The Middletown Board of Education is the latest school district to abolish the policy known as 5756. At a special meeting Thursday night, board members voted to repeal the measure that’s been in place to prevent schools from outing transgender and nonbinary students to their families.
In 2023, Middletown and three other school boards attempted to change policies to require parental notification if a student changes their gender identity. Attorney General Matt Platkin filed a civil rights complaint against the districts, arguing their policy amendment violated New Jersey’s anti-discrimination law.
Earlier this week a state appellate court ruled that the four districts could not enforce those policies, saying the new policies showed a clear violation of the law because they singled out transgender students.
But the appellate judges also said the four districts do not have to adopt Policy 5756 and have the option to rewrite their own policies. Middletown wasted no time doing so and said the vote should send a powerful message to the attorney general’s office.
