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LGBTQ

Education news, analysis, and opinion about lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer students or teachers and their experiences in school

Explainer

These LGBTQ+ Terms Can Help Create A Safe School for 69´«Ã½
To create a safe environment for LGBTQ+ students in schools, here are some terms that educators should know.
President-elect Donald Trump speaks at meeting of the House GOP conference, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024, in Washington.
Donald Trump speaks at meeting of the House GOP conference, Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2024, in Washington. He returned to the White House this week, taking a flurry of executive actions, some of which could affect schools.
Alex Brandon/AP
Federal Here Are Trump's First-Week Actions That Could Affect 69´«Ã½
There's been a lot to keep track of during Trump's first week back in the White House. Here's how it all could affect schools.
Brooke Schultz, January 24, 2025
8 min read
A person in the shadows stands at a bright window, a symbol of the search for the meaning of life, hope for the future in difficult times.
iStock/Getty
Student Well-Being Opinion Trump Is Rolling Back Protections for Transgender 69´«Ã½. What Educators Can Do
Two educators offer ideas and resources for teachers and education leaders so they can support their LGBTQ+ students.
Vanessa Ford & Rebecca Kling, January 24, 2025
5 min read
John Kluge, a former Indiana teacher, pictured in an undated photo.
John M. Kluge is an Indiana teacher who was dismissed for refusing to use transgender students' chosen names and pronouns.
Courtesy of Alliance Defending Freedom
Law & Courts Legal Fights Highlight Clashes Over Transgender 69´«Ã½â€™ Pronouns in 69´«Ã½
A federal court weighs the case of a teacher who refused to use students' chosen names and pronouns, as similar questions arise elsewhere.
Mark Walsh, January 23, 2025
9 min read
President Donald Trump holds up an executive order commuting sentences for people convicted of Jan. 6 offenses in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, in Washington.
President Donald Trump signs a series of executive orders in the Oval Office on Monday, Jan. 20, 2025, the first day of his second term in office. Trump was expected to sign dozens of executive actions, some of them affecting schools, on his first day.
Evan Vucci/AP
Federal President Trump's Early Actions Undo Biden Efforts to Protect LGBTQ+ 69´«Ã½
The promised action comes as Republicans have increasingly focused on limiting transgender rights.
Brooke Schultz, January 20, 2025
6 min read
The Supreme Court on Wednesday afternoon, April 19, 2023, in Washington.
A view of the Supreme Court in the afternoon on April 19, 2023, in Washington.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Law & Courts Can Parents Opt Kids Out of 69´«Ã½ LGBTQ+ Books? The Supreme Court Will Decide
The U.S. Supreme Court will take up a school district's policy of refusing to let parents opt out their children from LGBTQ+ storybooks.
Mark Walsh, January 17, 2025
3 min read
The Supreme Court is pictured, June 30, 2024, in Washington.
The Supreme Court is pictured, June 30, 2024, in Washington. The court on Monday declined to hear a case about a school district’s policy to support students undergoing gender transitions.
Susan Walsh/AP
Law & Courts Supreme Court Won't Take Up Case on District's Gender Transition Policy
The U.S. Supreme Court declined an appeal from a parents' group contending that a district's policy on gender support plans excludes them.
Mark Walsh, December 9, 2024
4 min read
President-elect Donald Trump takes the stage before speaking at the FOX Nation Patriot Awards on Dec. 5, 2024, in Greenvale, N.Y.
President-elect Donald Trump takes the stage before speaking at the FOX Nation Patriot Awards on Dec. 5, 2024, in Greenvale, N.Y. With the frameworks now in place, Trump has laid priorities for education.
Heather Khalifa/AP
Federal 5 Trump Education Priorities for a Second Term
With key players appointed to their cabinet positions, the scaffolding for President-elect Donald Trump's second term is taking shape.
Brooke Schultz, December 6, 2024
7 min read
Transgenders rights supporters rally outside of the Supreme Court, Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024, in Washington.
Transgender rights supporters rally outside of the U.S. Supreme Court on Dec. 4 as the court weighed a Tennessee law that restricts certain medical treatments for transgender minors.
Jose Luis Magana/AP
