Elizabeth Mirabelli and Lori Ann West, both of whom taught for decades at Rincon Middle School in Escondido, California, claim school policies required them to lie to parents. (Google Maps)
Teachers sued after religious accommodation allowing them to inform parents was allegedly denied
Two California middle school teachers filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against school district administrators and the California State Board of Education over policies they allege required them to deceive parents about their children's gender identity.
Elizabeth Mirabelli and Lori Ann West, both of whom taught for decades at Rincon Middle School in Escondido, claim the school's policies regarding transgender or "gender diverse" students effectively forced them to validate a child's gender identity regardless of parental consent, according to their lawsuit filed against Rincon Middle School, the Escondido Union School District (EUSD) and the California State Board of Education.
The teachers claim they were mandated under the K-8 school district's policies to accept a child's transgender or gender diverse identity without hesitation and to hide it from families. They said they were instructed to use students' preferred names and pronouns in school, but to revert to their biological pronouns and given names when speaking with their parents.
When encountering "a suspicious parent," teachers were instructed to reply that they were allowed only to discuss "information regarding the student’s behavior as it relates to school, class rules, assignments, etc.," according to the suit.
According to a transcript of a Feb. 3 presentation to EUSD staff about the "rights of gender diverse students" obtained by Fox News Digital, teachers were told that schools in the district were required to "accept the student's assertion of their gender identity and begin to treat the student immediately, consistently with that gender identity."
"The student’s assertion is enough," the transcript of the presentation said. "There is no need for a formal declaration. There’s no requirement for parent or caretaker agreement or even for knowledge for us to begin treating that student consistent with their gender identity."
The training also said "refusing to address the student by the name and the pronoun consistent with their gender identity" would constitute discrimination and harassment under the district's policies.
The training prohibited teachers from "revealing a student’s transgender status or gender diverse status to individuals who do not have a legitimate need for the information" without the student's consent regardless of age, and noted that "parents or caretakers" are included among that group.
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"All of this is to be done without parent or guardian agreement or knowledge," Thomas More Society special counsel Paul Jonna, who is representing the teachers, said in a statement provided to Fox News Digital.
A protester holds the trans flag during a demonstration at the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus on June 25, 2021. (Stephen Zenner/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
"Schools routinely send notes home to parents about trivial matters, like missing homework, so it is unfathomable that Escondido Union School District has a policy that forces teachers to withhold from parents some of the most fundamental and basic information about their children," Jonna said.
"The real outrage here is that schools are requiring educators to hide critical information from parents about their child’s well-being."
Jonna noted that while Mirabelli and West, both of whom are Christians, were able to obtain a religious accommodation regarding the use of preferred pronouns and gender-specific names at school, they sued when they were unable to receive an accommodation that would allow them not to deceive parents. They are alleging violations of their rights under the First Amendment's free speech and free exercise clauses.
A pride progress flag, which includes colors from the transgender pride flag. (Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images)
"The real outrage here is that schools are requiring educators to hide critical information from parents about their child’s well-being," the attorney said. "Rather than partnering with parents to help raise up young people with a well-rounded education and breadth of knowledge, these radical agendas are pitting parents and teachers against one another, to the detriment of their students."
"It boils down to the need for a basic trust in the institutions that we support with our tax dollars to protect and defend our children. Public schools should never hide information from or lie to parents about a child’s mental health or personal circumstances," Jonna said.
"And schools should never compel teachers to perpetrate such a deception," he added.
A bill in the California General Assembly that would require school districts to notify parents of their child's transgender identity failed to get a committee hearing earlier this month. (Myung J. Chun/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
"The Escondido Union School District is committed to providing a safe and positive environment that enables our students to learn and actualize their unlimited potential and that empowers our teachers to excel as educators," EUSD superintendent Dr. Luis A. Rankins-Ibarra told Fox News Digital in a statement. "As part of that commitment to student learning, the District observes all federal and state laws."