UPDATE: ROCKWOOD TITLE IX TRAINING SNAFU APPEARS TO BE FIXED AND A STATE GENDER IDENTITY CHANGE FORM IS NO LONGER ALLOWED

Rockwood says new training is in place for all district teachers and staff, after announcing last week that their original training was not correct. We also know more now about what happened. Details below.

QUICK BACKGROUND

The incorrect training said teachers and staff should allow students to use bathrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity, rather than their biological sex.

Given by an outside company, the training was written as though a Title IX update was being enforced, when actually, it is currently halted in Missouri due to a court challenge. See the details in our previous report, here.

The training also stated that transgender students didn't need any documentation of their new gender. 

Slide from removed Rockwood employee training points out that
no documentation of gender identity is required. 
This training has reportedly been replaced by training from 2020, prior to the Title IX update.

Documenting gender identity change is an evolving issue. Until a few days ago, the state of Missouri also didn't require proof of gender change on driver's licenses. More on that, also, below.

NEW: HOW DID ROCKWOOD'S TRAINING ERROR HAPPEN?

We said in our last report that we would update after we heard back from Dr. Kim Cohen, Rockwood's Assistant Superintendent of Human Resources.

What happened is best explained using a timeline that includes what we already knew, and what Dr. Cohen has since told us:

July 24th

A Missouri court issued an injunction, which stops the Title IX update from being forced on schools. 

Training started days later with Rockwood teachers and staff, written as though the update was still being enforced. 

August 13th: 20 days after the injunction

Rockwood says it was advised by its insurer on August 13th, that it should use training from 2020 (before the update to Title IX), rather than training from 2024. 

August 14th, 15th, and, 16th

Rockwood says, after hearing from its insurer, it tried to reach the training company, Public School Works (PSW), every day by phone and through email, to figure out which training PSW had sent to teachers and staff. 

It's not clear why it took 3 days to confirm that 2024 training was sent. It is also not clear why Rockwood administrators didn't verify for themselves by looking at the slides.

Morning of August 16th

The morning of the 16th, posts on social media showed slides that had been leaked from the training by a Rockwood employee who took the training. We, and people in the community, sent questions to Rockwood. 

Afternoon of August 16th:

Hours after the social media posts and questions, the email announcing the training mistake was sent to all teachers and staff that the training was wrong, and that anyone who already took the training would have to retake it. 

This was 23 days after the court injunction, but only hours after the slides were leaked publicly.

Note that Dr. Cohen stated in her email below that she did not see what was in the training slides and that the training was scheduled prior to the court injunction.

Email from Rockwood with explanation.

It's not clear why it took the insurer, Missouri United School Insurance Council (MUSIC), nearly 3 weeks to alert Rockwood administrators about which version of training to use, or why it alerted Rockwood only after the training had already started. 

Note: Rockwood employees who took the training told us they started the training the first week of August.

Those employees also told us they did not know the slides were incorrect; only that they were concerned that biological boys were supposed to be allowed to use girls' bathrooms and locker rooms, according to the slides. 

Slide from Title IX training erroneously given to Rockwood employees. 

A Rockwood spokesperson, who asked not to be named, is skeptical whether Rockwood was on top of things and told us: "I have to believe your attention to this was the reason why RSD (Rockwood School District) looked at the training."

In subsequent emails, Dr. Cohen told us the new, correct, training from Public School Works was in place the next day (Saturday). 

NOT JUST ROCKWOOD

This is likely not just a Rockwood issue. Theoretically, the Missouri United School Insurance Council (MUSIC) should have given the same advisory about not using 2024 training to all of its members, since the Title IX update is halted for all of Missouri. 

According to MUSIC's website, that includes more than 490 Missouri public school districts, community colleges, and education associations.  

A Rockwood parent: "How many other school districts in Missouri have followed up and checked to see which training their employees are getting? How many Missouri school teachers are being told they're required to allow biological boys in girls bathrooms, when it's not true?"

ADDITIONAL CONTEXT

Typically, transgender students in Rockwood use gender neutral bathrooms. Rarely, parents have reported incidents where transgender students have used bathrooms for the gender in which they identify.

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ANOTHER UPDATE: STATE FORM REMOVED

The gender change form that apparently led to a transwoman using the women's locker room at Lifetime Fitness has since been discontinued by a Missouri state agency. (A transwoman is a biological male that identifies as a woman.)

QUICK BACKGROUND
The Ellisville Lifetime Fitness location allowed the transwoman to use the women's locker room because, according to its statement, legally, the gym has to go by the gender that's on a state issued i-d. The gender on the driver's license of the transwoman had been changed from male to female. For more detail, see our previous report. 

REMOVED

After questions from a Missouri State Representative and from local residents, Missouri's Department of Revenue said it had changed the rules regarding gender changes on driver's licenses, and the form that previously allowed gender changes on state issued i-d's was no longer in use. It no longer shows up in online searches. 

Missouri form 5532 drew scrutiny from a Missouri State Representative and others, because it made it easy to change one's gender, given that proof of surgery or hormones was not required. Only a signature from a doctor or social services provider was needed on the form, verifying that the new gender identity would "reasonably be expected to continue." 

Now, proof of gender change surgery or court order are required, instead of the form, as seen in news reports.

This is the form that was removed.

Lifetime Fitness eventually escorted the transwoman out of the gym, but not because of complaints it heard from gym members. Instead, a spokesperson said, it was because of social media posts from the transwoman that were deemed a threat to safety and security.

If you are interested in detail not found in news reports, the Facebook group "STL County Supporting Kids and Community," and T.J. Moe on X (formerly Twitter) have been updating the community on the locker room situation as well as the form.