Naperville parents and advocates clash over treatment of transgender student; speakers warn of doxxing and threats

Dozens of residents and advocates pressed Naperville CUSD 203’s Board of Education on June 2 to protect a transgender student after outside activists publicized the student’s participation in a middle‑school track meet and posted identifying material online.

Supporters of the student described harassment and threats that followed the posts and urged the board to stand by district policies protecting transgender students. Opponents, including members of Awake Illinois, argued for protecting female athletics and said federal law and Title IX must be enforced as they interpret it.

The meeting’s public‑comment period ran for more than two hours. Peter Rivera, who said he has spoken previously at the board about Awake Illinois, told the board, “This wasn’t a discussion. This was a smear campaign, a lynching, a coordinated effort to shame and endanger a teenager.” Rivera added speakers had “outed, targeted, and doxed a transgender high school girl in your district, a child.”

Charlie Friedman, identified as TransUpFront’s director of operations, cited Illinois and state guidance and said the Illinois Human Rights Act and Illinois State Board of Education guidance prohibit excluding a transgender student from gender‑specific spaces because of another person’s discomfort. “It’s court upheld law in Illinois,” Friedman said, and urged the board to uphold those protections.

Several speakers recounted personal experiences. Eric Simon, a private‑school teacher who said his graduates feed into area high schools, urged the board to guard students’ emotional safety and warned that policies requiring intrusive verification of students’ identities would be harmful. “If we cannot trust children to tell us their identity, then we are declaring our intention to subject them to invasive tests,” he said.

Family members and district residents described threats and hateful social media comments after the student’s name and images were circulated. Bob Skrzenya, who identified himself as a parent of a transgender daughter, said the student and family had been put at risk and urged the board to resist outside pressure. “My child is not mentally ill,” he said, adding that the process to access gender‑affirming care involved extensive medical evaluation.

On the other side of the issue, Shannon Adcock, who identified herself as founder and president of Awake Illinois, warned the board she would keep advocating for what she called protection of female athletics and said federal attention to Title IX would continue. “We are going to win this for all of these children,” Adcock said.

Several speakers referenced legal frameworks but differed on how those laws apply. Charlie Friedman cited the Illinois Human Rights Act and guidance that allow students to request private accommodations and state that a transgender student cannot be excluded because of another party’s discomfort; Laura Heiss (identified as co‑chair of a Downers Grove Awake chapter) and other speakers cited Title IX and said allowing male‑assigned athletes to compete in girls’ sports raises fairness and safety concerns.

Multiple commenters urged civility and emphasized that the superintendent is the designated administrator to coordinate responses to public comment. The board chair repeatedly reminded speakers to avoid personal attacks and to follow the board’s public‑comment rules.

No formal board action was taken on policy at the meeting; board members directed that the superintendent, as the district’s designee, will coordinate responses to public comments and apprise the board.

The board’s next regular meeting is scheduled for June 16, when the budget hearing is set and the superintendent will continue to brief the board on operational responses to public comment.