Department of Education finds 5 DMV schools violating Title IX on transgender issues

WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — Five public school divisions in the DMV area were found to be in violation of Title IX by the Department of Education regarding their allowance of transgender individuals to use facilities that align with their gender identity.

This announcement aligns with the Trump administration’s push to draw a strict line in the sand, one based solely on biological sex.

The school districts found to be in violation include Alexandria City Public Schools, Arlington Public Schools, Fairfax County Public Schools, Loudoun County Public Schools and Prince William County Public Schools.

An investigation into the schools began after complaints stated that these divisions had policies in place to prevent discrimination against transgender individuals, alleging some of those policies violated Title IX, which the Trump administration has claimed provides “sex-based protections.”

According to the Department of Education, there have been reports of students avoiding restrooms because of the school’s policies. Trans women having access to women’s locker rooms and restrooms, especially, has caused opponents to push back.

“Female students have witnessed male students inappropriately touching other students and watching female students change in a female locker room,” the release states.

The school divisions were granted 10 days by the Department of Education to rescind any policy that allowed transgender individuals to use “intimate” facilities, aligning with their gender identity. Future policies regarding access to these facilities must be determined based on sex. Additionally, schools must adopt a “biology-based” definition of the words male and female in all practices.

If the schools do not comply within the 10 days, they may be referred to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Trans women, specifically, have seen a reversal of many policies that previously granted them access to women’s spaces under the Trump administration.

On June 18, the Supreme Court upheld a Tennessee law banning certain gender-affirming medical care for minors. Transgender women have also been barred from competing in women’s sports at the collegiate level after an executive order from Trump.