North Kingstown committee revises policy to affirm participation by transgender and nonbinary students

The North Kingstown School Committee on May 20 approved revisions to its nondiscrimination policy to clarify that participation in physical education classes, intramurals and interscholastic athletics is to be based on students’ gender identity, with building principals instructed to follow district policy in making eligibility decisions.

The new language expanded the policy’s title and scope from "students" to "individuals" to indicate the district’s intention that these protections also apply to employees. The draft also added a line, requested by the committee, to the district bullying definition noting that cyberbullying can include social-media deepfakes or imagery created with AI technologies.

Public comment on the item included appeals from teachers and community members urging the district to preserve protections for transgender and gender-diverse youth. One speaker told the committee the state Interscholastic League’s recent change to eligibility language left districts to set consistent policies; committee members incorporated federal- and state-level legal updates into the revised policy language.

The policy passed in a recorded committee vote; the committee chair noted the vote carried by a 3–2 margin. The committee amended the draft to include the AI/cyberbullying sentence before approving the policy.

What happens next: The district will publish the revised policy and administrators said principals will apply the policy language when addressing questions of student participation in P.E. and athletics.