BOE Battleground: Colts Neck

Parents, Board Members prepare for meeting on transgender policies in the wake of Middletown, Manalapan, Marlboro, Hanover

COLTS NECK - The Board of Education for Colts Neck Township is preparing for another meeting that will surely have the eyes of parents and administrators across the state— some fear even the eyes of Governor Murphy and Attorney General Matthew Platkin.

Parents fear not only the legal repercussions from a litigious State, but transgenderism’s effects on their kids.

“They’re in a temporary situation making a permanent decision - and their life will change forever,” noted Alice Dean, a parent associated with Colts Kids First, a local organization that has been vocal about parents’ rights in the district. She cited a 2021 study from Frontiers, an open-science forum and research platform, that found 122 of 139 transgender child participants (87.8%) reverted to their original gender with on 17 (12.2%) persisting.

The bottom line, as Dean notes, is that Policy 57560 is simply bout “protecting a child that is not of age to make this decision.”

The Colts Neck policy, up for adoption at tonight’s 7:00 pm meeting, requires parental notification, should they are not already be aware, that their student has changed their gender identity or their name. The principal of the school would then develop a plan with the student to discuss this with their parent or guardian.

This comes with a major caveat, which those against policy 5756 could see as a concession in good faith: should there be “good faith and reasonable belief, based on documented evidence and circumstances, that such disclosure will pose a threat of harm to a student," a parent will not be notified.

Parents like Alice Dean and Colts Kid First simply want their rights as parents respected and do not harbor animus towards members of the LGBTQ community. When asked about opponents of parental notification warning against unsupportive parents, Dean said that “there are many parents that will come around say [to their child] ‘let me walk with you through this’.”

(The Colts Neck BOE meeting on May 23, 2023. Source: NJ Spotlight News)

While Colts Neck has the eyes of the Garden State on it tonight, many wonder if it will receive the same fate as Middletown, Hanover, and others where the public square turns into a courtroom.

AG Platkin has filed three lawsuits, one each against Manalapan-Englishtown, Marlboro, and Middletown school districts and boards. Gov. Murphy’s administration alleges the policies violate New Jersey’s Law Against Discrimination and ultimate puts children struggling with their gender identity at risk.

On June 23rd, AG Platkin and Dr. Angelica Allen-McMillan, Acting Commissioner of the NJ Department of Education, provided joint guidance to schools and their Boards, saying “school policies and practices may also violate the LAD even when they are cloaked in the language of neutrality.”

Speaking under the condition of anonymity, parents in Colts Neck fear a weaponized AG, a term that has been utilized a lot at the federal level. This time, however, the threat feels closer to home.

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Note: Central Jersey Newswire reached out to multiple opponents of Policy 5756 with no response. An opportunity for them to share their perspective remains a safe and welcome one.