A lesbian student whose picture was yanked from her yearbook because she was dressed in a tuxedo has reached an out-of-court agreement with a South Florida school district.The dispute began earlier this year when Fleming Island principal Sam Ward pulled Davis' yearbook photo because it violated the dress code for senior portraits, which required dresses for women, or a fabric drape that looks like a dress for the yearbook photo.Davis said she wore a tux because it made her feel more comfortable, a position supported by Cindy Davis, the student’s mother. "What is so offensive about this picture?" Cindy Davis asked, holding her tuxedo clad daughter's photo in her hand at a school board meeting in February. "Who would have ever noticed her attire?"
The school board, however, maintained its position, prompting Davis and her daughter to contact civil rights groups and the National Center for Lesbian Rights who sent a letter to the school threatening a federal lawsuit.
The Clay County School Board approved the mediated settlement Sept. 15.In the settlement agreement, the school board agreed to change its senior portrait policy; add sexual orientation to its non-discrimination policy for both students and teachers; distribute a copy of the new non-discrimination policy to all secondary school students; provide annual non-discrimination training that includes sexual orientation to all faculty and staff; and provide diversity training that includes sexual orientation to all junior high and high school students in the district.
Kelli Davis, now a freshman at the University of South Florida, told the media she hopes the settlement will prevent future discrimination against students.
“I’m just relieved it’s over and that no other student in Clay County will have to go through the embarrassment, humiliation and frustration I went through," she said.
from The Gay Financial Network
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