3% of U.S. high school students identify as transgender, according to CDC report
Tye Burrus, 17, who identifies as gender nonconforming, at the LGBT Network. Burrus said he’s had support in school but has also sensed a general discomfort, and in some cases, judgmental looks or remarks, from some. Credit: Elizabeth Sagarin
About 3% of U.S. high schoolers identified as transgender, with another 2% questioning their gender identity, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey that provided the first nationally representative data about this group of students.
Cameron Wilson, 17, of Medford, found solace in knowing the numbers.
Wilson, a freshman studying computer engineering at Farmingdale State College who graduated from Patchogue-Medford High School, identifies as a transgender person.
“It shows you that you're not alone and that there's other people that are like you going through the same thing,” Wilson said.
WHAT TO KNOW
- About 3% of U.S. high schoolers identified as transgender with another 2% questioning their gender identity, according to a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey.
- The newly released report provided the first nationally representative data about this group of students.
- Transgender and questioning students experienced higher levels of violence and discrimination than their peers, the survey found. Health experts said schools are in a “unique” position to create safe and supportive environments.
The new CDC data, which was released Tuesday, came from the national Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted in 2023. It marked the first time the biennial survey assessed transgender identity in the United States. Transgender students are those whose gender identity differs from their sex assigned at birth.
Transgender and questioning students experienced higher levels of violence and discrimination than their peers, the survey found. One in 4 said they skipped school because they felt unsafe, and 1 in 4 attempted suicide in the past year.
A lot of the health disparities can be tied to stigma, mental health experts said.
Authors of the CDC report said transgender and questioning persons “experience stigma, discrimination and social marginalization related to their gender as a result of institutionalized social norms that privilege cisgender persons,” meaning those whose gender identity aligns with their sex assigned at birth.
“It's not identifying as transgender that itself is causing depression and anxiety and a lot of these concerns,” said Dr. Adam Gonzalez, a psychologist and vice chair of behavioral health at Stony Brook Medicine. “It's much more attributed to the environment in which the individual is in and how supportive and safe they feel within that environment.”
Schools are in a position to help
Schools are in a “unique” position to create safe and supportive environments, the CDC report said.
David Kilmnick, president of the Hauppauge-based LGBT Network, said while it’s helpful to have the data, students should feel safe in school regardless of their identity.
“Five percent is not a small number. Even if it was 0.05%, it doesn't matter,” Kilmnick said, referring to the combined percentages of those who identify as transgender or questioning. “We need to do everything possible to make sure that our schools are safe for the kids to be themselves.”
In the Center Moriches School District, interim Superintendent Ricardo Soto said that once a student identifies as transgender or questioning, the student will meet with staff — usually one or two people in the room — to determine how to proceed.
If a student requests a name change, the school updates it and associated pronouns in its student management system so teachers and staff know how to address the student, he said.
“We celebrate individuality and uniqueness,” Soto said.
In some cases, Soto said, the school had to have difficult conversations with parents when one parent felt one way and another felt differently. State guidelines recommend schools address students by their chosen names and pronouns without requiring parental consent.
“We want to include parents as much as possible,” Soto said. “But the students have full authority in terms of the name they choose to use.”
'The courage' to show change
Tye Burrus, 17, who identifies as gender nonconforming and is a senior at Copiague High School, said he’s had support in school from some teachers, staff and peers, but sensed a general discomfort, and in some cases, judgmental looks or remarks, from others.
Burrus came out in seventh grade and said he has seen people change.
“In eighth grade, there was a group of kids who me and my friends really fought with because they were very homophobic then and very judgmental to me and my trans friends,” he recalled.
Just the other day, one of those students approached him and apologized. In turn, Burrus said, he apologized for the immature ways he acted toward him in eighth grade.
“It was really endearing that he came around and had the courage to even say that to me,” Burrus said. “I could tell he was a little uncomfortable talking to me, but the fact that he still said it was really sweet.”
Dandan Zou covers education for Newsday. Previously, she worked for a community newspaper in Maryland and a personal finance magazine in Washington, D.C.
