Florida school district requires parent permission for teachers to use students’ nicknames

The Orange County Public School District (OCPS) of Florida is now requiring students to get their parent’s permission if they’d like teachers to refer to them by their nickname. For example, if Florida Gov. Ronald DeSantis (R) were an OCPS student, he’d have to get his mother’s permission to be called by his preferred name, “Ron.”

This policy is due to the “Don’t Say Gay” law that DeSantis signed earlier this year. The law forbids K-12 teachers from mentioning sexual orientation or gender identity in any way that might be seen as not “age appropriate.” The law also requires schools to tell parents when students receive mental health services, which some have interpreted to include calling transgender kids by their preferred names. Since the law allows parents to sue – at the school district’s expense – if they feel the law has been violated, many schools are being quite cautious this year.

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In an August 7 memo from OCPS attorney John C. Palmerini to the district’s educational administrators, principals, and superintendents, Palmerini wrote that Florida law requires schools to allow “parents to specify the use of any deviation from their child’s legal name in school.”

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If a student named Robert wants teachers to call him “Rob,” Palmerini wrote, then parents must first fill out the necessary form. Parents of transgender children can also fill out the form to have their child called the correct name; however, educators can choose to misgender them (or any trans employees or contractors) if they choose, since the law allows it, Palmerini added.

Because using a trans child’s correct pronouns may get educators in legal trouble, Palmerini suggested that educators should only use a child’s parent-approved nickname or the child’s last name instead of any pronouns.

“A violation of the pronoun rule can lead to sanctions on an educator’s certificate up to and including revocation of the certificate,” the attorney reminded educators.

Palmerini also noted that trans students who change clothes for physical education classes must now do so in a single-stall restroom or the coach’s office. If a trans child or trans adult (including school workers) tries to use a school bathroom matching their gender identity, they could be charged with criminal trespassing and charged a fine of up to $10,000.

A “frequently asked questions” (FAQ) document from OCPS educators emphasizes that if parents ask educators about their child’s LGBTQ+ identity, the teacher must say if a student has revealed their sexual orientation or gender identity to them. Educators are allowed to keep the information from parents if they believe the “disclosure would result in [parental] abuse, abandonment or neglect,” but educators can’t always discern which parents are abusive and which aren’t.

The only bright sides to the FAQ are its sections stating that educators can state their own LGBTQ+ identities if asked by students, can wear or display rainbow symbols and “safe space” signs in classrooms, and can also display a picture of their trans or same-sex partners because these things don’t count as “classroom instruction.” Students are allowed to form their own gay-straight alliances, though it’s unclear what educational activities these alliances could provide that wouldn’t violate the “Don’t Say Gay” law.

According to the OCPS website, the school district is the fourth-largest in Florida and the eighth-largest in the nation. It educates nearly 209,000 students in 210 schools with over 25,000 faculty and staff. Florida schools are also paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to ensure that none of its books violate the state’s “Don’t Say Gay” law. Florida currently ranks 48th in the country for average teacher pay.