Overview
- Federal officials said the new investigations cover K-12 systems in eight states plus New York City, two state education departments in New York and Hawaii, and three colleges including Santa Monica College, Santa Rosa Junior College, and the University of Nevada, Reno.
- Cases named by the department include New York City and Bellmore-Merrick in New York; districts in California, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and Washington state.
- The inquiries focus on allegations that students assigned male at birth were allowed to try out for or compete on girls’ teams, with an example cited involving a girls’ volleyball tryout in Bellmore-Merrick.
- Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey pledged aggressive enforcement and referenced the Title IX Special Investigations Team formed in 2025 to expedite such cases.
- Several districts and colleges said they would cooperate or cited compliance with state law, while transgender-rights advocates condemned the probes as contrary to Title IX; no findings or sanctions have been announced.