I am a high school English teacher at a very "progressive" high school in a large city. We are a magnet school, which means that students from different areas can select to come to our school. We have great science and technology programs, but the last several years, some students have been attracted to my school because our student body, principal, etc, are very gay/lesbian/transgender friendly.
So, we have quite a few openly gay couples. They hold hands in the hallway, occasionally have to be told not to kiss (no more so than straight teenage couples), and will openly talk about their nontraditional relationships during class discussions.
This year in particular, we seem to have quite a few cross-dressing males. According to our principal, we can not tell males they can’t dress like females as long as they follow the female portion of our dress code.
One of these students is in one of my Freshman English classes. His apparel does not cause any disruptions, but lately I have gotten several emails from concerned parents. Our policy is to direct all such emails to one of our administrators, so I have never really spoken to a parent about the issue.
So, my question is this: Would you mind if your 14 year-old was in a class with a male student wearing female clothing and make-up? If yes, can you articulate the objections you have? If not, please explain.
We have several non-gender, one-seater bathrooms located in the administrative area of our school. Students who cross-dress are required to use these bathrooms. Since they are located in prominent, open areas, it is not really a problem.