The Encinitas Union School District in California has agreed to provide notifications and opt-outs to parents and students when promoting gender ideology or other material that conflicts with families’ religious beliefs.
In May 2024, a fifth-grade teacher at La Costa Heights Elementary School read a book to the class called My Shadow is Pink, about a boy with a pink shadow who wears a dress to school. The teacher then directed the students to watch the book’s read-aloud film with kindergarten “buddies.” Fifth-grader Shea Encinas knew the book went against his Christian faith and was deeply upset.
At a school board meeting, Shea’s parents, along with the parents of another student, requested permission to opt out of such instruction, but the district refused. The parents, represented by First Liberty Institute and the National Center for Law & Policy, brought a federal lawsuit against the school district.
In May 2025 the court granted a preliminary injunction requiring the district to provide advance notice and an opportunity to opt out. The following month, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Mahmoud v. Taylor that public schools must allow parents to remove their children from lessons using LGBTQ storybooks if those books violate the family’s religious beliefs.
In light of those rulings, the district has now agreed to provide notification and opt-outs, and the families have agreed to end their suit.
“No child should be forced to speak a message that violates his religious convictions,” said Nate Kellum, senior counsel for First Liberty Institute. “We are grateful that we were able to reach this settlement on behalf of the families involved. This is a tremendous victory not only for our clients but for all parents in the Encinitas Union School District.”
