A Florida Public School Employee Allowed Her Son to Play Girls’ Sports. Here’s What Happened Next.

A public school employee in Florida is facing firing because she allowed her “transgender daughter” to play on the girls’ volleyball team at their high school. This week, she issued remarks where she doubled down on her decision.
The mother, Jessica Norton, reportedly gave the remarks to the Broward School Board on Tuesday. Norton worked at Monarch High School in Fort Lauderdale, where her son who thinks he’s a girl attends school.
According to several reports, an anonymous tipster notified a school board member last year that the 16-year-old was playing on the girls’ varsity volleyball team, a violation of state law. The tip led to an investigation that led to Norton being suspended from her position as an information management specialist at the high school. In addition, she was a volunteer coach. She is now facing possible termination.
"District leadership tried to ruin my life, but instead you destroyed a 16-year-old's life,” Norton reportedly said on Tuesday. “They destroyed her high school career and her lifelong memories.”
Norton’s son was elected to leadership positions at school, several outlets noted.
“I saw the light in my daughter's eyes gleam with future plans of organizing and attending prom, participating in and leading senior class traditions, speaking at graduation and going off to college with the confidence and joy that any student like her would after a successful and encouraging high school experience. And 203 days ago, I watched as that life was extinguished,” she said.
NBC Miami claimed that Norton’s “daughter” legally changed “her” name and gender. In addition, Norton claimed that no one on the volleyball team cared that he was transgender.
Now, the family is challenging the state law that created the investigation.
“This is not an issue that sprang forth from actual community concern,” Jason Starr, the family’s attorney, told NBC Miami. “This is a minority of loud individuals who are creating a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist that creates more problems.”
Last year, Townhall reported how Monarch High School was fined over $10,000 for allowing the biological male to play on the girls’ volleyball team. The fine was carried out by the Florida High School Athletic Association over the “Fairness in Women’s Sports Act,” which requires athletes to play sports on teams that correspond to their biological sex rather than their “gender identity.”
“Thanks to [Gov. Ron DeSantis], Florida passed legislation to protect girls’ sports and we will not tolerate any school that violates this law,” Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. wrote in a statement posted to X. “We applaud the swift action taken by the FHSAA to ensure there are serious consequences for this illegal behavior.”

https://x.com/CommMannyDiazJr/status/1734609631782097171?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1734609631782097171%7Ctwgr%5E3536c833dd07b3274abe33428ee99fa51ffd0ec3%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Ftownhall.com%2Ftipsheet%2Fmadelineleesman%2F2024%2F06%2F19%2Fheres-why-this-girls-volleyball-coach-was-fired-n2640664

Before this, the principal and two other staff members at the Florida school were reassigned to “non-school sites” amid the investigation into the “trans” student who was playing on the girls’ sports team.
"Although we cannot comment further, we will continue to follow state law and will take appropriate action based on the outcome of the investigation," a statement from the school district said at the time. "We are committed to providing all our students with a safe and inclusive learning environment."

https://x.com/janinereturns/status/1734624928517828724

https://townhall.com/tipsheet/madelineleesman/2024/06/19/heres-why-this-girls-volleyball-coach-was-fired-n2640664

Florida Board of Education passes rule ensuring high school sports separated by biological sex.

