A Massachusetts school district must reinstate a former guidance counselor who was fired for allegedly misgendering trans students.Last week, Amherst-Pelham Regional Public Schools (ARPS) Superintendent E. Xiomara Herman announced that an arbitrator had ruled that former Amherst Regional Middle School eighth-grade guidance counselor Delinda Dykes had been wrongfully terminated and ordered the district to rehire her with back pay. Related Massachusetts 2nd largest city is now a sanctuary for trans people after toxic culture accusation Protestor chanted for the mayor to resign even though he supported the sanctuary city resolution. As Boston.com reports, Dykes was one of three counselors at the center of an investigation into transphobia at the school published in May 2023 by Amherst Regional High Schools student newspaper, The Graphic. Dykes, former adjustment counselor Hector Santos, and former seventh grade guidance counselor Tania Cabrera (and Santos daughter) were accused of routinely misgendering and deadnaming trans students and staff and failing to provide support to students who reported anti-LGBTQ+ bullying. Never Miss a Beat Subscribe to our newsletter to stay ahead of the latest LGBTQ+ political news and insights. Subscribe to our Newsletter today Dykes and Santos were also accused of injecting their anti-LGBTQ+ religious beliefs into their work, with Dykes alleged to have prayed to bind that LGBTQ gay demon that wants to confuse our children during a private prayer circle held in Santos office before school one morning in 2017.In statements to The Graphic at the time, the three counselors denied all allegations. In an email to the Boston Globe the following July, their lawyer said that Dykes, Santos, and Cabrera did not engage in conversion therapy or any Title IX violation and suggested that they were facing discrimination for their Christian religious beliefs.Dykes was the subject of two external investigations conducted by Just Training Solutions. The first was in response to a Title IX complaint filed by a parent alleging that Dykes had engaged in transphobic and harassing behavior toward their child. It found sufficient credible evidence that Dykes had engaged in offensive conduct in violation of ARPSs Title IX Policy. In particular, I conclude Dykes engaged in severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive unwelcome conduct by repeatedly misgendering students as well as making offensive and inappropriate comments related to gender and sexual orientation, Just Training Solutions CEO Edward Mitnick wrote in his report.A separate investigation found that both Dykes and Santos engaged in offensive conduct in violation of the Pelham School Districts Harassment Prevention and Standards of Conduct Policy.Dykes was reportedly fired in 2023, but according to MassLive, a district administrator cleared her, along with Santos and Cabrera, of all Title IX violations, while also noting that their misgendering of students and fellow staff was objectively offensive. Dykes challenged her dismissal via arbitration, Boston.com reports. An arbitrator ruled that the district had violated a Massachusetts law covering the dismissal of public school employees and ordered that she be reinstated and that the district restore all wages and benefits she would have received but for the wrongful termination, less interim earnings.The district did not specify how it had violated state law, but Superintendent Herman, whose tenure began in July 2024, said the ruling made it clear that a lack of documented progressive discipline, limited evidentiary records, and the absence of key witnesses during arbitration had contributed to the arbitrators decision.Herman also described the decision as a call to action. While the district is legally obligated to reinstate Ms. Dykes, the broader district commitment to student-centered, inclusive, and values-driven education has not shifted. In fact, it has only grown stronger, she said, as reported by AmherstINDY. While we are complying fully with the legal requirements outlined in the arbitration ruling, our long-term focus remains on building systems that reflect our values, protect our students, and holds us all to a high standard of professional conduct.In a statement, the Ad Hoc LGBTQIA+ Caucus of Amherst said it is outraged and deeply concerned about Dykes reinstatement. The group said Dykes alleged actions caused significant harm to LGBTQIA+ students and the message it sends to the community to have this counselor back in the school is devastating. We are calling upon the ARPS administration for transparency about how this could possibly have happened, and for a path forward that protects LGBTQIA+ students.Subscribe to theLGBTQ Nation newsletterand be the first to know about the latest headlines shaping LGBTQ+ communities worldwide.