Bathrooms, Boundaries, and Belonging: School Leaders’ Navigation of State Transgender Bathroom Policies

Using a legal lens, this case examines the nuances districts, and particularly school leaders, face as they navigate the fast-changing landscape for supporting transgender students in K–12 schools. Like other states, Utah has passed legislation that requires administrators to police restrooms. Using a case of transgender students’ bathroom use in C-Ville Middle School in Utah, leaders, current and prospective, will reflect on how to respond when being torn between the law and their students who continue to use restrooms in violation of the law as well as their own responsibility for creating safe spaces for all, especially transgender students.