Board policies linking back to the latest federal Title IX regulations are among a package of amended documents Naperville School District 203 officials are in the process of reviewing as a new school year gets underway.
Naperville 203’s board of education on Monday, Aug. 18 had the first of what are intended to be multiple discussions to hash over new and revised board policies that touch on a range of issues, including acknowledgment of changes to Title IX under President Donald Trump’s administration.
Three board policies related to Title IX subject to change
In a memo to the board, Mark Cohen, Naperville 203’s deputy superintendent for high schools, indicated three specific board policies — 2:260, 2:265 and 5:10 — do reference the latest sets of federal Title IX changes, which “include removing references to gender identity.”
The document changes came to Naperville 203 via the Illinois Association of School Boards’ Policy Reference Education Subscription Service, which periodically provides new and updated recommendations, oftentimes spurred by state and federal legislation.
While Naperville 203 is slated to acknowledge the federal Title IX changes in the latest package of PRESS policy updates, Cohen in the memo indicated this does not mean sweeping changes within the district.
“The federal change does not change our practices for students or staff, however,” Cohen wrote. “The Illinois Human Rights Act provides the same protections previously enshrined in Title IX (under former President Joe Biden’s administration).”
The Illinois Department of Human Rights states, “All students in Illinois have the right to attend school in an environment free from discrimination and harassment on the basis of their gender identity.”
Board members weigh in with preliminary questions, comments
Naperville 203’s board of education could take a deeper dive into how the district will enforce the state’s Human Rights Act, while also acknowledging the latest changes to Title IX.
Speaking to the elimination of gender identity language in Title IX, board member Amanda McMillen said, “Obviously, I have some concerns around that.”
Board member Holly Blastic indicated she also plans to raise questions as a deeper dive into the policy changes takes place.
“I have similar concerns,” Blastic said. “I’m just going to flag, ahead of time, as we review this … I’ll be seeking clarity on how we can be really clear about Illinois protections, and how that might be worded.”
Speaking in general terms, Cohen said of the initial board inquiries, “As the authors of Title IX, the federal government does have the ability to tweak in their regulations what is and is not protected by that particular document. We cannot add federal protections to that. The state of Illinois does still offer those same protections, however.”
Gender identity a hot topic in Naperville 203 in recent months
Title IX was referenced frequently late this past school year as a debate over transgender athletes participating on a team separate from their biological gender took place over the course of multiple Naperville 203 Board of Education meetings.
In mid-May, a Jefferson Junior High School student’s win at a Naper Prairie Conference track meet resulted in wide-ranging remarks during public comment about gender identity-related issues.
The Naperville 203 board is slated to continue discussing the proposed policy changes at its next meeting Monday, Sept. 8. Final action could take place at the board’s Monday, Sept. 22 meeting.
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