Title IX and Education Policy

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has rescinded portions of six existing Title IX resolution agreements that required specific protections for transgender students, and says it will no longer monitor or enforce those provisions. Officials named Cape Henlopen, Delaware Valley, Fife, La Mesa–Spring Valley, Sacramento City Unified school districts and Taft College as affected, framing the Obama‑ and Biden‑era settlements as “illegal, heavy‑handed manipulation of Title IX.” Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey said prior administrations launched investigations over “misgendering,” while the Trump team is refocusing enforcement on allegations that girls and women are injured in sports or feel violated in intimate facilities, a sharp shift in federal priorities. In one concrete case, the Delaware Valley School District received a February letter rescinding a settlement that had required restroom access based on gender identity, and its board voted last month to change its transgender policies to comply with the new demands, including rolling back anti‑discrimination protections. The move escalates the administration’s broader fight with civil‑rights groups and many educators over whether Title IX bars discrimination based on gender identity, and puts districts nationwide on notice that earlier agreements on transgender access may be vulnerable to reversal.