Trump Education Department investigates Michigan schools over trans-inclusive policies

The Trump administration has opened investigations into three Michigan school districts for allowing transgender children to participate in sports based on their gender identity. The move came a day after a similar action against a district in North Carolina.

The Department of Education, under Education Secretary Linda McMahon, announced on Thursday that its Office for Civil Rights had opened investigations into Ann Arbor Public Schools, Monroe Public Schools and Chippewa Valley School District, alleging the districts had violated the rights of cisgender students by allowing transgender students to play on teams and use locker rooms corresponding to their gender identity rather than the sex they were assigned at birth.

“The convoluted practice of allowing students to participate on sex-segregated athletic teams and make use of locker rooms based on ‘gender identity’ is not only known to be unsafe for students, but is a direct violation of federal law,” said Kimberly Richey, assistant secretary for civil rights at the Education Department.

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“The Trump Administration has consistently upheld Title IX, as it was written and intended by Congress, enforcing the law to protect students across America from discrimination on the basis of sex rather than to perpetuate a radical ideology that risks the safety and wellbeing of students. We will continue to fight for what is right, fully investigate these alarming allegations, and enforce the law to the fullest extent.”

Chippewa Valley officials told the Detroit Free Press the district would comply with any investigation but had not received official notice before the department sent a press release to the media.

"As a matter of practice, the district cooperates fully with any review conducted by the Office for Civil Rights," the statement said. "Chippewa Valley Schools remains committed to providing a safe, supportive, and respectful learning environment for all students and to complying with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations.”

A parent, Sean Lechner, filed a complaint with the Education Department in December, arguing that Monroe County Schools had wrongly failed to notify parents from opposing teams that a transgender student was on an Ann Arbor school’s girls volleyball team, as reported by CBS News.

Related: Trump signs executive order targeting transgender students, their teachers, and their schools

The administration also launched a similar investigation into Buncombe County Schools in North Carolina, claiming that allowing trans students in women’s sports “puts female students in potentially unsafe situations.”

“So long as adults flout the law and twist it in the pursuit of radical political ideologies, the Trump Administration will launch investigations, hold schools accountable, and ensure the safety of female students across America,” Richey said.

Officials there also promised to cooperate with any investigation while ensuring students do not face discrimination.

“"BCS follows the law regarding students' rights, ensuring all students have access to safe restrooms, locker rooms, and other school facilities,” the district said in a statement to local ABC affiliate WLOS. “Our schools work with all students and families to ensure every student has access to facilities that meet their needs in a safe and private manner."

The latest actions from the administration come amid a broader assault on transgender rights by the Trump administration. For the second year in a row, the Education Department has promoted June as “Title IX” month, focusing on enforcing anti-transgender policies during Pride Month and citing the anniversary of the federal law guaranteeing female athletes equal access to participation in sports.

While President Joe Biden’s administration had sought protections for transgender students, President Donald Trump, within weeks of returning to the White House for a second term, issued an executive order seeking to ban transgender athletes from participating in sports corresponding to their gender identity.