A three-hour meeting about a potential gender-diverse policy ended Monday night with no decision by the Clark County School Board of Trustees.

The question before trustees: Should they direct school district staff to create draft language for a policy designed to protect students with diverse gender identities? The decision wouldn’t have enacted any policy. It simply would have taken the discussion a step further.

But Trustee Carolyn Edwards, who proposed creating such a policy last year, requested to delay a vote on whether to move forward after she sensed a split board. Trustee Linda Cavazos was absent Monday night, meaning the vote could have ended in a tie.

The move didn’t sit well with some attendees who packed the Valley High School theater for the public meeting.

Kim Bennett estimates she has been to a dozen meetings on the controversial topic, and there’s still no end in sight. The mother of five said she supports the school district creating gender-diverse guidelines but opposes a policy, fearing that the latter could infringe on parents’ rights.

“I’m not shocked,” she said about the board’s decision. “We have been to I don’t even know how many meetings that they delay votes when they know there is a large crowd here.”

Edwards defended her decision to delay any movement, calling the lengthy meetings all part of the “Democratic process.” The board heard more than 90 minutes of public comment Monday from an equal number of policy supporters and those who oppose it.

“People have a right to an opinion, and they have a right to express it,” she said.

During public comment, Lindsey Dalley asked members of the audience to raise their hands if they thought a gender-diverse policy could negatively affect their children’s personal privacy, safety and respect for “cultural norms.” Dozens of hands shot up.

“Where is the compelling need here?” he said, referring to the proposed policy. “There is a very concerned constituency out there that this is going to run amok.”

Supporters, however, said the district needs a policy that outlines a structure for how administrators and teachers respond to the needs of transgender students rather than making decisions on a case-by-case basis. The district’s anti-bullying policy, they said, doesn’t address issues such as restroom access and what names and pronounces should be used for gender-diverse students.

“They have a right to go to school in a respectful and nondiscriminatory environment,” Kelly Smith, who supports such a policy, said.

A working group spent the fall discussing the matter and forming recommendations about what should be included in a policy if the board moves forward with creating one. The district also held five public input meetings in December and launched an online survey.

The issue has generated significant community interest, drawing standing-room only crowds to almost any board discussion about the proposed policy. By contrast, community meetings held last week about the superintendent search netted meager turnout.