Round Lake High School student Jonas Valentinewho came out as transgender earlier this yearhas lobbied for more gender-neutral accommodations at the school, The Chicago Tribune reported.
"What happened was, when I came out [as male], they pretty much isolated me off to the teachers' locker room to get changed for gym and to use the restroom. It's just for the girlsthe girl teachers," Valentine said. "Right now, they have two [gender-neutral bathrooms] right by the cafeteria, and they're working on two more."
Valentine ( birth name: Alicia Macias ) went public with his story by announcing an online petition drive at www.care2.com, a social-networking site that promotes activism. The petition has slightly more than 20 percent of the signature goal of 1,000.
In an email to Windy City Times, Round Lake Area Schools ( RLAS ) CUSD #116 Public Relations Officer Heather Bennett wrote, "RLAS-116 supports the rights of all students. We encourage any student who has a concern to speak to an administrator of Round Lake High School. The school has taken steps to establish gender-neutral restrooms for students."
In a message specifically to Windy City Times, Valentine said, "I'm glad the administrators were open to making the changes that I felt were needed, and I hope that things will be much easier for any future trans students."
The original article is at www.chicagotribune.com/suburbs/lake-county-news-sun/news/ct-lns-transgender-student-st-0502-20150501-story.html . The petition is at www.thepetitionsite.com/204/217/476/neutral-bathrooms-in-round-lake-high-school/ .
Andrew Davis