CDC Study Focuses on Transgender High School Students and Those Questioning Gender Identity (October 12, 2024)

On October 8, 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released the results of its first nationally representative survey data on transgender students, which showed that transgender students also had higher rates of bullying and poor mental health. In fact, CDC found that approximately 3% of the nation’s high school students are transgender, and another 2.2% say they are questioning their gender. In addition, slightly over a quarter of transgender students and the same portion of questioning students skipped school in 2023 because they felt unsafe, compared to just 8.5% of cisgender male students. About the same level also said they attempted suicide within the last year, as opposed to 5% of their cisgender male peers. Transgender and questioning students also had higher rates of bullying and poor mental health and the lowest rates of school connectedness when compared to their cisgender male and female peers.

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