RICHMOND, Va. (WRIC) — Just over a week after the Virginia Board of Education announced new guidelines affecting transgender students, stakeholders had the chance to address the board for the first time. 

“It’s time to make good on our pledge to remain united as one nation under God against the attacks and the ideologies of an enemy seeking to divide our families and our nation,” Pastor Zach Ritz said during public comment. 

The new policies prevent teachers from calling a transgender student by their preferred name or pronouns unless they receive parental permission. Plus, it requires students to play on sports teams and use facilities consistent with their sex assigned at birth, not their gender identity. 

“The result of this policy will be homeless and dead children,” a parent told the board. 

Many lauded the Department of Education’s decision as a win for parents’ rights. 

“The Virginia Constitution makes very clear separation of students by sex is not discrimination because there are biological differences,” Tyson Langhofer, general counsel for the Alliance for Defending Freedom said. “There are good reasons that our schools want to protect the privacy and dignity of students.”

Meanwhile, several transgender students were concerned about part of the new law, which prevents teachers from concealing information from parents of a student’s gender identity. These students addressed the board, claiming the law would lead to teachers outing students to unaccepting parents. 

“Looks like very tense conversations,” Katrina Van Orden, who identifies as transgender, said. “It looks like trying to defend yourself and getting shouted over constantly. It looks like having all of your phone and internet access revoked. You can’t speak to anybody, your friends. You can’t hang out outside of school.”

School districts are required to adopt policies similar to the state guidelines, but it is unclear how that will be enforced.