VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. - — Virginia Beach School Board member Victoria Manning said she wants the board to adopt Gov. Youngkin's model policies regarding transgender students during the meeting on Tuesday night.
Manning has put forward a resolution to adopt the policies.
"I really believe that it protects the parent rights under the law to direct the care and upbringing and education of their child," Manning told News 3 on Tuesday afternoon.
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Virginia Dept. of Ed. releases new model policies impacting LGBTQ+ students
Last month, the Youngkin administration approved policies reversing policies put in place during the Northam administration.
The updated policies say students should be referred to by the pronouns on their official records and should use the bathroom of their biological sex.
Staff can only refer to students by another name or pronoun if a student submits a request to the school in writing.
Statewide, there has been push back, including in Fairfax County, where the school system is not following the policies.
News 3 asked spokespeople for Gov. Youngkin and Attorney General Jason Miyares what happens if school boards do not follow the policies.
Both replied the school boards are expected to follow the law, but did not address any possible enforcement.
"I do believe that there are mechanisms where parents can file suit against school boards to force them to implement these policies," said Manning.
Jack Preis, a law professor at the University of Richmond, told News 3 that could be an uphill battle as parents would have to prove not adopting the policies legally harms them.
"You have to say it's unlawful and the unlawfulness is causing me some particular harm," said Preis. "I think that's going to be the real challenge."
Preis expects the consequences could be more political.
"The check on the school board is that something becomes untenable," said Preis. "School boards are elected, if they take a position that is so radical and unpopular with the local community, they'll suffer politically."
