Deerfield parents weigh in on allegations that students were forced to change in front of transgender student
DEERFIELD, Ill. (WGN) — A school board meeting in the north suburbs drew mixed reactions from parents Thursday as they weighed in on allegations that some middle school students were forced to change clothes in the presence of a transgender student.
Some parents of students at Deerfield Public School District 109 who voiced their concerns on Thursday night felt that young girls were being robbed of their privacy, while others said they felt transgender students deserved to feel sa
'Can you imagine being 12 or 13 years old in your school that you're in charge of, and be forced to undress?' one commentator said during the meeting. 'I don't think any of you would be very comfortable at all. I am here to support all of the girls in that class who were subjected to this outrageous violation.'
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A conservative group is now asking the US Department of Justice to file criminal charges against Deerfield School District 109 in connection with the allegations.
Back in March, the Department of Education's Office of Civil Rights announced that it was investigating after a mother filed a civil rights complaint.
Female students at Alan B Shepard Middle School reportedly complained to school administrators about a male who was using their locker room to change for gym class. The next day, school administrators reportedly scolded the female students for refusing to dress in front of the male trans student.
According to the complaint with the Office of Civil Rights, an administrator told the female students that the male trans student was allowed to use female intimate facilities if the student identified as female.
The goal of the investigation is to determine if the allegations violated Title IX by requiring girls in school to share their locker room with a biological male.
Others who spoke during the meeting voiced support for the transgender student, one speaker even called the controversy surrounding the allegations a 'publicity stunt.'
'What we cannot do is settle for lies or false accusations we can not cower to any bullies in our community or at large. Our students are safest because District 190 follows constitutional and state laws and provides facilities to protect our most marginalized students as equally as any other students. I am both heartbroken and furious to know that any child from our community could become the subject of a publicity stunt, a target for bullies of any age,' another speaker said during public comment.
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'I am here tonight to speak for my friend, the trans-gender girl in question here. I am here tonight to defend dignity for all students and I am here to unfortunately entertain the idea that my community and my identity is not welcome in our school,' 8th-grade student Lilu Weisberger said during Thursday's meeting.
In a statement addressing the allegations, a district spokesperson said that students do not have to change in front of others and can choose to change privately.
'No student is required to change into a gym uniform for physical education class in front of others in locker rooms. All students in the middle schools have multiple options to change in a private location if they wish,' a district spokesperson said.
At last check, the district said it has not been notified of an investigation and no criminal charges have been filed.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Agencies may use DFRs when addressing issues that are technical, uncontroversial or unlikely to elicit a significant adverse response. 'None of that applies in this situation,' said Shiwali Patel, senior director of safe and inclusive schools at the National Women's Law Center. 'These are regulations that are long-standing, that have existed for decades.' That the athletics proposal originated in the Department of Energy rather than the Department of Education, whose Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is typically responsible for regulating and enforcing Title IX, is unusual, legal experts said. Other agencies providing federal financial assistance to educational institutions also bear some enforcement responsibility, and under the Trump administration, the Health and Human Services and Justice departments have moved to carry out the law. 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The organization, which advocates for women's and LGBTQ rights, plans to submit a comment opposing the rule change, she said. More than 1,800 comments have already been submitted, but their content is not publicly available. The Title IX proposal is part of a larger Department of Energy push to quickly eliminate or reduce dozens of regulations that it said in May 'are driving up costs and lowering quality of life for the American people.' 'While it would normally take years for the Department of Energy to remove just a handful of regulations, the Trump Administration assembled a team working around the clock to reduce costs and deliver results for the American people in just over 110 days,' Energy Secretary Chris Wright said last month. The department's deregulatory efforts include terminating or modifying 47 rules that would, once finalized, free up an estimated $11 billion and cut more than 125,000 words from the Code of Federal Regulations, the department said. Rules on the chopping block include diversity, equity, and inclusion requirements for federal grant recipients, which the Energy Department has called 'unscientific.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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