Teacher Describes Years Of Transphobic Harassment In Evanston

EVANSTON, IL — Ahead of the first-ever LGBTQ+ Equity Week in Evanston/Skokie School District 65 schools, administrators have been accused of tolerating years of transphobic harassment of a teacher by district employees. Meanwhile, some district parents and guardians have opted to exclude their students from this week's curriculum, and the director of equity the district hired last year has opted out himself by leaving the office for more than two weeks to coincide with the inaugural equity week.

Ren Heckathorne, a transgender special education teacher at Park School, said they began suffering harassment from a paraprofessional at the school after coming out at work three years ago. They addressed the District 65 board meeting last month with dozens of supporters in attendance.

"I knew it was quite possible that some people would not be willing or able to support me. Sadly, as a trans person, I know all too well that losing people when you show people who you truly are is just a part of the process," Heckathorne said. "Losing people was something I was prepared for, being treated like I was some sort of monster was not something I had readied my heart for."

According to Heckathorne's mother, who is also a special education teacher in the district, the harassment began with a paraprofessional at Park School.

The paraprofessional would openly pray in the classroom to "save" Heckathorne and tell them they would be "going to hell." Administrators put the paraprofessional on paid leave for several months during an investigation, and during that time administrators questioned whether it was safe for Heckathorne to be around children or to change their diapers, their mother told the board.

Since then, supporters told the board, Heckathorne has filed three additional complaints. In April, they filed a formal grievance after two staff members reported a district administrator made "discriminatory remarks regarding [Heckathorne's] gender identity" while speaking on the phone during a meeting.

Heckathorne's mother said the administrator was "quietly removed" from a committee Heckathorne was on, even though it was directly tied to the administrator's main job description. The identity of that administrator could not be verified due to the confidentiality of the district's employee grievance process.

Another complaint was filed in August after a District 65 staff member refused to change Heckathorne's name on their mailbox and emails, another of the teacher's supporters told the school board.

The staff member reportedly said they were "tired of all the names and pronouns" and demanded legal paperwork be submitted to human resources before making the administrative name change. They said it was "not their job to keep up with [Heckathorne's] phases," according to the complaint. This standard, according to Heckathorne's supporters, is only applied to transgender employees. For instance, someone named William may go by Bill, or someone named Francis may go by Frank. The grievance was determined to be "founded" in Heckathorne's favor, and the unidentified staff member who was the subject of the complaint transferred out of the building, the board was told.

Heckathorne filed another complaint last month, saying they were approached on the playground by a district employee who informed Heckathorne that a group of paraprofessionals were uncomfortable with their presence at Park School, according to a summary of the complaint read out to the board. The employee said members of the paraprofessional union in the building planned to hold a meeting to address Heckathorne's gender identity. That same day, Heckathorne sent an email to administrators and leaders of the teachers union explaining they no longer felt safe to report for work. They were placed on paid leave for the rest of the month.

In a Sept. 30 letter to district officials, Heckathorne said they returned to work last week because it was made clear they would no longer be paid after Oct. 1, not because they felt safe.

"I am returning to work because my students need me. You failed my students. Their families were not notified, and still have not been notified, that I was on a leave," Heckathorne said, explaining their students had been deprived of the education they deserve due to the lack of a consistent substitute who could follow their lesson plans.

"I am returning to work because a group of cisgender people decided for me when it was safe for me to return to work. People who do not have my lived experience as a trans person told me I was safe now," Heckathorne said. "People who have known I was being hurt over and over again and chose to do nothing, decided that now I am safe."

Heckathorne said district employees who had subjected them to transphobic harassment remained in positions of power. They said the district had still not hired a transgender consultant who specializes in protecting transgender people, and the district had still not put a policy in place to protect staff members subjected to harassment based on gender identity. Heckathorne said they would be wearing a shirt that says, "still not safe" until they decide they are safe at work.

One of the paraprofessionals accused in the complaints, Leila Wilshusen, was recently transferred to Haven Middle School, according to parents of District 65 students. Wilshusen did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the accusations.

"I am done giving people the benefit of the doubt. I am done being the one doing all the work and holding this district's hand as they fumble and fall and refuse to stand up for what is right," Heckathorne told the board at its Sept. 23 meeting. "I will no longer accept that this is the best you can do. If I am the first trans person you have ever met, it is nice to meet you. If this is all really new to you, that is OK, but refusing to learn is not acceptable."

District administrative procedure 7:10, last updated in May 2018, requires students be treated in a manner consistent with their gender identity, but the board has yet to establish such a protection for staff members.

As of Tuesday, nearly 500 people had signed a petition in support of Heckathorne that calls on the district to develop procedures to prevent harassment of LGBTQ employees.

Meg Krulee, president of the local teacher's union, asked the board to revise its policy on treatment of staff to include gender identity and not just sex and sexual orientation.

"We are asking the board to pledge to be inclusive and supportive of LGTBQ+ staff just as we strive to be inclusive of our students and families of members of the LGTBQ+ community," Krulee said.

On Monday, District 65 began its first-ever LGBTQ+ Equity Week.

For 30 minutes a day, students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade will "broaden their understanding of identity of self and others, allyship, family structures, vocabulary, gender expression, stereotypes, colors on the intersectional pride flag, and the historical contributions of LGBTQ+ people," according to a joint statement from Krulee and the district's co-interim superintendents.

Earlier this year, Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed into law a measure that mandates history classes in public schools must "include a study of the roles and contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people" in U.S. and Illinois history. According to Krulee, a group of District 65 educators developed an age-appropriate curriculum over the summer.

Studies have suggested teachers who provide support for LGBTQ students can help reduce the risk of self-harm. By the time students reach high school, the rate of suicide attempts among LGBTQ-identified students is nearly 30 percent — almost five times higher than heterosexual students, according to a 2015 study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It found young people who question their sexual orientation, gender identity or identify as bisexual have an even greater risk of depression and suicidal thoughts. According to a 2016 report from the National Center for Transgender Equality, 40 percent of transgender adults will attempt suicide at some point in their lifetime.

According to a summary of the District 65 curriculum, lessons will range from breaking down gender stereotypes, identifying how to be an ally and learning how identity influences activism.

An unspecified number of District 65 parents have opted out of District 65's first LGBTQ+ Equity Week.

So has Joaquin Stephenson, the director of equity and family and community engagement the district hired last year. He has been out of the office since Thursday and is not scheduled to return until Oct. 21, according to an out-of-office reply. It was not immediately clear if has scheduled a vacation of more than two weeks or has been placed on administrative leave.

It was not clear how many students are being excluded from the new curriculum at the behest of a parent or guardian. Staff members in the office of the co-interim superintendents have not responded to a request for details of how many parents or guardians have opted out or what alternative instruction they are receiving.

Watch statements in support of Ren Heckathorne, a special education teacher at Park School, from the Sept. 23, Evanston/Skokie School District 65 board meeting: