Two Hanover County school officials have been dismissed from a federal lawsuit filed in July by the American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia alleging that the county’s school board violated an 11-year-old transgender student’s rights by banning her from playing on the girls’ tennis team at her middle school.
Judge M. Hannah Lauck of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia wrote in an opinion Tuesday that suing interim Superintendent Lisa Pennycuff and board chair Bob May in their official capacities, as well as the Hanover School Board itself, was duplicative.
“No allegation even suggests that Ms. Pennycuff (or her predecessor Mr. Gill) — who are not members of the school board — participated in the school board’s decision to prohibit Janie from playing on the girls’ tennis team,” Lauck wrote. “And Mr. May is just one member of the multi-member School Board, which acted as a body to deny Janie’s request to try out for the team.”
In August, Lauck forced the school district to allow Janie — a pseudonym used to protect her identity — to try out for and play on the girls’ tennis team for the 2024-2025 season while the case moves forward.
School division policy states that for any activities separated by sex, student participation should be determined by sex, not gender identity. The language mirrors the Virginia Department of Education’s model policies, which the state released in July 2023 and Hanover’s school board later adopted.
Court documents show Janie has identified as a girl since age 7 and legally changed her name and had a Virginia birth certificate issued reflecting her sex as female in 2021. That August, a psychologist diagnosed Janie with gender dysphoria, and the following year, she received a histrelin implant to prevent the progression of puberty and reduce testosterone.
Janie first tried out for and made the girls’ tennis team at a Hanover middle school in 2023, but the seven-member school board voted against letting her play.
May previously explained the board’s position and its policies for school extracurricular activities.
“After careful consideration, the school board voted unanimously against permitting your student to participate on the middle school girls’ tennis team in effort to ensure fairness in competition for all participants,” May wrote in a Sept. 14, 2023 letter to Janie’s parents.
The ACLU argued the policy violates Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination in publicly funded education programs.
Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares issued an opinion in August 2023, determining the state’s model policies comply with state and federal law.
Related coverage of the trans model policies
- Federal judge rules in favor of trans athlete in Hanover
- Hanover school board to decide whether trans athlete can play girls tennis
- Virginia judge dismisses ACLU lawsuit over school policies for trans students
- ACLU of Virginia sues Hanover school board on behalf of trans student
- Virginia Beach School Board opts not to adopt Youngkin’s trans students policies
- Trans rights, free speech advocates respond to new education policies
- State education department issues new policies for trans students
- Asked about transgender student privacy policies, Youngkin says schools have 'obligation' to keep parents informed
- How would Gov. Glenn Youngkin's new model policy around transgender students affect your school-age kids?
