CMS under fire over proposed transgender anti-bullying policy

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — CMS leaders told Channel 9 that people from as far away as Idaho have called and emailed them to lash out over the district's new anti-bullying guidelines.

"I've had people say ‘I will burn in hell, that the punishment for what I'm doing is death,’" CMS board member Rhonda Lennon told Eyewitness News anchor Liz Foster. Lennon posted on Facebook that she has been inundated with backlash.

Lennon said there wasn't a policy decision by the board. District staff made the regulations as a guide for principals to be sensitive to transgender students. She said she thinks the district spent too much effort on an issue affecting a fraction of CMS students.

"I think we have been very respectfully handling these issues as they come up on a case by case basis," Lennon said.

The district last week recommended principals enforce several anti-bullying rules, including school staff calling children not “girls” and “boys,” but “students” and “scholars,” and allowing students to participate in extracurricular activities and overnight field trips based on their gender identity.

For example, a student who identifies as a girl can play on girl's intramural teams and go on an all-girls field trip.

Foster spoke to Superintendent Ann Clark about those guidelines after a meeting Monday, but aside from saying some of the issues may be decided by the U.S. Supreme court, Clark walked away during the interview.

"We will strictly adhere to the guidance from our court systems as we've done every step of the way," Clark said before walking away from the interview.

The N.C. Values Coalition says the new rules are radical and unnecessary and dozens of protesters are expected to speak at Tuesday night's school board meeting.

As of now, CMS is delaying new rules that would let transgender students use school bathrooms and locker rooms based on the gender they identify with.

The U.S. Supreme Court may take up the issue of which bathroom a transgender person may use. The court isn't in session until October.

The N.C. Values Coalition is holding a rally Tuesday night before CMS' board meeting at the government center. The group will protest the district's new guidelines.

In another issue Tuesday night, the school board will give final approval for this school year's $1.4 billion budget.

County commissioners approved $11.3 more than last year, but that’s just half of the increase the district requested.

The money will go toward utilities, health care and hiring more teachers.

Teachers are getting an average 4.7 percent pay raise from state money.

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