BALTIMORE, Ohio – A central Ohio school district says a 12-year-old girl will be allowed to play football on the boys’ team after earlier denying her a spot on the roster.
The Liberty Union-Thurston school district had banned Makhaela Jenkins from playing with the school’s team because she is a girl. But the district announced Friday that it was dropping the ban.
The Chillicothe Gazette reports that Superintendent Paul Mathews said in a statement the district’s original decision was in line with Title IX requirements, but that the district’s money shouldn’t be wasted fighting the American Civil Liberties Union over the issue.
The ACLU of Ohio earlier this week called for the Fairfield County district to allow Jenkins to play and expressed satisfaction with the district’s change of heart, with some reservations.
“We appreciate that school officials have finally reconsidered their decision to ban Makhaela from the school’s football team. However, we respectfully disagree with officials’ continuing denial that their actions were anything less than unnecessary and illegal,” senior staff attorney Jennifer Martinez Atzberger said.
Atzberger recommended district officials create a non-discrimination policy.