Trump Administration Axes Protections for Transgender Students in Multiple Schools

WASHINGTON — On Monday, the Education Department announced the termination of agreements with five school districts and a college that were designed to protect transgender students, signaling a shift from the civil rights interpretations upheld by previous administrations.

This decision eliminates federal requirements for schools to implement measures such as training faculty on respecting students’ preferred names and pronouns, as well as allowing access to bathrooms that correspond with students' gender identities.

Delaware Valley School District in rural eastern Pennsylvania was among the first to receive notice of this policy change in February. Following this, the district voted to retract its antidiscrimination protections for transgender students. In contrast, Sacramento City Unified School District reaffirmed its commitment to supporting LGBTQ+ students and staff despite the federal shift.

Other districts affected include Cape Henlopen School District in Delaware, Fife School District in Washington, La Mesa-Spring Valley School District, and Taft College in California.

Under the Biden and Obama administrations, Title IX was interpreted to extend protections to transgender and gay students, prohibiting sex discrimination in education. However, the Trump administration has actively penalized schools that sought to accommodate students based on their gender identity. Legal actions have been initiated in California and Minnesota against state policies that allow transgender students to participate in sports aligned with their gender identity, alongside civil rights investigations into various educational institutions.

Kimberly Richey, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, stated that this action aims to prevent transgender students from participating in girls’ and women’s sports teams and accessing shared locker rooms. “Today, the Trump Administration is removing the unnecessary and unlawful burdens that prior Administrations imposed on schools in its relentless pursuit of a radical transgender agenda,” she asserted in a written statement.

While rescinding civil rights agreements is not common, it is a tactic previously employed by the Trump administration regarding educational matters. Last year, the Education Department terminated an agreement related to book removals from a Georgia school library and another concerning disciplinary practices affecting Native students in South Dakota.

Shiwali Patel, senior director of education justice at the National Women’s Law Center, criticized the move as a regression in safeguarding vulnerable students. “This is part of the Trump administration’s assault on education and those most vulnerable to discrimination and harassment, including trans students,” Patel remarked. “They’ve made their intention very clear in wanting to erase protections for trans people.”

In 2023, Taft College settled a case with the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights after a student alleged discrimination due to faculty refusal to use preferred pronouns. The college agreed to implement faculty training on Title IX and revise policies to clarify that refusal to use a person’s preferred name and pronoun could be considered harassment.

The agreement with Sacramento City Unified School District arose from a complaint filed in 2022 by a student whose teacher refused to use preferred pronouns or place him in a boys’ group for class activities. The resolution mandated employee training on civil rights law and sexual harassment protocols.

Previously, under an agreement with the Obama administration, Delaware Valley School District was required to allow students to use bathrooms corresponding with their gender identity. However, in February, the Trump administration informed the district of its decision to rescind this settlement and mandated a rollback of antidiscrimination protections for transgender students.

In late March, the school board voted to amend its policies regarding transgender students in compliance with the Trump administration's directives.

Since returning to office over a year ago, Trump has targeted transgender rights across various sectors—not just education. His administration has sought to exclude transgender women and girls from participating in women’s sports competitions and has initiated lawsuits against states that resist compliance. Additionally, efforts have been made to restrict transgender and nonbinary individuals from selecting their sex markers on passports and to limit access to gender-affirming medical care for those under 19.