ENCINITAS — Two years after California passed a law that permits transgender youth to use whatever bathroom they wish, school districts continue to grapple with compliance, though major strides have been made.
“You can’t just build a restroom or retrofit one tomorrow,” said Kurt Dearie, a history teacher at Carlsbad High School who has been a co-advisor for the school’s Gender Sexuality Alliance since 2002. “The lack of money and all kinds of things make this more challenging today.”
The issue came up recently at San Dieguito Academy in Encinitas. Ninth-grade activist Milo Spearman started an online petition on an advocacy website that drew more than 18,200 signatures, asking his school to set aside a gender-neutral restroom. In an interview Thursday, Spearman said he was surprised at the amount of support his idea received.
San Dieguito’s principal, Tim Hornig, has said he’s looking into setting aside such a restroom, and may even build one from scratch by using a portion of funds raised by San Dieguito Union High School District’s $449 million Proposition AA spending plan, approved by voters in 2012.
Some school districts have carved out these special restrooms in nurses’ offices, while others have converted them from teacher-only restrooms. Some districts, like San Dieguito, may use districtwide capital spending programs to build new facilities while others like Carlsbad Unified have found ways to identify restrooms to accommodate all genders on its campuses.
“Students just want to be treated with equal access and blend in,” said Carlsbad Unified Superintendent Suzette Lovely.
The state law, called AB 1266, gave transgender student rights in public schools. It permitted transgender youth to use whatever bathroom they prefer and to participate on the sports team they believe best match their gender identity. It has been widely embraced in San Diego County Schools.
What is a gender neutral bathroom? It’s sometimes referred to as a “single-use facility,” where one person is permitted access to a restroom with one door, one toilet and one sink. Advocates say they’re needed because forcing transgender students to use a traditionally gendered restroom repeatedly “outs”’ them to other students or employees.
Max Disposti, director of the North County LGBTQ Resource Center in Oceanside, said his group is training administrators and others in Oceanside Unified School District on ways to create an inclusive environment for transgenders, including the importance of establishing clearly marked gender-neutral restrooms.
“Some say they feel like they can be attacked. They want to use a safe restroom, like those assigned to teachers and administrators,” Disposti said.
Other school districts say they are in compliance with the law.
“All of our schools have to have some accommodation,” said Barbara Gauthier, director of intervention for Escondido Union High School District. “Each individual site has dedicated a certain area, bathroom for students who request that.”
“We’ve had no issue at all. A few students requested privacy and we were able to accommodate them,” said Brett Killeen, assistant superintendent in charge of human relations for Vista Unified School District.
San Dieguito’s activist
Milo Spearman, the 15-year-old San Dieguito Academy student who sponsored the petition, has a history of activism.
Earlier this year, he and a friend worked to raise several thousand dollars to build a well in Africa. A few months back, he helped distribute care packages filled with blankets, granola bars and socks to homeless people in Downtown San Diego.
“I want to help all people,” Milo said. “I enjoy fighting for the rights of others. This is just the start of something that I will be dealing with for a long time.”
Spearman got the idea to crusade for a gender-neutral restroom after a student teacher at his school mentioned Carlsbad High’s efforts while teaching a class on Homer’s epic poem “Odyssey.”
Milo said his decision to seek the petition through the Care2.org website had nothing to do with the suicides of transgenders this year at Fallbrook High School and his own school. Neither did Bruce Jenner’s announcement that he is a transgender affect his decision.
“I am shocked by the support. I didn’t know what would come of this. It could either be a home run or I’d strike out,” he said.
Milo sports turquoise-colored stone earring studs in his ears, and hikes around campus with an ukulele sticking out of his backpack. He regularly plays the ukulele with a group of 10 or so other students on campus.
Milo is straight, skateboards, runs cross-country and track at school, wants to study psychology in college and attends Wednesday night and Sunday services regularly at the Seacoast Community Church in Encinitas.
“When I started this I knew a lot of people wouldn’t be on board with this,” Milo said. “I am very interested in how people work and what’s inside of their head, and what makes them do certain things and why. I just love to help people.”
Carlsbad High makes inroads
At Carlsbad High School, a restroom for teachers on the second floor of the 6000 Building — just off the main quad — was recently converted to a gender neutral restroom for students. Some transgender students felt the health office location for the only gender-neutral restroom was too far from the quad area where most students hang out.
The new restroom was recently re-keyed so that anyone can open it from the outside, but can flip a lock on the inside for privacy. The signage now has iconography with a male and female, and “staff” written below it. A new sign that reflects the international symbol for a restroom, and the words “All genders,” are to be added soon, according to Dearie.
About 40 to 80 students meet with the alliance every Wednesday.
“It’s really grown. It breaks down barriers of isolation,” said Dearie of the kids of all genders who attend. The need for the new restroom came up in discussion this year when a transgender subcommittee of the alliance was formed.
“I wouldn’t say they didn’t feel comfortable using the restroom in the health office area, but it’s just that they wanted a centrally located one.”
Staff voted and approved the restroom conversion, Dearie said.
