LAS VEGAS (KLAS) – A Nevada education official had a two-minute time limit to defend his comments about the transgender community after calls for his resignation.
During Friday's meeting of the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) Board of Governors, public commenters stood up to take issue with Regent Patrick Boylan's statements.
Boylan previously expressed concern about transgender athletes in sports, saying he saw footage of a female basketball player being thrown by a transgender player.
Boylan said he was concerned about transgender athletes harming others, but he also asked NSHE staff, “Are there any men dressed up in our sport?”
Don Unger, president of the Nevada Faculty Union at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, said his organization is calling for Boylan's resignation after his comments about transgender athletes.
“Regent Boylan's language has a discriminatory effect and undermines our shared mission of higher education,” Unger said. “[He] This committee and the NSHE leadership must condemn this more clearly. ”
Most speakers opposed Mr. Boylan's remarks, but some expressed support for the regents' remarks.
“Stop telling kids they can choose their gender,” said Lorena Biasotti, a candidate for Clark County School Board. “Stay strong, Mr. Boylan.”
go to the podium
Michael Wixom, a special prosecutor on the NSHE Board of Trustees, suggested that Mr. Boylan had prepared remarks about the protests, but the special counsel said that if Mr. Boylan wanted to comment publicly, he would physically He said that he needed to step down as regent.
“We respectfully ask the regents to take the podium,” Wixom said.
Without leaving his seat, Mr. Boylan immediately began reading a prepared statement from his cell phone before he saw Mr. Wixom pointing to the podium.
“No, you don't have to go to the podium,” Boylan said. “There's nothing in the regulations that says you have to be on the podium.”
NSHE Board Chair Amy Carvalho interrupted Boylan and reminded him of the special counsel's statement.
“The name plate in front of you says 'Regent,'” Carvalho said. “This is a public comment and I humbly ask you to take the stage.”
Boylan looked up from her phone, grabbed her nameplate and placed it face down on the table.
“There you are,” he said. “There is no nameplate now.”
Mr. Wixom told Mr. Boylan that he needed to speak as a public commenter, not as a regent, and get up from his chair.
“No, I won’t,” he said.
Mr. Carvalho responded to Mr. Boylan that he needed to speak as a public comment, and the regent took the podium.
“People you know are twisting my words to suit their own political issues,” Boylan said. “And we made it even bigger for the safety of our female athletes.”
Boylan said he is concerned that NSHE is the target of lawsuits from injured athletes and that he was fired from his part-time job as a handgun training instructor because of the protests.
Boylan said his comments have drawn criticism from other university presidents, including the University of Nevada Faculty Union and University of Nevada, Reno President Brian Sandoval.
