Dr. Kent Scribner

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. VEASEY. Mr. Speaker, before I get into my remarks, I want to share a story about a conversation that I had with one of my colleagues here on the House floor. It was a colleague from Arizona.

I asked the colleague: How is the new superintendent that is coming to the Fort Worth Independent School District, Dr. Scribner?

The colleague told me how lucky we were to be getting Dr. Scribner from the Phoenix Independent School District because he has done such a remarkable job there and that the community was really saddened, but happy for him that he was given the opportunity to come and work in one of Texas' largest independent school districts.

I want to rise today to lend my unwavering support for a respected educator that has made a mark very quickly in the Fort Worth community, and that is Dr. Kent Scribner.

Dr. Scribner is a dedicated educator who is leading, again, one of the largest school systems in the entire State of Texas. But recently he has come under attack from centralized forces in Austin that don't believe in local control and, by the way, would like to actually take money out of the Fort Worth ISD and let that money be used for poor- performing schools in the form of school vouchers.

What Dr. Scribner is under attack for from Austin is by trying to protect transgender students. Under the guidelines issued by Dr. Scribner, transgender students are allowed to use the bathroom and locker room of their choice.

Teachers are to address them by the pronoun that reflects the student's gender identity. Staff are to protect a student's privacy about decisions to transition from one gender to another. An employee who does not comply with these rules could face discipline.

It also protects other students. It says that students who do not feel comfortable using a bathroom with a transgender student are provided a reasonable and safe accommodation for them as well.

These guidelines, unlike it was first reported, were not developed in isolation. The Fort Worth School Board has been working on these policies since 2014 and drafted a new set of guidelines last summer.

Instead of condemning Dr. Scribner, we should applaud his leadership because it encourages an environment that protects our children's safety. Dr. Scribner has children, also, I want to make clear, in the Forth Worth Independent School District, and I doubt that he would want to subject his children to an environment that he didn't feel was safe.

Many transgender students simply cannot use the restroom or locker room of the gender they were assigned at birth. Asking transgender students to use a separate restroom, like a faculty restroom, singles them out and increases the risk of bullying. Transgender students should not also have to face bullying from government officials.

Allowing transgender students to use the correct restroom is just telling them that they can use the restroom like anyone else. Doing otherwise would tell them that they are unwelcome at the school they attend. Restricting restroom access for transgender students goes against the consensus of medical professionals and mental health experts.

The guidelines that Dr. Scribner has issued are similar to those adopted by hundreds of school districts around the country. Let me just also tell you that Dr. Scribner has a lot of good backup in what he is doing. These best practices are supported by the Child Welfare League of America, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Texas Association Against Sexual Assault, and the Texas Council on Family Violence.

Dr. Scribner's leadership is especially commendable at a time when we are seeing a dramatic increase in hateful, discriminatory, and anti-LGBT legislation across the United States. It is imperative that we stand together to ensure that no one is discriminated against because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

That is why I am a proud sponsor and a proud cosponsor of the Quality Act and I am also a member of the Quality Caucus. I wholeheartedly believe that preventing this type of discrimination only makes our country a better place.

The fight for LGBT equality has seen tremendous progress, but we still have a lot of work to do to make sure that all of our students feel safe in school.

I am honored to stand in solidarity with Dr. Scribner. I ask my colleagues to stand with me as we support the rights of all Americans.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source