After complaining about a transgender teammate, members of a Vermont high school volleyball team have been prohibited from using their own locker room and must now change in a single restroom stall.
Some teammates at Randolph Union High School allege that the transgender player made a “inappropriate remark” to them while they were changing in the locker room.
They now want the school to relocate the transgender athlete, but school policy allows students to participate in sports and use the locker rooms of whichever gender they identify with.
Blake Allen, a member of the team, expressed to the media source how uncomfortable it made her feel, stating, “It’s a big deal. Everyone is wondering, ‘Why aren’t you permitted in the locker room?’”
The school wrote an email to the families of the players shortly after the incident, advising them that the school has “enough of room where children who feel uncomfortable with the laws may change in privacy.”
Allen stated that with approximately ten players on the team, it makes no sense for each of them to change in the same bathroom stall.
She stated, “They want all the girls who feel uneasy to change in a single-stall bathroom, which would take over thirty minutes.” Where, if one person was replaced separately, it would take one minute, with no further time required.
Allen stated that the issue is not the transgender athlete’s participation on the team, but rather their presence in a locker room where female students are most exposed.
Allen stated, “There are biological boys who use the girls’ restroom, but never the locker room.”
She continued, “My mother wants me to do this interview so that we can try to make a difference.”
The school sent another email to parents alerting them that they are investigating complaints that the volleyball girls harassed the transgender student.
Lisa Randolph, co-president of Randolph High School, stated that disciplinary action commensurate with the school’s rules will be taken when policies are violated, and that the safety of students is the ‘district’s first priority.’
According to the Vermont Agency of Education’s standards, “the use of restrooms and locker rooms by transgender children requires schools to examine many realities,” the agency stated.
The agency’s policy specifies that transgender students should not be forced to use locker rooms or restrooms that contradict with their gender identity.
The inquiry into the school is ongoing.