The Allen Independent School District has reversed its decision to call a transgender student by his birth name at graduation.
For months, 18-year-old Jay Alfie says district officials refused to call him by his preferred name when he walks the stage.
His sister Isabella started a petition and late Tuesday, they received word the name change will be honored at Friday's graduation.
“I was really happy and kind of relieved that everything is done and over with,” Jay Alfie said.
In a statement, Allen Superintendent Scott Niven said:
“The school district’s practice at Allen High School graduation is to read the student’s legal name at the ceremony. This allows for consistency as the names of our 1,556 graduates are read. The practice of reading a student’s legal name at graduation is not specific to transgender students. It also applies to nicknames and names that are commonly used in place of the student’s legal name during the school year. If a student’s name is legally changed, the school district will make those changes accordingly.
The Alfie family has been in the process of obtaining a legal name change for several months. Due to circumstances beyond the family’s control, the legal process will not be completed before graduation on June 1. Therefore, since the family has filed legal papers to change the name, the request to change the name at graduation will be honored.”
