DOJ threatens Los Angeles schools with lawsuit over policies concealing students' gender identities from parents

The Department of Justice has given the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) 14 days to reverse policies that allow school employees to withhold information about students' gender identities from their parents or face potential federal litigation.

In an October 8 letter to LAUSD's Board of Education and Superintendent Andrés Chait, Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon accused the district of violating two federal laws protecting parental rights: the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA).

The demand follows an October 5 determination by the US Department of Education that LAUSD was out of substantial compliance with both laws, authorizing the Justice Department to pursue enforcement measures against the district.

At the center of the dispute are district policies governing students' preferred names, pronouns, gender markers, and the circumstances under which school employees disclose that information to parents. According to the Justice Department, LAUSD's policies allow school employees to decide whether parents should be informed about their children's gender identities, effectively placing those decisions in the hands of district personnel rather than families.

"Taken together, LAUSD's express policy is that parents may be denied their statutory rights at the discretion of District employees when the subject matter happens to be a child's 'gender identity,'" the letter states.

The Justice Department specifically identified three district documents: Policy Bulletin 5703.5, addressing changes to students' names and gender markers; Policy Bulletin 6224.3, addressing gender identity and nondiscrimination; and the district's Gender Identity Support Discussion Guide.

Federal officials are demanding that LAUSD rescind or revise the policies, including removing instructions directing school personnel to privately consult students about the names and pronouns they use at home before determining what information should be shared with parents.

The DOJ also demanded that the district obtain prior written parental consent before requiring minor students to answer questions concerning categories of information protected under PPRA. Under FERPA, the administration is demanding that LAUSD remove barriers preventing parents from inspecting their children's educational records, including records created during private consultations about gender identity.

The letter further requires the district to give parents opportunities to challenge records they believe are inaccurate or misleading, including information concerning changes to a student's name or gender.

The Justice Department also directed LAUSD to review all policies and practices to ensure compliance with federal parental rights protections and instruct staff that district policies concerning student privacy cannot override rights guaranteed under FERPA and PPRA. "This Civil Rights Division stands with parents, and we will continue to partner with the Department of Education to enforce parents’ rights under federal law," Dhillon said.

The administration warned that failure to comply could result in litigation to enforce the conditions attached to federal education funding. "This letter constitutes a formal demand and a final opportunity to cure before litigation is initiated," Dhillon wrote. The district has 14 days from October 8 to take the required corrective actions.