In the last 15 years, the Montgomery County Public Schools system has successfully implemented health education and other policies, following the wisdom of every mainstream American medical and mental health professional association, that support and embrace students whose sexual orientation is not “straight” or whose gender identity is not “cisgender."
At Bethesda Magazine‘s October 26 Board of Education Candidate Forum, candidate Esther Wells was “asked if MCPS addresses LGBTQ acceptance in age-appropriate ways, and if the district provides appropriate supports and resources for LGBTQ students.”
Rather than answer the question directly, Ms. Wells said would “engage with all stakeholders and ensure everyone feels that they are able to have a voice and are able to be part of the curriculum process and that ultimately our students are ready for the real world, and they are aware of sexuality, their sexuality and their identities, at age-appropriate times.”
Left unsaid by Ms. Wells was how her perspectives on sexual orientation and gender identity would impact on how she proceeds with such engagement. Ms. Wells states on her campaign website that she serves “as the Chairman & President Trustee of the Board of a multi-million dollar non-profit in Gaithersburg, MD.” The website of that organization states that the non-profit "opposes all forms of sexual immorality, including . . . homosexuality."
This information should give voters great pause with respect to how Ms. Wells would approach these issues.
(The other candidates present -- Scott Joftus, Grace Rivera Oven, Karla Silvestre, Brenda Wolff, and Julie Yang -- repeated their endorsements of the MCPS policies (candidate Valerie Coll, who was not present, has previously given such endorsement).
For more background, see https://davidfishback.blogspot.com/2022/09/two-problematic-montgomery-county-md.html
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