The Department of Education is investigating 5 Virginia faculty districts which have saved transgender-inclusive insurance policies despite President Trump’s govt orders banning them.
The department’s Workplace for Civil Rights knowledgeable public faculties in Fairfax County, Arlington County, Alexandria, Loudoun County and Prince William County about its investigation on Feb. 12.
The probe responds to a criticism filed by the conservative nonprofit America First Authorized, which was based by Mr. Trump’s deputy chief of workers, Stephen Miller.
The group launched the criticism towards the districts after Mr. Trump ordered federally funded faculties to ditch transgender insurance policies, together with these permitting organic males to make use of feminine bogs and locker rooms. In a separate order, he banned males from collaborating in feminine sports activities at faculties that obtain federal funding.
Mr. Trump’s govt orders fulfilled certainly one of his main marketing campaign guarantees to finish what he known as “transgender lunacy,” which he and different critics imagine has hindered security and privateness of ladies at school.
However faculty techniques are resisting making the adjustments.
The America First Authorized criticism contends that the 5 faculty districts, regardless of Mr. Trump’s govt orders, preserve insurance policies offering “larger rights to college students whose gender identification doesn’t match their organic intercourse than it does to college students whose gender identification matches their organic intercourse.”
The colleges enable transgender college students to make use of the restroom and locker rooms that match their most well-liked gender identification, which the conservative group argued is a violation of Title IX language defending equal remedy of feminine college students.
The college districts have various insurance policies governing transgender college students, and they’re largely geared toward giving college students who determine as transgender broad freedom to make use of amenities and packages that conform with their gender identification.
In Fairfax County, transgender college students can use the locker rooms and bogs and take part in school-sponsored sports activities groups that conform with their gender identification.
The Virginia Excessive College League, nonetheless, introduced this week it should adjust to Mr. Trump’s govt order banning organic males from competing in feminine sports activities.
A spokesperson for Fairfax County Faculties, the ninth-largest faculty district within the nation with 183,000 college students, mentioned the county is complying with the legislation and “binding courtroom precedent,” and didn’t point out plans to vary the present, transgender-inclusive insurance policies.
“All college students have a proper to privateness in FCPS amenities or whereas collaborating in FCPS-sponsored occasions. Any scholar who has a necessity or want for elevated privateness, whatever the underlying cause, shall be supplied with cheap lodging,” spokeswoman Julie Allen mentioned.
In Arlington County, the varsity system permits “entry to amenities that correspond to a scholar’s gender identification.”
The college system, which enrolls greater than 27,000 college students, has been below intense criticism lately over the coverage. The general public uproar got here after a male, registered intercourse offender who claimed to be feminine uncovered his genitals to a younger woman whereas utilizing the Washington Liberty Excessive College swimming pool locker room in September. The person, 58, who has a prolonged rap sheet, additionally uncovered himself within the girls’s locker room at Arlington’s Wakefield Excessive College in November, in line with police.
The incidents occurred outdoors of faculty hours however led to calls for that the varsity system finish the trans-inclusive coverage for bogs and locker rooms.
Faculties spokesman Frank Bellavia mentioned the district has been notified of the Education Department probe however he didn’t point out whether or not the varsity plans to vary its insurance policies governing transgender people utilizing feminine locker rooms and bogs.
“We firmly stand behind our non-discrimination insurance policies and pleasure ourselves on offering protected, welcoming faculties for all college students. We observe all federal legal guidelines with respect to Title IX,” he mentioned.
Arlington has pledged to beef up safety at amenities which might be utilized by the general public outdoors of faculty hours to make sure intercourse offenders don’t enter locker rooms. Officers mentioned they plan to implement a coverage by the tip of February requiring identification for guests that will likely be checked towards the intercourse offender database.
