"People Are Still Working It Out in Their Minds": A Mixed-Methods Description of the Policy Landscape for Gender-Expansive Students and Administrative Framing

• In Event: 45.079 - Transgender and Gender-Expansive Youth: Supporting and Affirming Queer Identities

Abstract

American schools are on the frontline of the controversy over policies related to gender-expansive(GE) populations. How district policymakers make sense of state legislation influences what policies administrators adopt and how policies are put into effect. This mixed-methods study first explores district responses to state legislation and whether districts adopt policy protections for GE students using a representative sample (N=112); we also examine if administrators have started implementing policies using administrative guidance. Second, we evaluate how district policymakers make sense of policies using framing found in both administrative guidance and interviews with 29 administrators. Our results describe the policy landscape and how policymakers interpret texts related to policy, identifying where there are gaps in protections and administrators’ understanding of this issue.

Author

• Mollie McQuillan, Northwestern University