Several Orange County, California community members are continuing to raise concerns about schools that allow students—including special education students—to “socially transition” genders at school without notifying parents.

After statewide debate over the topic last summer—with several school districts adopting policies that required schools to notify parents if their children identify as transgender—state Attorney General Rob Bonta issued a letter to school districts claiming such policies are illegal.

A group of parents, teachers and community members spoke out against Mr. Bonta’s letter during public comment at an Irvine Unified School District Board meeting on Jan. 23.

One parent said a request was submitted for the board to consider a parent notification policy but was notified that the district was “unsure” it could do so after conferring with legal counsel because of Mr. Bonta’s letter.

“It’s unfortunate that you have abdicated your responsibility by denying a parental notification policy proposal submitted by a member of the community a place on the meeting agenda this evening,” the parent said. “It’s still your obligation to put it on the agenda so the public can weigh in on the matter and open debate and discussion can ensue. This is the best way to bring our community together.”

Parents and community members attend at Irvine Unified School District Board meeting in Irvine, Calif., on Jan. 23, 2024. (Courtesy of Brenda Lebsack)

The parent claimed that because the board did not place the item on the agenda, they were in violation of a portion of the state’s education code, which allows members of the public to place matters directly related to school district business on board meeting agendas.

Meanwhile, a teacher at the meeting said special education students—including those with diagnosed mental disorders—can also “socially transition” genders without parents’ knowledge in districts without a parent notification policy.

Brenda Lebsack, a special education teacher in the Santa Ana Unified school district and former Orange Unified trustee, told the board about such an instance she encountered.

Ms. Lebsack said that when she was a school board member in 2019, a mother reached out to her in tears because her autistic high school son, who she said was cognitively impaired and diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorders, was being socially transitioned at school.

“Mind you, these parents were very involved … they felt totally betrayed by [the school] because their son never showed signs, or expressed discontent, that he wanted to be a different gender. By the time the parents found out, it was too late,” Ms. Lebsack said. “When he turned 18, only six months before graduating, the activist group that befriended him and made him feel so special [that they] convinced him that his parents hated him and that he should move out.”

She added that the group showed up at the boy’s house with a legal advocate, helped him pack, and said they would be his “chosen family.”

“His parents felt helpless because they failed to establish legal guardianship before his 18th birthday,” Ms. Lebsack said.

Parents of special education students typically meet regularly with their children’s teachers to go over what are known as their individual education programs, a specialized plan for the student’s education.

Special education teachers typically don’t do anything regarding students’ individual plans without parental consent, according to Ms. Lebsack—yet schools can “socially transition” students without notifying parents.