In a significant development for teachers’ rights, three educators in Harrisonburg, Virginia, reached a settlement with the Harrisonburg City School Board, ensuring they are not required to ask for or use students’ preferred pronouns. This resolution followed a lawsuit filed in 2022, where the teachers asserted their free speech and religious rights under Virginia law were being violated.
The lawsuit arose after the school board mandated staff training to enforce a nondiscrimination policy, which required teachers to use students’ preferred names and pronouns without parental notification or consent.
The teachers, represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), argued this policy infringed on their beliefs and threatened disciplinary action, including termination, for noncompliance.
On Tuesday, the school board granted religious accommodations, affirming that staff are not required to use preferred pronouns and maintaining that it “[does] not support hiding or withholding information from parents.”
ADF senior counsel Kate Anderson emphasized, “Teachers are protected under the Constitution to do their job in alignment with their religious beliefs, including how they refer to their students and the vital information they share with parents.”
The school board expressed satisfaction with the resolution, stating, “Before the litigation began, we were open to collaborating on accommodations for diverse needs,” and highlighting their ongoing efforts to support religious accommodations through policy and training.
This case echoes a similar ADF victory in November, where a Virginia school board paid $575,000 to a teacher fired for refusing to use a transgender student’s preferred pronouns. ADF president Kristen Waggoner described that settlement as having “seismic implications,” reinforcing teachers’ rights across the state.
