The New Hampshire Supreme Court upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit that challenged a Manchester school district policy that protects transgender students’ privacy and requires staff to refer to those children using their chosen pronouns.

This policy mandates that the district keep transgender students’ gender identities confidential from parents unless students consent.

“The Policy does not restrict a parent’s ability to learn information from other sources, including from the child,” the Supreme Court decision stated. “The policy does not encourage students to hide information from their parents or prevent students from sharing information.”

A parent from Manchester recently took legal action in the Hillsborough County Superior Court, challenging the district’s policy after they discovered that their child, whose identity was kept confidential, had asked to be addressed with pronouns different from those typically associated with their biological sex.

Upon learning of the situation, the parent asked the school to use pronouns aligned with their child’s biological sex.

The school principal responded with a letter explaining that the district’s policy mandates respect for the student’s chosen gender identity, regardless of parental preferences.

The parent, who remains unnamed, claims that the district’s approach infringed on her constitutional and statutory rights.

However, the Superior Court rejected these claims, stating that the plaintiff failed to demonstrate that the policy infringed on any fundamental parenting rights. The court highlighted that the policy does not restrict a parent’s ability to raise their child but rather ensures that students’ rights to privacy and self-expression are respected.

The Manchester School District’s policy states that “school personnel should not disclose information that may reveal a student’s transgender status or gender nonconforming presentation to others unless legally required to do so or unless the student has authorized such disclosure.”

The policy also affirms that transgender and gender nonconforming students have the right to decide “how much to share private information.”

“The court rejects the plaintiff’s argument that the policy violates her fundamental right to parent,” ruled the Superior Court.

On Friday, the New Hampshire Supreme Court upheld the Superior Court’s decision, reinforcing the policy’s alignment with legal standards.

“The Policy places no limits on the plaintiff’s ability to parent her child as she sees fit,” the court order states.

The Supreme Court’s decision was celebrated by organizations such as GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders and the ACLU of New Hampshire, who, along with parent Heather Romeri and her son Nico — a New Hampshire high school student — supported the school’s policy through a friend-of-the-court brief.

“We are pleased with the court’s decision to affirm what we already know, that students deserve to be treated with dignity and respect and have a right to freely express who they are without the fear of being forcibly outed,” said Henry Klementowicz, Deputy Legal Director at the ACLU of New Hampshire.

Chris Erchull, senior staff attorney at GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the importance of a supportive school environment.

“Today’s decision upholds that core value and allows schools to manage the educational environment so that all students have an equal and safe opportunity to learn,” he said.

Sruthi Gopalakrishnan can be reached at sgopalakrishnan@cmonitor.com