NewsEducation

Actions

Seminole Ridge High School bathroom policy prompts protest

Parents, students object to new policy that has teachers monitoring bathrooms
A group of people protest a new bathroom policy at Seminole Ridge Community High School on March 27, 2023.jpg
Posted at 6:15 AM, Mar 27, 2023
and last updated 2023-03-27 16:40:41-04

PALM BEACH COUNTY, Fla. — Less than a dozen people protested Monday morning outside Seminole Ridge Community High School over a new policy on bathroom use for students.

Principal Robert Hatcher said in a note to parents that the new policy is to monitor student bathrooms after they were renovated and doors were added.

Parents and students are now calling the change unsanitary and inhumane.

According to the new policy, teachers will now be stationed outside each bathroom during classtime and will be able to look at items that students are taking into the restroom, such as makeup or feminine hygiene products.

No more than four students will be allowed in a bathroom at a time, and each time a student enters, teachers will need to submit an online form.

A group of less than a dozen people gathered outside the school on Monday morning to protest peacefully.

WATCH: Chopper 5 video of Seminole Ridge protest

Chopper 5 video of protest over Seminole Ridge High School bathroom policy

An online petition challenging the policy now has more than 700 signatures.

In a statement to parents, Hatcher said no student will be prevented from using the restroom when needed.