MIAMI – The State Board of Education reinforced its stance Wednesday to protecting the integrity of women and girls in sports by determining a student’s biological sex, and not gender identity, will be the factor to participate in the Florida High School Athletic Association.
“I’m grateful that the State Board of Education took decisive action on critically important topics today, especially for women and girls,” Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz Jr. said. “Florida will never compromise on the health, safety and well-being of our students and educators. Whether it’s the integrity of athletics or safety on school campuses, we are absolutely committed to doing what’s right.”
The board unanimously approved the new bylaws for the Florida High School Athletic Association, or FHSAA, for the upcoming 2024-2025 school year. The rule ensures students will compete in athletics based on their biological sex, at birth.
In its stance, the board declared the rule “preserves fair opportunities for female athletes” in accordance with Gov. Ron DeSantis’ policies and the Florida Department of Education. It also noted the decision as a direct contrast with what Florida critics have called the Biden administration’s assault on Title IX protections for women and girls, in favor of transgender people.
Diaz affirmed Florida’s stance to state superintendents and charter school leaders in April, stating no “educational educational institution should begin implementing any such changes until further notice.”
Florida has since filed a federal lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education regarding its changes to Title IX.
“The Board’s action is consistent with Florida’s fight against the Biden administration’s attempt to make radical changes to Title IX protections affecting women and girls, effective August 1, 2024,” the release said. “If successful, the federal anti-discrimination law’s longstanding application of biological sex will no longer have any meaning, as gender identity will be included within the term ‘sex.’”
The board also affirmed protecting students, teachers, and staff by updating its school safety requirements. The guidance is a direct reflection of HB 1473, which focuses on campus access control.
HB 1473 was sponsored by Reps. Dana Trabulsy, R-Fort Pierce, and Christine Hunschofsky, D-Parkland. It was then approved by DeSantis in May.
Among its details, the law changes a vast array of school safety requirements. They include gates, access points, classrooms and instructional spaces will remain closed and locked with students on campus.
The law also requires age-appropriate instruction of FortifyFL, a suspicious activity reporting tool, within the first five days of school. It also entails all classrooms and instructional spaces also clearly marked “safest area”
Furthermore, annual inspections of public schools by a School Safety Specialist as well as unannounced compliance inspections of every public and charter school are required over a 3-year period by the Florida Department of Education’s Office of Safe Schools under the law.

 

https://flvoicenews.com/sports-title-ix/

 Broward school fined after biological male played on girls volleyball team.

COCONUT CREEK, Fla. – Monarch High School was fined and put on administrative probation following an investigation that concluded a biological male played on the girls’ varsity volleyball team, according documents Florida’s Voice obtained.
On Tuesday, the Florida High School Athletic Association notified Monarch High School and its principal, Moira Sweeting-Miller, that the school violated FHSA bylaws and Florida Statute.
The letter stated that the high school “permitted a biological male to participate on the girls volleyball team during the 2022-2023 and 2023-24 Girls Volleyball seasons.”
“Thanks to the leadership of Governor Ron DeSantis, Florida passed legislation to protect girls’ sports and we will not tolerate any school that violates this law,” Education Commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. said.
“We applaud the swift action taken by the Florida High School Athletic Association to ensure there are serious consequences for this illegal behavior,” the commissioner continued.
Reports said the student in question was participating on the team was transitioning into a girl. The district was fined $500 for each game, totaling to a $16,500 fine.
“The District is in receipt of the letter from the Florida High School Athletic Association regarding the recent incident at Monarch High School. The District’s investigation into the matter remains ongoing at this time,” a Broward County Public Schools spokesperson said.
In June 2021, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a sweeping education bill that bars biological men from participating on a team or sport designated for biological females.
In particular, “biological male” is based on the student’s official birth certificate at the time of birth. The law also pertains to interscholastic, intercollegiate, intramural, or club athletic teams or sports that are sponsored by a public secondary school, high school, public college, or university institution.
Nicknamed the Knights, Monarch girls’ volleyball finished their season with a 13-7 record. The team earned a No. 3 overall seed in the District 13-7A playoffs before bowing out to No. 2 seed Marjory Stoneman Douglas in the district semifinals.
“As a father of two daughters, I want my girls, and every girl in Florida, to compete on an even playing field for the opportunities available to young women in sports,” DeSantis said after signing SB 1028. “Women have fought for decades to have equal opportunities in athletics, and we have to prevent those opportunities from being eroded as is happening in other states.”

 
https://flvoicenews.com/broward-school-fined-after-biological-male-played-on-girls-volleyball-team/