NY Mother of Daughter Secretly Treated as Boy by School Officials Challenges District (ADF)
Vitsaxaki v. Skaneateles Central School District
Description: Officials at the Skaneateles Central School District in New York began treating a middle-school girl as a boy without her mother’s knowledge or consent.
ADF attorneys available for media interviews following oral arguments Tuesday
ADF NEWS RELEASE: Monday, Dec 1, 2025
WHO: Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys
WHAT: Available for media interviews following hearing in Vitsaxaki v. Skaneateles Central School District
WHEN: Immediately following oral arguments, which begin at 10 a.m. EST, Tuesday, Dec. 2
WHERE: U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, Courtroom 1703, Thurgood Marshall U.S. Courthouse, 40 Foley Sq., New York. To schedule an interview, contact ADF Media Relations Manager Hattie Troutman at (771) 200-7630.
NEW YORK – Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys representing a New York mother whose daughter was secretly treated as a boy by school officials will be available for media interviews Tuesday after oral arguments in Vitsaxaki v. Skaneateles Central School District at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit.
In the spring of 2021, Jennifer Vitsaxaki discovered that school employees, acting under Skaneateles Central School District official policy, had been treating her daughter as a boy—a so-called “social transition”—behind her back for months. Without notifying Vitsaxaki or seeking her consent, district employees began to refer to her daughter with a masculine name and gender-neutral pronouns inconsistent with her daughter’s sex. When Vitsaxaki discovered the secret social transition, she objected, but the district continued to socially transition her daughter anyway. As a result, Vitsaxaki felt compelled to withdraw her daughter from the district.
“Parents have the right to direct the upbringing, education, and health care of their children without government meddling,” said ADF Senior Counsel Vincent Wagner, who will argue before the court. “When parents drop their kids off at school, they place great trust in the school. And when schools cut parents out of weighty decisions about their own kids, they betray that trust. That’s what happened here. Under the district’s policy, school staff concealed important information from Jennifer about her daughter. And it made decisions about the girl’s identity that should’ve been Jennifer’s to make. The lower court failed Jennifer by disregarding her fundamental rights, and we’re urging the 2nd Circuit to reverse that decision and uphold parents’ rights.”
When Vitsaxaki confronted school officials, they defended their actions, citing district policy. Vitsaxaki’s daughter soon switched from in-person schooling to finish the school year online. During this time, some staff continued to refer to her daughter by the masculine name even after Vitsaxaki told them to stop. The following school year, she enrolled her daughter at a private school in Syracuse, 25 miles from their home.
ADF attorneys explain that the district violated Vitsaxaki’s fundamental parental rights and her deeply held religious beliefs by socially transitioning her daughter without parental notice or consent and concealing vital information about her daughter’s health and well-being. The lower court dismissed the case, prompting the appeal to the 2nd Circuit.
- Pronunciation guide: Vitsaxaki (Vit-SACK’-ee)
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Alliance Defending Freedom is an alliance-building, non-profit legal organization committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, parental rights, and the sanctity of life.
