Disclosure: Writer is on the board of the Methow Valley PTA.
About 25 people attended the school board meeting July 25. The event was organized by the Methow Valley PTA and was the culmination of 8 months of engagement with the community on issues within the school district.
Jim Brewer, who has two children that participate in athletics at LBHS, defended the right of girls to compete against biological girls. He pointed out that on average, a boy’s heart is 14% larger than a girl’s and their lungs are 12% larger. That translates into significant advantages. Brewer provided copies of the 2023 state cross country meet results. The tenth-place finisher on the boys team was faster than the first-place finisher on the girls team by a whopping 1.3 to 2.5 minutes.
In his address, Brewer asked the school board to join other districts in the state in requesting an amendment to Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) policy that allows transgender athletes to compete with biological girls. WIAA makes the rules for 800 member junior and senior high school sports programs in Washington.
Mike Liu, who ran for the school board in 2023, read a letter from East Wenatchee resident Elizabeth Wilson, whose daughter, Ahnaleigh, came in second to a transgender athlete from Liberty Bell Middle School in the 1600-meter race at the Junior Olympics in Cashmere this past spring. Wilson said the transgender athlete received hate mail, but she said she also received hate mail such as “your daughter is a sore loser,” “your daughter just isn’t good enough to compete against this girl,” “your daughter should have trained harder if she wanted to win,” “your family is transphobic” and “if this child harms themself you will be the reason.”
Liu joined Brewer in asking the school board to submit to WIAA an amendment for a special sports category for transgender athletes.
Scott Larson, who ran for the school board in 2023, spoke in support of Initiative 2081, known as Parents’ Bill of Rights, which passed with overwhelming bipartisan support- 49-0 in the Senate and 82-15 in the House. The law re-affirms parents as the primary stakeholders in the lives of their children.
“Parents have the right to examine textbooks, curriculum, and any supplemental materials used in their child’s classrooms,” Larson told the school board. “They also have the right to inspect their child’s public school records, including academic records such as test scores, medical and mental health counseling records, vocational counseling, discipline, attendance, and any other records or materials maintained by the school.”
Soon after its passage, State School Superintendent Chris Reykdal issued a statement directing 295 school districts to ignore part of the law having to do with disclosure of medical and mental health records due to conflict with federal privacy laws such as Federal Education Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). On June 21, a judge in King County issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting the release of a student’s medical and mental health records to parents.
At their meeting earlier this month, the Methow Valley PTA unanimously supported the Parents’ Bill of Rights. The PTA has asked the school board to put a discussion of these items on their agenda at the next meeting.
State and federal agencies should not have the authority to negate parents rights to have access to their child’s mental and medical health records. If this is what “public education” dictates, then get your child out of the public school system.