The Upper Midwest Law Center (UMLC) has formally requested that the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) investigate 15 Minnesota school districts for violations of Title IX and recent Executive Orders protecting women’s rights and student safety in sex-segregated spaces and athletics.
The letter, sent today to United States Department of Education Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor, details how multiple Minnesota school districts have implemented policies that allow students to use sex-segregated facilities, such as bathrooms and locker rooms, based on gender identity rather than biological sex. The school districts also permit students to participate in sex-specific athletic programs and physical education based on gender identity, unfairly disadvantaging female athletes and violating Title IX’s protections.
Among the school districts named in UMLC’s request are St. Paul, Minneapolis, Rochester, Osseo, and Duluth, along with several suburban districts. These policies mirror those that recently led OCR to launch investigations into school districts in Virginia and Maine. UMLC’s letter calls for similar scrutiny in Minnesota to ensure compliance with federal law.
“Schools must follow Title IX as written, not as reinterpreted to fit radical gender ideology,” said James Dickey, Senior Counsel at UMLC. “The Minnesota school districts we identified are putting the safety, privacy, and athletic opportunities of students—particularly young women—at risk. They are also trampling educators’ legitimate objections to being forced to use student pronouns. The federal government has already opened investigations into other school districts for similar violations. It’s time for Minnesota’s schools to be held accountable as well.”
This request comes on the heels of three Executive Orders issued by President Trump in early 2025:
- “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government” (January 20, 2025)
- “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling” (January 29, 2025)
- “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” (February 5, 2025)
Under these orders, the Department of Education has already launched an investigation into the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) for similar violations. UMLC argues that the policies of these 15 school districts directly contradict federal law and the newly established Executive Orders, warranting further investigation.
UMLC urges OCR to act swiftly to investigate and take corrective action against these districts to restore fairness, privacy, and safety for all students.
To view the full letter, click here.
