Organizations across the state have partnered with non-profit advocacy group Honesty for Ohio Education to release a new set of guidelines for parents, teachers and students ahead of the 2025-2026 school year.
This will be the first school year under Ohio House Bill (HB) 8, the Parents’ Bill of Rights.
In December, lawmakers passed HB 8 which requires teachers to out LGBTQ+ students to their parents or legal guardians despite suspected anti-LGBTQ+ abuse in the home. The bill also bans mention of LGBTQ+ identity in grades K-3 and requires parental notification before mentioning LGBTQ+ people and history for grades 5-12.
School districts across the state are required to create new policies around the law by July 1, likely outlining enforcement and including penalties for employees who fail to comply.
While some parents, teachers and students can expect changes in the classroom, nonprofits say there are still ways for school staff and LGBTQ+ students and their families to assess risk and remain safe in the classroom after the law takes effect.
What is the Parents’ Bill of Rights?
First introduced by Republicans in early 2023, HB 8 received dozens of hearings in House and Senate committees before lawmakers passed the bill during the final hour of the 136th Congressional session.
The law requires that teachers and school staff – including school social workers, counselors and psychologists – notify a student’s parent of “any change in the student’s services, including counseling services, or monitoring related to the student’s mental, emotional or physical health or well-being.”
Those changes specifically include displaying symptoms of depression or other mental health issues, a change in academic performance, new sickness or injury, or bullying in the classroom.
The bill also requires immediate outing if a student makes any request “to identify as a gender that does not align” with the gender marker on the student’s original birth certificate.
Established as one of the party’s top priorities for the two-year legislative term, the bill has been widely condemned by civil rights and advocacy groups.
During public testimony, a representative from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) said the civil rights group is “gravely concerned about the dangers to student health and safety,” posed by several of the bill’s provisions.
Other medical and professional groups have also opposed the bill, including the Ohio Federation of Teachers, the Ohio School Psychologists Association (OSPA), the Ohio School Counselor Association (OSCA), Children’s Defense Fund of Ohio and national LGBTQ+ rights group the Human Rights Campaign (HRC).
Guidelines for teachers and students
Created in partnership with TransOhio, Equality Ohio, the Columbus Education Justice Coalition, the LGBT Center of Greater Cleveland, Kaleidoscope Youth Center, GLSEN Northeast Ohio and the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Ohio Chapter, Honesty for Ohio Education’s toolkit is a 21-page PDF document that includes public comment talking points, recommendations for students and teachers, sample letters and more.
The guide reiterates that teachers and school staff are not required to discuss a student’s perceived gender identity with a parent or guardian unless the student makes a specific request to use a different name or pronouns without written consent from a parent or guardian.
“[Educators can] use coded or neutral language to continue supporting students while minimizing risk,” the toolkit reads.
For students themselves, the toolkit recommends seeking out supportive parents, educators and peers while avoiding adults who use negative or derogatory language when speaking to or about LGBTQ+ people.
Additionally, students are encouraged to keep detailed records of any instances of anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination in the classroom, along with the school administration’s response to such incidents.
The toolkit also recommends that parents, teachers and school staff assess their own safety via a series of questions that help determine a person’s risk tolerance – including the risk of potential disciplinary action.
Penalties and compliance
“HB 8 does not include language that allows the licensing board to be the disciplinary body for this law. Additionally, HB 8 does not carry criminal penalties,” the toolkit reads. “You will not be criminally charged for not abiding by the reporting guidelines.”
Instead, school boards are required to draft their own penalties and enforcement around the law by July 1.
“Disciplinary actions for individuals will vary based on individual school policies and we have no way to anticipate what these actions might be,” the guide reads. “Disciplinary actions may include a wide range of actions, including, but not limited to ethics violations, write-ups, and/or termination.”
The guide advises teachers to contact their supervisors and school board members about the specifics of their district’s new policy before the start of the 2025-2026 school year – and not to comply with the law’s provisions in advance.
“School staff should honor/affirm pronouns for transgender and non-binary students whose parents support them. Doing otherwise is discrimination,” the guide says. “Wait to see your school’s policy. Do not preemptively discriminate!”
“Educators should not have to choose between following their professional ethics and following the law,” reads one of the toolkit’s recommended talking points for public comment. “We can comply with state mandates while still ensuring that every student feels welcome in our schools.” 🔥
Ignite Action
- To access Honesty for Ohio Education’s full “Don’t Discriminate Guide to HB 8” toolkit, click here.
- To register to vote or to check your voter eligibility status in the state of Ohio, click here.
- To find contact information for your Ohio state representative, click here.
- To find contact information for your Ohio senator, click here.
- If you are a young LGBTQ+ person in crisis, please contact the Trevor Project: 866-4-U-Trevor.
- If you are an transgender adult in need of immediate help, contact the National Trans Lifeline: 877-565-8860
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