after facing legal action from the state the Manalapan Englishtown School District wants to meet with New Jersey's attorney general to negotiate School leaders are hoping to work out an agreement on a controversial policy requiring parental notification if students alter their gender identity attorney general Matt platkin's office is in legal disputes with a handful of school districts over similar proposals filing civil complaints against Manalapan Hanover Middletown and Marlborough School Districts for policies the state says outs gay and transgender students violating what's known as Ladd that's the New Jersey law against discrimination at a heated Board of Education meeting in Colts Neck last night impassioned parents and community members crowded a school gym debating a gender identity policy affecting the very youngest of their students senior correspondent Joanna gagas reports no one knows my kids better than me and no one will get we are gravely concerned with proposed policies that put students safety and mental health at risk and violate New Jersey's law against discrimination the debate played out in yet another school district last night whether the Colts Neck Board of Education should put a policy in place that requires Educators to inform parents when a student between the age of pre-K to fifth grade comes out to them about their gender identity regarding their their mental medical and emotional health keeping that information from the parents to me is just as a father is absolutely immoral the scientists stay here and say we're here for you as if they're biting our children of course the LIE against parents and make parents the adversary I think that in the best interest of children you should definitely reconsider and vote no don't force these children to tell their parents anything if they're not comfortable beyond the heated emotional debate some in the district reminded the board that adopting this policy would land Colt's neck in the same legal battle as four other districts Hanover Middletown Marlborough and Manalapan Englishtown New Jersey's attorney general has filed civil rights complaints against all four districts Hanover's policy has been paused while the other three remain locked in a legal dispute lawsuits cost money why on purpose would we go headlong into a lawsuit what is that going to cost us what will the children have to give up for this nonsense should we give up the school play how about sports let's get rid of that so that we can go headlong into this battle I'm outraged that after three other districts in this County have passed the law and have been sued by the state that Colts Neck is continuing to pursue this policy change I think that is a ridiculous waste of taxpayer money they're going to be buried in legal bills and aside from just the accountability and responsibility they they have to their Township they have and they need to be held accountable for their students they need to protect their trans students their queer students but Sean Highland former executive director of the New Jersey family policy Alliance thinks these districts could win in court there is no precedent there is no settle case law that NJ lad has ever been applied in any manner there were prohibited power into being informed about their child's social emotional mental well-being the AG has simply decided on his own to apply NJ lad in a manner that sideline parents and removes them from the process NJ Ladd is New Jersey's law against discrimination which the suits say these policies violate but in the end uncertainty around those cases led the Colts Neck School Board to postpone last night's boat I'd like to make a motion to postpone to a certain time or table the second reading of policy 5756 until such time that the current lawsuits filed by the attorney general and pending against the four school districts have been resolved for Michael goddessman who's been challenging these policies in board meetings across the state that postponement is a win that could take years so unless they vote again and say they're going to undo that they're stuck until the issue the legal issue is resolved but the administrative courts or the courts of the state of New Jersey a possible turning of the tide in what many thought would be a wave of districts adopting this policy for NJ Spotlight news I'm Joanna Gagis