Montgomery County substitute teacher sues over denied religious accommodations on gender identity policy

Listen to this article

A Montgomery County substitute teacher has filed a federal lawsuit alleging the county’s school district and school board refused to accommodate her religious beliefs concerning the district’s policy on supporting students’ gender identities. 

In a complaint filed Tuesday in the Maryland district court at Greenbelt, Kimberly Ann Polk alleged that Montgomery County Public Schools and the Montgomery County Board of Education discriminated against her based on her religion and violated her free speech rights by requiring she adhere to the school district’s student gender identity guidelines.

Polk submitted an accommodation request to the school district in November 2022 to permit her to be exempt from signing an affirmation that she would adhere to the student gender identity guidelines — which include requiring Montgomery County schools’ staff and faculty to keep confidential a student’s gender identity or gender nonconforming presentation at school, use students’ preferred name and pronouns, and allow students to use the gender-separated facilities that match their gender identity.

According to the complaint, Polk discussed with a compliance coordinator the possibility of the school providing her with another faculty or staff member who would interact instead with a student where the gender identity guidelines would apply, and discussed Polk not having to use students’ preferred pronouns.

The next month, the school district denied any accommodation for Polk. Due to her religious beliefs and the lack of a religious accommodation, Polk has not worked during the 2022-23 or 2023-24 school years, the complaint said.

“The Defendants violate Ms. Polk’s free speech rights by compelling her, on condition of continued employment, to communicate misleading messages to parents and to deny them the opportunity to exercise their constitutional rights to care for and make decisions for their minor children regarding an important, non-curricular decision affecting the health and welfare of their children,” Polk said in the complaint.

A spokesperson for Montgomery County Public Schools declined to comment, citing the ongoing litigation.

According to the 2023-24 guidelines for student gender identity on Montgomery County Public Schools’ website, the guidelines are intended to provide a safe and supportive space for LGBTQ+ students.

“We believe that students should be able to express their gender identity authentically and without fear, and they should expect to learn in an environment that reflects and respects their unique identity and life experiences,” Monifa B. McKnight, former superintendent of Montgomery County Public Schools, said in a letter accompanying the 2023-24 gender identity guidelines. “As a school district, we are committed to recognizing and respecting matters of gender identity, making reasonable accommodations in response to student requests, and ensuring the privacy and confidentiality of every student.”

Frederick Claybrook, Jr., counsel for Polk, said his client will be filing a motion for a preliminary injunction with the goal of allowing Polk to start working again as an elementary school substitute teacher before the start of the next school year.

In addition to the preliminary injunction seeking placement in classrooms in which students who are transitioning genders are not enrolled, Polk is also seeking monetary damages for lost wages, compensatory damages and a permanent injunction, among other relief, according to the complaint.

Montgomery County Public Schools and the Montgomery County Board of Education have been at the center of a number of lawsuits relating to the district’s LGBTQ-inclusive policies in recent years.

Plaintiffs identified in a federal filing as John and Jane Parents 1 unsuccessfully sued the school board in 2020 over the district’s student gender identity guidelines, with the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declining to hear the case after the 4th Circuit ordered the lower court to dismiss the case for lack of standing.

Last week, the 4th Circuit affirmed another group of Montgomery County parents cannot require the school board to provide notice of the use of LGBTQ-inclusive books in classrooms or to provide an opt-out option.

The Montgomery County Board of Education did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.