WASHINGTON – A Maryland public school teacher, represented by a coalition of attorneys with Alliance Defending Freedom, Claybrook LLC, Gammon & Grange PC, and National Legal Foundation, asked the U.S. Supreme Court Friday to hear her case, Polk v. Montgomery County Public Schools.
Kimberly Polk worked as a substitute teacher for Montgomery County Public Schools during the 2021-2022 school year. She received “very positive feedback” for all her work and planned to continue teaching there the following year. But when Polk logged onto the district’s teacher portal to complete mandatory training, she learned that the district now required her to confirm that she would (1) use a student’s preferred pronouns, even when those pronouns are inconsistent with the student’s sex, and (2) keep secret from parents any information that their child identifies as the opposite sex at school, unless the child gives consent.
Polk is a Christian with a deeply held belief that every person is created male or female in the image of God and worthy of dignity and respect. She also believes that people cannot change their God-given sex. While Polk was willing to call her students by a preferred name and avoid using pronouns for students who identified as the opposite sex, she couldn’t lie to a child by using a wrong-sex pronoun. Yet, when Polk asked for a religious accommodation, Montgomery County Public Schools refused. As a result, Polk was not allowed to teach in the district during the following school years.
“Public school teachers shouldn’t have to violate their religious beliefs to keep their jobs,” said ADF Senior Counsel Chris Schandevel. “Under the First Amendment, schools cannot force teachers like Kimberly to personally endorse the school’s radical views about gender identity. Kimberly shouldn’t be forced to lie to students and keep secrets from parents, especially when doing so will steer a child toward experimental and dangerous ‘gender transition’ drugs that can result in a lifetime of harm.”
Associated attorney Steve Fitschen of the National Legal Foundation points out that this is not the first time this school district has faced legal consequences for its aggressive policies. Just last year, the Supreme Court ruled against the district for indoctrinating students with LGBTQ+ curriculum without giving parents notice and an opportunity to opt out.
“This case presents a question of profound and growing importance: whether the First Amendment allows a public school to compel its teachers to endorse one side of a noncurricular, controversial issue simply by labeling the compelled speech a job duty,” the petition filed with the high court explains. “The answer should be no.”
The petition continued, “Gender identity policies like these threaten to drive traditional religious beliefs about sexuality out of our public schools… In Mirabelli v. Bonta, this Court confirmed that deceiving parents about a school’s attempt to socially transition their children likely violates the Constitution. Yet [Montgomery County Public Schools] continue[s] to coerce teachers to serve as instruments of that deception.”
- Pronunciation guide: Schandevel (SHAN’-deh-vell)
Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.
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