The Virginia Department of Education has released new guidelines for local school boards.

The so-called “2022 Model Policies” primarily restrict the rights of transgender students.

In other words, by children and young people who do not identify with their biological sex.

Carlota Brandis

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Under the new guidelines, trans students will need official documents confirming a different name, nickname, or different gender pronouns.

In addition, the child's parents can consent to a name or pronoun change.

If neither of these two cases occurs, the school must retain the student's biological sex and maiden name.

In addition, bathrooms and changing rooms in school buildings are to be separated according to gender.

Students are required to use the facility that corresponds to their officially recognized gender.

Other school activities and sporting events may also be separated according to the biological sex of the students.

"In accordance with customs, beliefs and family culture"

The Virginia Department of Education wants to use the new guidelines for school authorities to empower parents to make more decisions about their children's education.

In the future, your consent will also be required for counseling sessions relating to the gender identification of a child.

In addition, a closer exchange between schools and parents should be promoted.

Parents also have a right to “make decisions about their children’s education in accordance with their own customs, beliefs and family culture.”

The new guidelines are subject to a so-called comment period of 30 days.

After the deadline, local school boards in the state must adopt their own policies that are "consistent" with the department's guidance.

Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin's new policies invalidate the "2021 Model Policies" of his Democratic predecessor, Ralph Northam.

Northam had previously extended the rights of transgender students so that they could make their own decisions about names and gender pronouns without the need for official documents.

According to the new "2022 Model Policies", he disregarded the rights of parents and other constitutional principles.

The rights of parents in the education of their children played an important role in the election campaign for the governorship in Virginia in 2021.

Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe opposed allowing parents to tell schools what to teach.

Previously, several conservative voters in Virginia had called for critical race theory to be removed from the state's education system.

Republican Youngkin then called his campaign "a political movement led by parents" and partially placed it under the "Parents Matter" banner.