Originally published May 1, 2023 8:00 pm PDT
A child gender clinic provided training for teachers in two Pennsylvania school districts to support elementary school students during their gender transitions, according to documents obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
An employee of the Gender and Sexuality Development Program at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) advised faculty from Pennsbury School District and Council Rock School District on how to assist students, including a kindergartner.
Samantha King, the manager of education initiatives at CHOP’s gender clinic, met with staff at Pennsbury School District in 2021 to discuss supporting an incoming transgender kindergartner.
In 2019, King presented a PowerPoint to teachers from Council Rock School District on assisting gender-transitioning students.
CHOP’s gender clinic has previously been criticized for recommending cross-sex surgeries for children as young as 14.
CHOP’s gender clinic offers medical interventions such as puberty blockers for children as young as eight, as revealed by statements and documents reviewed by the DCNF.
In 2021, the clinic’s co-founders, Dr. Linda Hawkins and Dr. Nadia Dowshen, promoted “top surgery,” including mastectomies or breast construction, for children.
King held a meeting in May 2021 with Edgewood Elementary principal and staff at the request of the parents of an incoming transgender kindergartner, who had been working with King and the CHOP gender clinic.
The parent said in an email, “We’ve been working with the CHOP Gender Clinic for about a year now and they have incredible resources for families with gender diverse youth – including helping kids get started with their new schools.”
Pennsbury School District’s Director of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, Dr. Cherrissa Gibson, arranged for King to host two training sessions for K-12 teachers in April 2022, donating $1,200 to CHOP, the Daily Caller notes.
In these sessions, King taught gender inclusivity and affirmed that gender exploration is “normal and valid” regardless of a child’s age. “It is not okay to tell someone they aren’t who they say they are,” the workshop advised.
In 2019, King met with Council Rock School District faculty to support a sixth grade student’s gender transition, and later in 2020, provided guidance on creating a “gender inclusive classroom” and using “gender inclusive language.”
Between 2018 and 2021, Pennsylvania Department of Human Services granted the gender clinic over $176,000 to create webinars and in-person trainings called the “Transgender Therapy Training Workshops.”
