Laconia School Board to delve into transgender issue following vote

LACONIA — The Laconia School Board has added gender identity to its equal rights policy, opening the way to developing concrete steps to be inclusive of transgender students.

By a unanimous vote at its meeting Tuesday, the board added gender identity to the policy that already forbids discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, gender, handicap, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, or pregnancy.

Superintendent Steve Tucker said that, now that the policy has been amended, a special Diversity and Inclusion Task Force will begin exploring how to accommodate Laconia students whose gender identity does not correspond with their birth sex.

The 16-member group includes building administrators, teachers, other school district professionals, and a member of the School Board. The task force is scheduled to meet next on Wednesday, Feb. 5.

Aaron Hayward, the School Board member on the group, attended a program in November which dealt with sexual orientation and issues of gender identity expression in preparation for work on the task force.

Tucker said the group is committed to giving members of the public ample opportunity to bring up whatever ideas or concerns they may have.

“We are a public institution, and we need to engage the community,” he said. “People want to be heard. Our goal is to be a party in a community conversation.”

Tucker said he hopes the task force will have an implementation plan for a transgender policy to present to the School Board late in the school year, possibly in June.

Whatever plan is adopted will need to take into account all of the district’s students, he said.

Under state law, all school districts are required to develop a policy designed to prevent discrimination, and to correct any acts of discrimination that may arise.