Virginia faculty district accused of protecting college students' gender transitions hidden

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EXCLUSIVE: A faculty district in Northern Virginia already labeled by the Trump administration as "excessive danger" inside the federal grant system is dealing with contemporary scrutiny amid a civil rights grievance alleging the district can be hiding college students' gender transitions from dad and mom.

The Trump-aligned lawfare group America First Authorized (AFL) submitted a federal civil rights complaint Thursday accusing the Fairfax County Public Faculties (FCPS) system of violating the Household Instructional Rights and Privateness Act ("FERPA") and infringing upon elementary parental rights protected by the Fourteenth Modification by means of its "Regulation 2603-Gender-Expansive and Transgender Students Guidance Document."

Particularly, AFL is taking challenge with a number of the district's steering that tells educators to chorus from "out[ing]" a pupil to their dad and mom in district-wide data techniques that they've entry to, whereas requiring identify and pronoun adjustments that college students request to be made within the district's data techniques which are faculty-facing solely. The steering even goes as far as to inform educators in sure situations the place a pupil feels unsafe to depart any pronoun or nickname data out of district-wide databases altogether, and solely use a pupil's different identify or pronouns whereas in school.

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"FCPS has constructed a two-track system — one actuality inside the varsity, and a sanitized model for folks. That's precisely the form of deliberate concealment FERPA forbids," Senior Counsel at AFL, Ian Prior, stated.

Fairfax County faculty bus is pictured above (Getty Pictures)

In keeping with FCPS's steering to college and academics, if a pupil needs to socially transition with a brand new identify, educators ought to depart their new identify out of the district's official data which are viewable by dad and mom, and solely change them within the data viewable by simply district officers. The identical with nicknames, because the district coverage states, "warning ought to be utilized in utilizing the nickname discipline in" the parent-facing data databases ran by the district.

"Altering the scholar’s identify within the Scholar Info tab of SIS and storing the authorized identify within the Protected Info tab shouldn't be applicable if the scholar’s father or mother/guardian is unaware of the scholar’s transition since this will unintentionally out the scholar and probably compromise their security and well-being," FCPS's Regulation 2603 states. "For these college students who select to vary identify and/or gender in SIS, the authorized data might be saved within the Protected Info tab of SIS."

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The steering seems to concentrate on potential FERPA violations, warning educators that if a parent or guardian requests entry to see their kid's data, they'll have entry to each the kid's chosen and given identify.

America First Authorized is accusing the Fairfax County Public Faculties (FCPS) system of actively conspiring to cover college students' gender transitions from their dad and mom. (iStock)

"If a pupil transitioning in school shouldn't be able to share with their household about their transgender standing, this ought to be revered," the steering instructs. "On this situation, faculty employees ought to make a change socially, calling the scholar by the chosen identify, whereas their official SIS data stays the identical."

Fox Information Digital reached out to FCPS concerning the new federal civil rights grievance being launched in opposition to the district this week. The district stated it had not acquired a duplicate of the grievance, in order that they have been "not ready to touch upon the particular allegations" that Fox Information Digital laid out to them in an e-mail. Nevertheless, the district did notice that "present Fairfax County Public Faculty (FCPS) insurance policies are in line with federal and state anti-discrimination legal guidelines."

"FCPS stays dedicated to fostering a secure, supportive, welcoming, and inclusive faculty surroundings for all college students and employees," the district concluded of their response to Fox Information Digital.

Final yr, the Trump administration put FCPS and a handful of different Northern Virginia faculty districts on a "excessive danger" standing resulting from their insurance policies on intimate areas for females and transgender college students, threatening their federal funding and placing it in a "reimbursement solely" fee standing.

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"The Division of Schooling has already positioned FCPS on a restricted standing associated to Title IX noncompliance, with associated proceedings pending earlier than the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit," AFL's civil rights grievance factors out. "This grievance independently establishes that FCPS’s present practices additionally danger federal schooling funding for violations of FERPA. I invite the Division of Schooling to take official discover of the prevailing Title IX enforcement posture as related context for federal oversight and remedial measures."

Schooling Secretary Linda McMahon speaks to the group as protesters collect outdoors the Supreme Court docket because it hears arguments over state legal guidelines barring transgender women and girls from taking part in on faculty athletic groups, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Washington (AP Photograph/Jose Luis Magana)

Title IX legal professional and authorized skilled Sarah Perry stated in an interview with Fox Information Digital that FERPA and Safety of Pupil Rights Modification complaints have "inundated" the Schooling Division's Workplace of Civil Rights, pointing to at least one lawsuit she helped file not too long ago in opposition to the Seattle Public Faculties system.

"The coed privateness workplace shouldn't be used to being weaponized," Perry stated. "They've already revealed a spring agenda – the clarification is outwardly going to return from the Trump administration on what an academic report means."