New Toronto schools guidelines accommodate transgender students, teachers

TORONTO – The Toronto District School Board says transgender students must be accommodated according to whichever gender they feel they identify with.

The board released a set of guidelines earlier this week saying students have the right to use whichever washroom fits their own gender preference.

The policy also says school officials cannot release a student’s gender status to parents or guardians without consent from the student.

The board says staff members are encouraged to discuss a transgender students’s preferences at the start of the school year to determine how the child would like to be referenced in communications with parents.

The guidelines were released in response to a recent human rights complaint launched by a transgender student.

The suggestions also apply to staff who identify themselves as transgender.