Wisconsin School District Faces Federal Complaint for Hiding Gender Identity of Students from Parents
Several parental rights organizations filed a complaint Wednesday with Education Secretary Linda McMahon and Attorney General Pam Bondi, arguing that a Wisconsin school district should lose federal funding over a policy that prevents parents from knowing if their child identifies as the opposite sex at school.
According to a report by the Daily Caller, the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty (WILL), and Parents Defending Education (PDE) filed the complaint against Milwaukee Public Schools (MPS) after the district did not revise its policy following President Donald Trump’s executive order, “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling.” The order calls for the rescinding of federal funds from being used by schools that support the social transition of a minor student without their parent’s knowledge.
“The Department should also require MPS to notify the parents of any child for whom MPS maintains a secret gender support plan without the parents’ awareness,” the complaint stated.
The school district’s policy instructs staff to label gender-related information as “confidential” and remove it from official records. The organizations argue that this violates federal law under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA).
Forms filled out by staff as part of the district’s “Gender Inclusion Guidance” ask whether a student’s parents are “aware and supportive” of their child’s gender identity. If the parents are not supportive, the form asks how “school-home communications” should be handled.
“This is such an important issue that we’re seeing in school districts across the country,” ADF senior counsel Kate Anderson told the Daily Caller. “There’s a lot of litigation on it because it’s really hurting kids. Kids need their parents, especially when they’re struggling with something as complicated as their identity. They need their parents to walk alongside them.”
The US Department of Education recently launched an investigation into California’s Department of Education over a state law that prohibits schools from informing parents of their child’s so-called “gender identity.” The department is also investigating Maine over a similar policy.
WILL Deputy Counsel Luke Berg told the Daily Caller that parents “have the right and solemn responsibility to raise their own children.”
“Federal law recognizes the parental role, yet school districts around the country have been flouting parental rights,” he stated. “With a new administration that supports parents, we hope that these secret transition policies can be eliminated once and for all.”
