Many students find the first day of school to be nerve-racking with new classes and new teachers. Senior Roux Carney recognizes this feeling when having to meet new people and learn new names. To some students, schools are a safe place, but with recent government decisions, some students say they no longer have the same sense of security.
The language of Indiana House Bill 1608, passed on February 23, 2023 and signed by governor Eric Holcomb, “prohibits any person, entity, or vendor working in an official school capacity from providing instruction on human sexuality for grades K through 3rd.” For many students who rely on the school for resources, Bill 1608 makes some of these students feel they can’t talk to trusted adults in the building. When students discuss with teachers, counselors, or other staff LGBTQ+ issues or changing their name used at school, school authorities are now legally required to notify parents of the students’ decisions.
“It is incredibly dangerous for students to be outed to their parents,” Carney said.
Carney isn’t the only student to recognize this change in the relationship between school and students. Senior Leo Hanafee expresses similar feelings towards how their fellow peers are feeling.
“I can definitely tell that a lot of students are not comfortable being themselves in their classes in fear of their parents finding out that they go by a different name,” Hanafee said.
According to principal Craig McCaffrey, school counselors and social workers are in the building to create a safe space. Because of the requirements of Bill 1608, however, some students feel that they no longer have a safe space.
“There are kids I know that do not have the proper resources or support to come out,” Carney said.
McCaffrey says that despite any school employee’s feelings towards the bill, schools must operate in accordance with Indiana’s new laws. McCaffrey is continuing to strive to ensure students feel like they have a place in school.
“We want every student to feel welcome here, and every student to find their place,” McCaffrey said.
Some students who don’t feel as comfortable with the bill’s requirements have found ways to avoid using their birth-given name, without parents being notified. These ideas allow students to use a name they identify more with.
“The best thing for a trans student [to do] who does not want to use their dead name, but cannot come out to their parents, is to go by their middle name or last name,” Carney said.
Even if students have other names they prefer, the school says that middle names being used as preferred names, or different variations of a student’s birth name, do not require a letter home.
“A middle name is a part of a name, so it’s not something we call home for,” McCaffrey said.
However, because the law affects anyone who goes by a different name, some trans students at NHS feel singled-out by this bill.
“This bill is clearly targeting trans students,” Hanafee said.
Carney believes that even people who are not trans need to recognizen the ways HB 1608 affects everyone. Carney says Noblesville needs to come together as a community and find out the effect the legislation is having on all students.
“It’s important for people not impacted to support their fellow trans students,” Carney said.
