Public, charter, and non-religious private schools that receive state or federal funding are legally required to protect against identity-based harassment of students. Sections 200-220 of the California Education Code say that schools must protect students from different kinds of bias and discrimination, including harassment based on actual or perceived sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. Under Education Code Sections 234-234.5, administrators, faculty and staff are required to intervene when they witness discrimination, harassment or bullying if they can do so safely.

For example, students cannot be harassed for being LGBTQ, for people thinking you are LGBTQ, or for having friends or family members who are LGBTQ. It also means that transgender and gender non-conforming students can't be harassed for gender-related appearance and behavior, such as a boy wearing a skirt or makeup.

Students in California public schools (and many independent private schools) benefit from curriculum requirements that cultivate the skills and knowledge students will need to succeed in the 21st century.

Parents are free to choose homeschooling or religious private schools if they do not support this curriculum. According to current California laws, parents may opt out of lessons related to sex education; they may not opt out of lessons in other classes that simply mention the existence or contributions of LGBTQ+ individuals.

All of our children enjoy the protections of federal student privacy laws. The U.S. Department of Education keeps a close eye on this, administering and enforcing data privacy laws such as:

The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)

The Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA)