Within the next few months, all 48 regular-district schools in the Madison school district will have at least one accessible, single-stall public bathroom available to students of all genders.
It is an all-gendered bathroom that can be used by all students, visitors and families.
“We’re just trying to normalize it,” Sherie Hohs, the district’s LGBTQ+ social worker, told the Wisconsin State Journal. “It’s like going to a coffee shop, but we’re being very intentional with the language around it, that this is for all genders.”
The push to designate an all-gender bathroom began about a year ago. MMSD policy currently allows all transgender and non-binary students to use the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity.
District officials believe that this will be a welcome opportunity for all individuals that identify as transgender or non-binary.
“Having this district-wide is sending a message that we recognize that we have students of many different identities and we want to provide them with all-inclusive restrooms that are safe and available,” MMSD Chief of School Operations Karen Kepler told the Wisconsin State Journal.
Many schools already offered a single-stall bathroom available to anyone but lacked consistent signage, locks and location. Some students expressed discomfort using the limited gender-neutral bathrooms currently available. Hohs said that providing a more private option will allow for a safer and more focused learning environment.
This policy halted some schools’ requirement that students get a key from the school’s front desk staff in order to use these bathrooms. From now on, all the bathrooms will be unlocked when not in use.
“It’s a large-scale project, but it’s something our superintendent [Jen Cheatham] supports wholeheartedly,” Hohs said. “Despite the federal backlash, we’re still committed to having equitable and inclusive facilities.”