Law & Courts Supreme Court Case on Medical Care for Trans Youth Could Impact School Sports
The justices weigh a Tennessee law that bars certain medical treatments for transgender minors, with school issues bubbling around the case.
Mark Walsh, December 4, 2024
8 min read
Marshall University students hold a protest to voice concerns over the handling of Title IX-related issues at the university on Nov. 18, 2022, in Huntington, W.Va.
Marshall University students hold a protest to voice concerns over the handling of Title IX-related issues at the university on Nov. 18, 2022, in Huntington, W.Va.
Sholten Singer/The Herald-Dispatch via AP
Law & Courts The Uncertainty Ahead for Title IX and Transgender 69´«Ã½ in Trump's New Term
Trump may not be able to withdraw the Title IX rule on "Day 1," but advocates on both sides expect it to go away.
Mark Walsh, November 21, 2024
7 min read
A photograph of Nex Benedict, a nonbinary teenager who died a day after a fight in a high school bathroom, is projected during a candlelight service at Point A Gallery, on Feb. 24, 2024, in Oklahoma City. Federal officials will investigate the Oklahoma school district where Benedict died, according to a letter sent by the U.S. Department of Education on March 1, 2024.
A photograph of Nex Benedict, a nonbinary teenager who died a day after a fight in a high school restroom, is projected during a candlelight service at Point A Gallery, on Feb. 24, in Oklahoma City. Federal officials determined the district was "deliberately indifferent to students' civil rights" based on its responses to reports of sexual harassment.
Nate Billings/The Oklahoman via AP
Federal Nex Benedict's District Was 'Indifferent to 69´«Ã½' Civil Rights,' Feds Find
Federal officials found an Oklahoma district responded inconsistently to sexual-harassment claims.
Caitlynn Peetz, November 13, 2024
5 min read
Photo of distraught teen girl.
Preeti M / Getty
Student Well-Being How Teachers Can Help LGBTQ+ 69´«Ã½ With Post-Election Anxiety
LGBTQ+ crisis prevention hotlines have seen a spike in calls from youth and their families.
Caitlynn Peetz & Lauraine Langreo, November 11, 2024
6 min read
Demonstrators advocating for transgender rights and healthcare stand outside of the Ohio Statehouse on Jan. 24, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. Republican states are filing a barrage of legal challenges against the Biden administration's newly expanded campus sexual assault rules, saying they overstep the president's authority and undermine the Title IX anti-discrimination law.
Demonstrators advocating for transgender rights and healthcare stand outside of the Ohio Statehouse on Jan. 24, 2024, in Columbus, Ohio. Roughly 3 percent of high school students identify as transgender, and they face high levels of bullying and hopelessness, according to new data.
Patrick Orsagos/AP
Equity & Diversity Here's How Many High Schoolers Are Transgender—and How They're Faring in 69´«Ã½
For the first time, national data show how many high school students identify as transgender or gender-questioning.
Brooke Schultz, October 9, 2024
6 min read
The Supreme Court on Wednesday afternoon, April 19, 2023, in Washington.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday afternoon, April 19, 2023, in Washington.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Law & Courts What's Ahead for Education This Supreme Court Term? Trans Rights, E-Rate, and More
The justices have one major case on transgender medical care on their docket and others pending on gender-identity issues in schools.
Mark Walsh, October 4, 2024
10 min read
Claudia Carranza, of Harlingen, hugs her son, Laur Kaufman, 13, at a rally against House Bill 25, a bill that would ban transgender girls from participating in girls school sports, outside the Capitol in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday, Oct. 6, 2021.
Claudia Carranza, of Harlingen, Texas, hugs her son, Laur Kaufman, 13, at a rally for transgender rights in Austin on Oct. 6, 2021. The U.S. Department of Education's new Title IX regulation, which adds gender identity and sexual orientation to the definition of sex discrimination, has been challenged in multiple lawsuits and blocked in 26 states and at individual schools in other states.
Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman via AP
Law & Courts The New Title IX Regulation and Legal Battles Over It, Explained
The Biden administration's regulation that interprets Title IX to protect LGBTQ+ students faces multiple legal challenges.
Mark Walsh, September 12, 2024
5 min read