California educators accused of hiding gender transitions from parents

California’s Department of Education violated federal law by forcing districts to hide information about a student’s so-called gender identity from parents, according to a Wednesday release from the U.S. Department of Education. At least 300 students in California were put on “Gender Support Plans” last year, many without parental consent or knowledge, the release alleged.

Withholding information from parents violated the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, a federal law protecting parental access to their children's education records. Federal education officials began investigating California last March and requested clarification that parents have a right to inspect gender support plans, which the state has not issued.

Education officials pressured school officials to comply with policies that concealed information about students from parents, putting them in noncompliance with federal law, according to the Education Department. The agency cited one policy, AB 1955, which barred schools from having policies that required parents to be informed of their child’s “gender transition.” District leaders essentially had to choose between complying with state officials or violating federal laws, the department explained.

Education Secretary Linda McMahon released a Wednesday statement vowing to hold California accountable for hiding student information from parents. When a student is undergoing life-altering changes, the least a school can do is tell parents, she added. Children belong to families, not the state, according to a separate Wednesday statement from the Education Department.

What kind of actions did educators take to hide student information? Investigators alleged that the California Department of Education took pains to conceal children’s gender transitions from parents. Schools filed so-called gender support plans for students in a separate filing system to keep parents in the dark, according to federal investigators.

Investigators cited emails dating back to 2022 in which school officials discussed student name changes behind parents’ backs, intentionally using different names in front of parents, and limiting the information available on the parents' online portal. Education officials also petitioned a popular school software company to create features to hide a student's name or pronoun changes from parents.

Federal investigations also cited the case of a mother who sued the state after officials did not inform her that her daughter started identifying as transgender due to the school’s parental secrecy policy. Administrators allegedly instructed the student not to tell her mother about the change and instructed her to wear a binder to simulate a flat male chest, investigators explained.

Investigators also took issue with California officials targeting schools with policies that prohibit the concealment of student gender identities from parents. State officials sued Chino Valley Unified School District in 2023 over a district policy that required teachers to inform parents of student gender identity changes.

How is California responding to the investigation findings? WORLD reached out to the California Department of Education for comment. This story will be updated with any response received.

Dig deeper: Read Liz Lykins’ report on a class-action lawsuit to stop California’s secretive gender transition policies.