“Establishing Policy Is Just Step One of Twenty”: How Educational Policy Protections, District Practices, and Leadership Matter to Trans PK–12 School Workers

Abstract

Background/Context: While trans adults in the U.S. and Canada report higher levels of discrimination and harassment than cisgender adults, but the existing literature lacks comprehensive descriptions of trans school workers’ believes about what would improve working conditions, satisfaction, and safety. Purpose: We interrogate systemic forces shaping PK-12 trans educators’ workplace experiences through two research questions: (1) What educational reforms did trans PK–12 workers believe would improve working conditions? (2) Did greater policy, organizational, and leadership support contribute to improved job satisfaction and safety? Research Design: The critical quantitative study employed cross-sectional, online survey data from 341 trans school workers in Canada and the United States. We used frequencies to descripe respondents’ rankings of reforms and logistic regression analysis to examine whether respondents’ reports of greater policy protections, organizational supports, and affirming leadership constributed to greater workplace safety and satisfaction. Conclusions/Recommendations: Trans workers reporting safer, more satisfactory school workplaces also indicate their workplaces have multiple tools across socio-ecological systems to disrupt cisnormativity. Policy protections topped workers’ rankings of beneficial reforms, but logistic regression analysis revealed policies mitigated only the most egregious physical safety concerns. Greater organizational supports and affirming leaders consistently contribute to satisfaction and safety. Policies, organizational practices, and leadership approaches working in tandem contribute to safe, satisfying workplaces for PK-12 trans school employees.