A single transgender student athlete playing on the girl’s volleyball team at Southern Florida’s Monarch High School prompted $16,500 in fines after a state investigation concluded this week.
The trans girl’s presence on the team was flagged to the Florida High School Athletic Association last month, kicking off a period of turmoil at the school. Monarch’s principal and other staffers were removed from their positions and reassigned to non-school sites, inspiring at least two student walkouts in support of the trans player and staff.
An investigation revealed Tuesday that the student participated in 33 volleyball games since fall 2022, according to a letter first reported by The Daily Signal, a conservative news site run by the right-wing Heritage Foundation.
Monarch High School was fined $500 per game. The school will be placed on administrative probation through November 2024.
The transgender student is also barred from playing on any school team for one year.
Florida’s Commissioner of Education, Manny Diaz Jr., praised both the decision and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who signed the state’s Fairness in Women’s Sports Act in 2021. The law made it illegal for transgender girls and women to play on school sports teams for women and girls.
“[W]e will not tolerate any school that violates this law,” Diaz said on X, formerly Twitter.
“We applaud the swift action taken by the [Florida High School Athletic Association] to ensure there are serious consequences for this illegal behavior,” he went on.
Last week, Jessica Norton, the mother of the transgender student, accused the state of outing her daughter.
“There is a long history in this country of outing people against their will — forced outing, particularly of a child, is a direct attempt to endanger the person being outed,” Norton said in a statement through Human Rights Watch, which is providing her family legal aid.
But she also thanked the local community for rallying around her family.
“Watching our community’s resistance and display of love has been so joyous for our family — the light leading us through this darkness. I want everyone to know that we see you, and we are so grateful for you,” Norton said.