The Highland Park Board of Education will vote on its new transgender policy later this month.
EDITOR'S NOTE: Highland Park Board of Education members said Monday that the board would not be discussing or voting on its new transgender policy on May 2. The vote is now expected to take place later in May.
HIGHLAND PARK -- The borough board of education will not be voting on its new transgender policy Monday night, and instead will vote later this month, according to BOE member Michelle McFadden-DiNicola.
BOE officials said last week that the board was expected to vote on a second reading of the measure at its Monday night meeting. The vote would have officially implemented the policy.
However, according to McFadden-DiNicola, a discussion on the measure is scheduled to take place on May 16, and then the board will vote on final approval on May 23.
The new policy -- which was introduced by the board on April 18 -- aims to provide more equality to transgender students in the borough.
It would implement measures like a support plan for gender diverse students in the district, prohibit discrimination, address privacy concerns, and affirm the particular pronoun to which a gender diverse student wished to be identified, according to a previous report.
It would also give transgender students choice in using gender-separated facilities like bathrooms and locker rooms that correspond to their gender identities rather than their birth certificates. This would also apply to gender-separated school organizations.
Spencer Kent may be reached at skent@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @SpencerMKent. Find the Find NJ.com on Facebook.