residents urged the Naperville 203 board to adopt policies limiting participation in single-sex sports and facilities by reference to sex on birth certificates; other speakers warned against outside activist groups and called for inclusion and protections for targeted students.
During the public comment portion of the June 16 Naperville Community Unit School District 203 Board of Education meeting, more than a dozen individuals addressed the board on gender participation in athletics and access to single-sex facilities, sharply divided in their recommendations.
Jason Copeland urged the board to adopt policies requiring that student participation in single-sex athletic divisions and access to single-sex bathrooms and locker rooms be determined by the sex listed on a student’s original birth certificate. "I'm asking the board to adopt the following policies," Copeland said, listing proposals on athletic participation and bathroom/locker room access and urging the board to stand "for girls." He argued the Illinois Department of Human Rights guidance is "non regulatory" and therefore optional for the board to follow.
Several speakers echoed that position. Parent Lauren Ruby described herself as "a concerned mother advocating for every girl in this district" and said Title IX "is not about excluding trans students" but argued that biological differences can create "an unfair or unsafe advantage" in certain sports. Elementary student Callie McKinnon told the board she and other girls lost places at a track meet after a boy competed in girls' events.
Other public speakers pressed a different focus. Carl Schaney warned the board about outside organizations that he said "manufacture outrage," file frequent public-records requests and mount legal actions that drain district resources; he said only three Illinois student-athletes had requested waivers in a recent year. Jim Best and Thomas Tomei said they had tracked local and national groups they described as coordinating campaigns against school districts.
Some speakers described personal or faith-based perspectives on gender identity. Lane A., who identified as a member of "Gays Against Groomers," described a personal history and argued against transgender ideology, saying alternatives centered on faith-based healing had helped them.
The board did not respond substantively to individual public comments that evening; the board's public comment procedure directs the superintendent to coordinate administrative follow-up for operational matters.
Nut graf: The public-comment session reflected a sharp divide in community views: some speakers called for board policy to limit participation in single-sex athletics and facilities by birth-certificate sex, while others warned against outsider-organized campaigns and urged protection for targeted students and staff.
The board’s public comment rules and policy guidance (board policy 2.23 and policy 2.142 referenced in the meeting) were read at the start of the public-comment period; the administration did not receive any formal motions or policy proposals to vote on during the meeting.
