A trans aide who works with autistic children in the Springfield Public School District faced calls for her firing from an unidentified group of individuals online, but instead of termination, the aide got validation from her community and the district.
At least some members of this group were expected to attend the district’s October Board of Education meeting to say they didn’t want Jolee Glass, a 23-year-old recent college graduate who grew up in Springfield, working there. However, during the public comment portion of the meeting, no one made any comments in opposition to her employment.
But, David Glass, Jolee’s father, did go up to the podium to publicly address the board, administration, and the standing-room-only crowd, estimated by David to be between 200 and 300. The vast majority of those in attendance were supportive of Jolee as evidenced by the applause and cheers that punctuated her father’s remarks.
“I’m here tonight to express my thoughts on the heinous attack of our daughter Jolee, who was targeted by hateful elements in our town that would like to see her removed from her job at Walton school because she was born trans,” David said in a prepared statement. His wife, Lisa, stood by his side.
Jolee has been working since the beginning of the school year at the Edward V. Walton Early Childhood Center with kindergarteners and first- and second-graders with autism spectrum disorder. She graduated in May from Montclair State University.
Glass, who is a retired educator, commended and thanked Superintendent Rachel Goldberg, Walton Principal Jonathan Firetto, the board, and the district in general for their handling of the issue. The 61-year-old Navy veteran and father of two went on to say at the Oct. 27 meeting that Goldberg and Firetto showed “great support” for his daughter over the past week.
“They’ve both spoken with her and ensured her she was hired because they felt she could do the job hired for and not because of her gender,” Glass said.
“We’re here in person tonight, not typing from behind a screen, to say” — loud applause and cheers interrupted Glass as his swipe at what’s known as “keyboard warriors.” Those who make comments online, often from behind a veil of anonymity, are sometimes called “keyboard warriors.” They lack the courage to say things to someone’s face or in person at places such as public meetings. The comment by Glass landed squarely with the crowd.
“We’re here tonight with family, friends, and allies,” he continued, “to express our concern. We’re concerned that hate may take root in Springfield, and we have vowed to stop it in its tracks right here and right now.”
No one who opposed Jolee’s employment could be reached for comment.
The trouble started when someone took a picture of Jolee unbeknownst to her and posted it online. Then, Glass told Out in Jersey in an interview a few days after the meeting, came the “rants” that made it seem as though his daughter was not even a person.
Dehumanization is a reality that trans people practically always face at some time. When asked, “Who is Jolee as a person?,” she responded, “Jolee is a kind, loving, energetic person who loves to look at the good in the world and wants to keep a positive attitude even when things aren’t looking that great. I always try to extend a hand to anybody who’s in need, and I want to extend the kindness that people give me to other people.”
“I realized just how much I care about kids and working in a school,”
Jolee talked about why she chose to go into education, saying that while it wasn’t her immediate choice and that she pursued a sociology degree and also considered becoming a therapist to help others, her father’s and other family members’ choices to become educators inspired her.
Moreover, when she was hired for her current job as a paraprofessional, “I realized just how much I care about kids and working in a school,” she said. “I realized where my heart is, and it’s in the classroom.”
Looking back at when she was growing up, she said, she realized that she could’ve benefited from somebody like her.
“So they don’t have to go through the things I went through being a queer youth,” Jolee said. “I find that my passion and my experiences in my life have led me to make this career decision.”
Jolee had no idea how many people were going to show up at the meeting but didn’t think it would be a lot. But then she saw an influx of those from her past and present and people she didn’t even know who heard about what had happened.
“It felt so heartwarming,” she said.
In the days leading up to the meeting, she had talked with Goldberg, Firetto, her coworkers, and others. An anxious voice in the back of her head questioned whether people would have her back if something happened to her. Would they support her? Would they protect her?
“they look at me for my merit and the things that I do, and not what I wear and my gender.”
She soon learned that there were more people in her corner than she realized.
“I was shown, and not told that they mean what they say, and they will protect me, and they look at me for my merit and the things that I do, and not what I wear and my gender,” Jolee said.
The actions of those who showed their support resonated so much with her, she said, and made her feel so loved and supported, “not only by the school, but my community because I didn’t think that that many people would care about me.”
“Gender dysphoria” is the term used by psychologists and other mental health professionals to characterize a person who feels they are not in the right body. It’s commonly described that way. “I guess the way that I can describe it,” Jolee said, “it’s like an out-of-body experience.”
Growing up, Jolee didn’t have the terminology to understand how she felt or what was going on insider her. At first, she came out as gay when she was in seventh grade.
“I had been so used to being at least queer for a very large majority of my life up until that point, and then when I figured all this out it was such a curve ball. I remember when I finally came out (as trans), it was the same thing as it was in school when I came out as gay — the people around me knew before I did.
“I guess the best way that I can describe it is that I felt hollow. When I look at pictures of myself before I came out, I can see the sadness in my eyes that I didn’t know that I had, and I can see that I was miserable. I felt like there was something wrong with me, but I didn’t know what it was.
“I look at those pictures of myself, and I just feel so bad for that person because they were so miserable, and they didn’t want to admit to themselves that they were, and so they were doing everything in their power to run away from it.”
But once Jolee figured it out, she said, all the decisions in her life and all her feelings made sense and she understood where they had been leading her. She felt complete.
“We operate the district in accordance with all federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination of any kind.”
Reached via email for comment on the meeting, Goldberg responded that she cannot comment on personnel matters, but she did provide the district’s vision and mission statements and emphasized Springfield Public Schools’ efforts to prohibit discrimination and to maintain a supportive environment for everyone. “We operate the district in accordance with all federal and state laws prohibiting discrimination of any kind. We work very hard to maintain a space that provides our staff, students, and families with a supportive environment centered on learning,” Goldberg wrote.
During the meeting, BOE President Laura Gamarekian read a prepared statement saying that in addition to the district’s policies being grounded in federal and state law, “more importantly,” they are grounded in “our shared belief that every qualified individual deserves the opportunity to contribute to our schools without fear of discrimination. … Our schools are where children learn not just academics, but also kindness, empathy, and respect. They’re watching us, and how we treat others teaches them just as much as what happens in the classroom. … And let’s be clear: hate has no home here. We are a community that values diversity, inclusion, and dignity for all.”
Glass said that even if members of that group who disparaged his daughter come to the board’s next meeting on Nov. 17, he won’t have to come because he has confidence in the school district because he has been shown that it enforces its policies.
In addition to the district, Glass expressed his gratitude for everyone who came to the meeting in support of Jolee. They included members of his synagogue, family — including his other daughter, who drove up from her job in South Jersey – friends, and members of LGBTQ civil rights organization Garden State Equality.
“My daughter was very upset, but when she saw the outpouring of community and people that we’ve known for all these years, family,” he said. “You know what, I can’t say it’s better for her, but she really knows that she’s loved and accepted in our town.”
David and his wife Lisa Glass have lived in Springfield for 25 years. Both their children went through the township’s school system and graduated from Jonathan Dayton High School. They both graduated college and are now in the work force. “I think it was the best possible outcome that ever could’ve happened,” Glass said. “I’m really proud of the people in my town, my family, our friends, my daughter, my other daughter, too.”
Finally, Glass wanted to share something he learned from his Jewish faith: “I might add that one of the things I learned in the Torah is that we are all created in the image of God. Hence born this way really is holy because it’s the image of God. Something we teach and are taught.”
