Tim Dower: Bethlehem College can't have it both ways

So who's in the right at Bethlehem College?One the one hand, the school's Statement of Beliefs is pretty up-front about matters of sexuality.Example: biological pronouns will be used for students, him and her, a student's name is expected to align with their biological sex.In other words, the school does not acknowledge such a thing as a transgender person.And to be absolutely clear, it goes on to talk about toilets, wearing a male or female uniform, and male and female sports teams.So, at the outset, it's clear what's expected of you when you enroll.Now, independent schools are to a certain extent, able to hold their own views and make their own rules.People sign their kids up to that kind of an education because they want a particular kind of schooling and providing it's not actively teaching anything illegal, that's OK, isn't it?As a private school, Bethlehem College could make pretty much whatever rules it wanted.But the thing is, it's not private any longer.Since 1999 it's been a State Integrated School, aka, a Special Character School, meaning it gets state funding for teachers.The Education Ministry, that is, the taxpayer, provides those dollars.So, when the College became an integrated school, it included a Statement of Beliefs with the caveat that changes had to be signed off by the Ministry.Problem is, the stance on same-sex marriage, trans students and the like was added in, without the Ministry's knowledge.So in essence, the school's tried to pull a fast one, and it's been called out.He who pays the piper calls the tune and we know what tune the Education Ministry wants.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.