Colorado parents sue district over alleged policy to assign rooms based on gender identity instead of sex

Parents of students in a Colorado school district are suing over an alleged policy that forced children to bunk with students of the opposite sex in what they claim is a violation of their rights.

Alliance Defending Freedom filed suit against Jefferson County Public Schools (JeffCo) on Thursday on behalf of three Colorado families who claim the policy keeps them in the dark. 

Joe and Serena Wailes said their 11-year-old daughter was forced to share her bed with a biological male who identified as a girl on an overnight trip in June 2023. The Wailes’ daughter said she found out one of the students she was assigned to share a room with was a biological male who identified as a female, which she only found out when the student told her as they were getting ready for bed on the first night of the trip. 

JeffCo policy states that students who identify as the opposite sex should be “assigned to share overnight accommodations with other students that share the student’s gender identity consistently asserted at school.” 

“Under no circumstance shall a student who is transgender be required to share a room with students whose gender identity conflicts with their own,” the policy states. 

ADF claims the school district tells parents that “girls will be roomed together on one floor, and boys will be roomed together on a different floor,” but what it fails to disclose is that they have redefined the words “girl” and “boy” to mean a student’s self-asserted “gender identity” rather than sex. 

In a statement to Fox News Digital, JeffCo said: “While we have not yet been served with the lawsuit, we have conducted a cursory review of what was filed with the court and we disagree with a number of claims made in it. We look forward to having an opportunity in court to share the true facts, including the reasonable accommodations we offer families and students.” 

“Families always have the ultimate choice whether their student participates in any unique programming that involves overnight accommodations,” the statement continued. “We take these issues seriously, and we follow all Colorado state laws when it comes to how we treat students, staff and families.”

The Wailes sent two letters to the school district asking JeffCo to allow parents to opt their children out of any policy prior to an overnight trip that rooms children by gender identity rather than sex. They claim the school district denied their request.

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Because the Wailes’ daughter was uncomfortable with the idea of sharing a bed with a male student, she snuck into the bathroom and quietly called her father and then her mother. She was reportedly supposed to be assigned to a room with three fifth-grade girls. 

The chaperones reportedly asked the Wailes’ daughter if she could simply move to another bed rather than a new room, and while she was still uncomfortable, she agreed to try it for that night so that she could get some sleep, according to ADF. Later, chaperones on the trip allegedly told the Wailes’ daughter to “lie” about the reason why she wanted to switch rooms. 

ADF argues that the district refused to give parents “truthful, pertinent information” about their children’s overnight accommodations, which hinders their ability “to make informed decisions about their children’s education and privacy.”

Serena Wailes told Fox News Digital that parents should have complete transparency from schools on information that directly impacts their children. 

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“We never thought our daughter would be put in a situation like this, or we would be forced to ask our own school district to stop hiding information regarding our children’s privacy and safety, but the need for transparency and trust towards our school district is critical,” she said. 

“Every child deserves respect and privacy, but that respect and privacy must extend to all students equally, and as parents, we have a duty to make the best decisions on behalf of our children to guide and protect their well-being,” she added. 

Since the Wailes spoke out in December, more parents have come forward with similar reports.

At the district’s “Outdoor Lab” retreat, in which sixth-grade students travel to the mountains for a science trip, a group of middle-school girls had a student who identified as trans placed in their cabin without the knowledge of their parents, according to ADF. In addition, a high school counselor, a transgender-identifying female, was put in charge of a cabin of sixth-grade boys, which reportedly included monitoring their showers. 

ADF sent a second letter to the district in January in light of new information as more parents came forward. The school district has also refused to provide accommodation for students attending trips like Outdoor Lab in the event they are uncomfortable with staying in the same room as students of the opposite biological sex, the suit claims.

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Mallory Sleight, ADF legal counsel, told Fox News Digital that the Wailes and the two other families suing just want what is best for their children so they can feel safe and comfortable at school and on school trips. 

“JeffCo has pushed a policy that leaves parents in the dark and creates confusion and discomfort for children attending school-sponsored trips,” she said. “We are now filing this lawsuit against Jefferson County Public Schools because they continue to override the voice of parents by ignoring their concerns for their children.”

Joe Wailes previously described feeling “helpless” in protecting his daughter from the situation in a December interview with Fox News Digital. 

“It was a bit of a shock. It was a helpless feeling,” he said. “Here I am … she was calling me and texting me from the bathroom because she didn’t want the other kids to overhear what she was saying. So it’s a pretty helpless feeling when your daughter is hiding in the bathroom, she’s trying to convey a message to you, and you’re 2,000 miles away and can’t do anything.”

Fox News’ Hannah Grossman contributed to this report.