Education Department probes two districts on gender privacy

The U.S. Department of Education is investigating two school districts for allegedly concealing information about students' gender identity from their parents, a practice federal officials say violates federal privacy law. The investigations, announced on July 27, target Anne Arundel County Public Schools in Maryland and Ann Arbor Public Schools in Michigan and could result in the loss of federal funding.

According to the Education Department, the districts' policies improperly treat information about a student's gender identity as confidential medical data that cannot be shared with parents, unlawfully impeding parental rights under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). This federal law grants parents the right to access their children's education records.

The case in Anne Arundel County began when parents discovered their daughter was being referred to with male pronouns in a school email. When they sought further information and records from school administrators, officials reportedly refused to provide details. The parents have since filed a lawsuit in Maryland's U.S. District Court, alleging the school secretly facilitated a social transition for their...