A recent decision in Pennsylvania marks a significant moment for our clients’ case and others. A judge found that the mother of a transgender student who died by suicide may present evidence against a school administrator in the civil rights suit stemming from her child’s tragedy.
This case reminds us of something crucial: sexual harassment, gender discrimination, and identity-based victimisation in schools aren’t niche problems. They are real, they are serious, and they demand institutional accountability.
The Case at a Glance
While the full details are still working their way through the courts, the key takeaway is this: a school administrator allegedly allowed bullying of a transgender teen to continue, despite repeated signs and reports. The mother’s suit argues that if proper policies, mandatory reporting, and protections under Title IX had been in place and actively enforced, this young person might still be alive.
At the heart of this case is the statement from our partner, Nate Foote, who said:
“The protections in this law are only as strong as the school’s willingness to act. Policies alone are not enough if no one uses them.”
This quote underscores the gap between having written rules and living them every day.
Why Title IX Matters
Title IX is more than just a college campus statute. For K-12 institutions, it requires schools receiving federal funds to protect students from discrimination on the basis of sex, including gender identity and expression. Schools must:
- adopt and publish anti-harassment policies
- designate trained Title IX coordinators
- ensure prompt investigations of complaints
- provide supportive measures for targeted students
- maintain reporting and record-keeping protocols
When any of those fail when the hurt student is ignored, when bullying is tolerated, when staff wink at rules, the harm becomes institutional.
In this Pennsylvania case, the failure to act becomes the fulcrum of responsibility. The law’s strength comes not just from words on paper but from how schools implement it.
What Schools Must Do
If you lead or work in a school district, charter, or private you must treat this case as a red flag. At Andreozzi + Foote, we see what happens in schools when policies are written but not enforced, when reporting is optional rather than mandatory, when administrators believe these issues are “someone else’s job.”
Here are the steps your institution must have and enforce:
- Clear, accessible published policies on harassment, discrimination, and retaliation.
- Mandatory training for staff and volunteers, including recognizing gender-based harassment, identity-based bullying, and power dynamics.
- Mandatory reporting channels that all staff know how to use, and understand their responsibility under the law.
- Prompt, trauma-informed investigations, with student-centered supportive measures (counselling, accommodations, safe spaces).
- Data tracking and oversight: how many complaints? What are outcomes? Do patterns emerge?
- Leadership accountability administrators who see signs and fail to act must be held responsible.
- Survivor-led input listening to student voices, including LGBTQ+ youth, to understand where gaps exist and how to fix them.
When any one of those elements is missing, you can end up with a student so isolated, so unheard, that the only “policy” left is the one they live every day: fear, shame, invisibility.
Why This Case Matters to Survivors
For survivors, and for families, this case offers both opportunity and heartbreak:
- Opportunity: It reminds us that even when a school didn’t act, a civil path remains. The law offers mechanisms for survivors to hold institutions accountable.
- Heartbreak: It reminds us of what was lost, what could’ve been prevented, and how avoidable tragedy still happens when systems fail.
At Andreozzi + Foote, we believe survivors deserve more than apologies. They deserve structure, transparency, and justice. This means moving from “We have a policy” to “We act on the policy every single time.”
What You Can Do (If You’re a Student, Parent, or Advocate)
- Ask your school: Does it have a designated Title IX coordinator?
- Request a copy of the harassment/discrimination policy.
- Ensure staff training includes gender identity, sexual orientation, and power dynamics.
- Know the reporting pathways: who do you talk to? What happens next?
- Keep records if you or your child are targeted: dates, names, conversations, emails, counselling notes.
- Seek legal advice early if you believe the school failed its duty. Time matters.
- Connect with advocacy groups, survivor-services organizations, and mental-health professionals. You are not alone.
Contact Us Today
When a judge says “the jury should hear the evidence,” it is a recognition of institutional failure, not an apology. It’s a demand for accountability. It tells schools, districts, administrators: you must do better.
Title IX is a powerful tool, but only when it is backed by courage, implementation, and oversight.
At Andreozzi + Foote, we stand with survivors, especially young people whose lives depend on a system that was meant to protect them. Because when the system fails, the consequences are more than legal. They are human.
Let this case be a wake-up call. Policies are not enough. Implementation matters. Action matters. Lives matter.
If you need support, or want to explore your rights, we are here, trauma-informed, experienced, and ready to fight for you.