The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board (OCDSB) is currently in the process of hiring a full-time position that will be exclusively devoted to engaging with transgender students.
In an online job posting for “Trans and Gender Diverse Student Support Coordinator”, the OCDSB says the position “assists and supports 2SLGBTQ+ students and families well-being and overcoming challenges; educating staff and building partnerships among schools.”
The Coordinator will also collaborate “with local 2SLGBTQ+ communities and organizations in support of student success.”
The job posting includes a list of needed skills that include being knowledgeable on “intersectionality, anti-oppression, and anti-racism” as well as having experience “applying these frameworks in an institutional setting and/or while working with children and youth.”
The board notes that applicants should also be familiar with “community resources and services for trans, gender diverse, and 2SLGBTQ+ youth and families in Ottawa.”
As for credentials, the posting says applicants must have a gender studies or social work diploma or degree – or education in a related field. It adds that a “minimum two years of experience working with trans, gender diverse, and 2SGLBTQ+ children, youth and/or communities” is preferable.
The board also considers “lived experience as a Two Spirit, trans, nonbinary or gender diverse person” is to be an asset, and notes that black, Indigenous and coloured applicants will be prioritized in the hiring process.
The posted salary range is $54,674 to $70,594 per year.
The OCDSB’s “Trans and Gender Diverse Student Support Coordinator” job opening comes amid several controversies related to transgender issues taking place in Ontario schools.
As previously reported by True North’s Sue-Ann Levy, the Toronto District School Board issued a controversial census that asked elementary students if they were transgender and if they knew about breast binding and tucking. The census ended up being shelved.
A mother also told True North’s Sue-Ann Levy that a Durham District School Board teacher read a book on transgender issues to her son’s grade 1 class.
A recent study from the UCLA School of Law’s Williams Institute estimates that the number of transgender youth in the United States has doubled in the last five years – a figure some find concerning.
The OCDSB did not return True North’s request for comment in time for publication.
