RESOLUTION TO SUPPORT PARENTS, SCHOOLS, AND DISTRICTS IN
REJECTING HARMFUL, COERCIVE, AND BURDENSOME GENDER IDENTITY
POLICIES
The concept of education rests on the notion that there are things we can know. There
are objective facts, even absolute truths.
Biological sex is one such objective, scientific fact. A human male has an x and a y
chromosome and a reproductive system ordered toward impregnation. A human female
has two x chromosomes and a reproductive system ordered toward conceiving and
bearing children.
Sex is not arbitrarily “assigned” at birth but rather identifies an unchangeable fact. There
are observable, quantifiable, and immutable differences between males and females.
The reality of biological sex can no more be altered than can the reality that two plus
two equals four.
Denying the reality of biological sex destroys foundational truths upon which education
rests and irreparably damages children.
Desiring to protect these foundations, to safeguard the wellbeing of children, and to
support parents, schools, and districts in doing the same, The State Board of Education
(the "Board") hereby adopts the following Resolution:
WHEREAS Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 was enacted into law to
ensure that "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from
participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any
education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance"; and
WHEREAS original and existing Title IX regulations acknowledge "physiological
differences between the male and female sexes"; and
WHEREAS on June 23, 2022, the U.S. Department of Education released proposed
changes to Title IX regulations that would contradict the plain language of the law; and
WHEREAS the proposed regulations would prohibit schools that receive federal funds,
including public, charter, private, and parochial schools, from “adopting a policy or
engaging in a practice that prevents a person from participating in an education
program or activity consistent with their gender identity,” thereby compelling schools to
deny biological reality; and
WHEREAS under the proposed rules, actions such as a student or staff member using
a child’s legal name and biological pronouns rather than the child-selected preferred
name and pronouns could be deemed a form of “sex-based harassment,” subjecting
schools and staff to civil litigation and loss of federal funds; and
WHEREAS the proposed regulations would require that K-12 schools socially transition
minor children to a different gender without requiring parental notification or
involvement; and
WHEREAS Ohio law and the United State Constitution and legal precedent recognize
the right of parents to direct the education, upbringing, and physical and mental health
of their children; and
WHEREAS for many parents, the nature of the human person created by God male and
female is a deeply held religious belief; and
WHEREAS children are harmed when parents are barred from making decisions to
protect their child’s physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing; and
WHEREAS a high percentage of children who are permitted to socially transition will
then pursue medical and surgical interventions which have irreversible, life-altering
consequences for school-age children, interrupt a child’s healthy growth and
development, and come with significant risks, including loss of bone density, infertility,
cognitive impairment, dangerous blood clots, cardiovascular disease, and cancer; and
WHEREAS under the proposed rules, schools would be required to grant access to sex-
separate restroom and locker room facilities based on gender identity rather than on
biological sex, which would place girls and women at increased risk for harassment and
sexual assault by males who claim a female identity; and
WHEREAS the USDOE proposed regulations pertaining to athletics would require
sports teams to be based on gender identity rather than biological sex, forcing women
and girls to compete on an unfair basis against males for athletic opportunities and
scholarships; and
WHEREAS in guidance issued May 5, 2022, and in a rule promulgated on June 14,
2022, the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced that it will interpret the prohibition
on sex discrimination found in Title IX and the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008 to include
discrimination based on gender identity; and
WHEREAS 1,166 Ohio School Food Authorities, comprising school districts, community
schools, non-public schools, and residential childcare institutions, could now be forced
to choose between adopting gender identity policies or foregoing federal funding to
provide subsidized free or reduced-price meals to the 710,567 Ohio children who
qualify, based on 2019-2020 data, the most recent year for which complete data is
available; and
WHEREAS the Board acknowledges the pain experienced by those suffering with
gender dysphoria; and
WHEREAS the appropriate course of action to pursue for students experiencing
symptoms of gender dysphoria is treatment delivered by parent-selected mental health
professionals; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, that the State Board of Education declares its unequivocal opposition to
the proposed regulatory changes released by the U.S. Department of Education on
June 23, 2022; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board supports the lawsuit filed by the Ohio
Attorney General and 21 other state attorneys general seeking to invalidate the newly
enacted Department of Agriculture rules that tie continued receipt of federal nutritional
assistance and other funding subject to Title IX to the adoption of gender identity
policies; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board directs the acting Superintendent of Public
Instruction to issue, within fourteen calendar days of the passage of this resolution, a
mailed hard copy of this resolution along with a cover letter, subject to the approval of
the president of the Board, to every Ohio public school district and to every Ohio
elementary or secondary school or preschool program licensed by the Department of
Education receiving federal funds. For public school districts, the cover letter and copy
of this resolution shall be mailed to the district superintend and to each district board
member. The cover letter shall indicate that the Ohio Department of Education:
• opposes the proposed regulatory changes released by the U.S.
Department of Education on June 23, 2022;
• considers the applicable USDOE guidance documents as without legal
force and effect and, therefore, non-binding and unenforceable at this
time; and therefore,
• urges districts not to amend local policies or procedures based on these
guidance documents; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Superintendent’s cover letter shall also indicate
that:
• the Ohio Department of Education opposes the rule promulgated by the
Department of Agriculture on June 14, 2022; and
• while this rule currently remains in effect, the Ohio Attorney General has
joined with 21 other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit seeking to
invalidate the changes as illegal; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Superintendent’s cover letter shall also indicate
Ohio’s status as a local control state and the letter’s purpose of informing and
advocating, not compelling, schools and districts to take a particular course of action;
and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board calls upon the General Assembly to assist
local districts in combatting this federal overreach by proactively approving stopgap
funding of necessary programs should the proposed USDOE regulations take effect;
and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board calls upon the General Assembly to
safeguard the rights of parents and the wellbeing of children by requiring that schools
and districts disclose information to parents whenever their minor child claims a
discordant gender identity, questions their gender identity, requests alternative names
or pronouns, or otherwise indicates mental or emotional distress about their gender
identity; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board calls upon the General Assembly to
protect the rights and safety of women and girls by prohibiting schools and districts from
allowing biological males on female sports teams or in female privacy facilities; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Board calls upon the General Assembly to pass
legislation prohibiting classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in
grades K-3; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that with this action, the State Board of Education stands
resolutely with parents, schools, and districts in rejecting harmful, coercive, and
burdensome gender identity policies, procedures, and regulations.
