NE Valley Times

Two members of the Paradise Valley Unified School District Governing Board took to Twitter today to debate whether or not it's "discriminatory" to require birth certificates for children to participate in youth sports.

"It’s discriminatory to require birth certificates to play youth sports," tweeted board member Kerry Baker. "It’s essentially 'outing' a trans child who just wants to be able to play their favorite sport on a team. I know they want to check DOB, but there must be another way to verify ages. Signed affidavit maybe?"

Baker's tweet drew a response from fellow board member Sandra Christensen.

"I played basketball, volleyball, softball & track. As a petite athlete, I couldn't have been competitive against biological boys," tweeted Christensen. "Perhaps conversations can be had to allow athletes to play in open leagues rather than taking away safe spaces from biological girls. #savewomensports"

West Valley Parents Uniting, a non-profit parents organization based in Peoria, AZ, responded to Baker's statement by tweeting, "That is the dumbest thing to say. You clearly don’t have kids who place competitive sports. Birth certificates are required as it protects children from having to compete against kids that lie about their age making them bigger and stronger." 

"Letting a 13 year old compete against 10 year olds is similar to letting a trans boy play in women sports," said the organization.

On March 30, 2022, then-Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signed SB 1165, legislation that prohibits biological males from competing in girls’ sports at the K-12 and collegiate levels. 

“Biological males should not be competing in women’s sports," said Terry Schilling, president of American Principles Project, after Ducey signed the bill. "For this reason, we commend Governor Ducey and Arizona lawmakers for taking action to defend a fair playing field for female athletes." 

Baker is an at-large member of the Paradise Valley Unified School District Governing Board, winning her seat in a special election on November 8, 2022. She is a former public school teacher and received her Bachelor of Arts in Education and Special Education from Arizona State University.

Christensen is also an at-large member of the board, winning in the general election on November 8, 2022. She is the former CEO of Indigo Mountain Media, and received a bachelor's degree from New Mexico State University.

Paradise Valley Unified School District is located in northeast Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona. The district serves students in kindergarten through grade 12 with 30 elementary schools, one K-8 school, seven middle schools, five high schools, two alternative schools, and a K-12 online school.. It is the seventh-largest school district in Arizona, with 32,000 students.