 Great Hearts argues that, since the civil rights of the transgender population is not yet a matter of settled law in the United States, the Board of Directors will define school policy in line with current statutory guidance and use the birth certificate as the official document that defines a student's gender.On April 25, 2017, the city council of Scottsdale, Arizona discussed whether to move forward with exploring a land agreement between the city and Great Hearts Academies to build an athletic complex near the community of DC Ranch.The City Council cited concerns they have before finalizing any agreement with Great Hearts, chief among them the Great Hearts policy on transgender students.