with roughly two months left in the public school year a pair of civil rights groups are making a final plea to 16 school districts urging them to reconsider their stance on the state's gender rights policy known as 5756 that sets guidelines for schools around parental notification of a student's gender identity the letters from the ACLU and Garden State equality were sent following the Roxbury School District's decision to join a growing list of systems scrapping the polic entirely a move those Advocates see as dangerous senior correspondent Brenda Flanigan reports every student deserves a safe school to learn and grow in and that's what this guidance is rooted in gender rights Advocates have watched an alarm as more than two dozen New Jersey school boards voted to revoke policy 5756 the controversial State guidance advises trans and non-binary students should not be automatically Ed to their families by School faculty or staff it's a prime target of the conservative parental rights movement but this week both the ACLU and Garden State equality sent letters to 16 districts urging them to reopt 5756 it is clear communication that is focused on student safety from a conservative standpoint you could even say this would help reduce liability for a school district by having this policy because then it it's clearly laying out how we protect our students safety and so we just want to make sure that all of these school districts understand that when they revoke these policies it doesn't absolve them of their responsibilities the aclu's alila hes admits 5756 isn't mandatory but notes school districts must follow New Jersey's tough law against discrimination the letter says repealing 5756 leave school administrators and staff without clear guidance opening the district to liability and it signals to lgbtq plus students and families within your District that its schools may not be a safe and welcoming environment to all you know as lgbtq plus students are facing renewed threats ac across the country um New Jersey has a responsibility to lead by example here and ensure that students are safe and welcome in our schools hes wouldn't comment when asked whether the aclu's been contacted by a family in one of the 16 districts that got a letter they include Lacy town ship Board of Ed represented by attorney Bruce padulla who said generally the missives not being well-received I've heard from some people that I'm not going to mention that this is uh perceived as a bullying tactic of Garden State equality and the ACLU and and using legal and threatening uh language to scare school administrators I believe and I'm paraphrasing the letter to some extent that it does say we'll be watching you actually the letter States our organizations will continue to monitor districts to ensure they're meeting their obligations to provide students with a safe environment that's free from discrimination padul is in court for two of three Mammoth County districts that have been sued by New Jersey attorney general after they adopted their own policies we have to reconcile the conflicting interests between parental rights transgender student rights and the rights and obligations of a school district to both parties many believe districts are waiting for the court to offer Direction meanwhile at least three districts have abandoned efforts to resend 5756 a recent poll showed more than half of New Jersey residents think the law should not require teachers to inform parents about their child's gender identity I'm Brenda Flanigan NJ Spotlight news [Music]