New Department of Education Guidance Offers Clear Protections to Transgender Students

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: 212-549-2666, media@aclu.org

WASHINGTON – In a guidance document released today, the Office for Civil Rights in the Department of Education has, for the first time, explicitly made clear that Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 extends to claims of discrimination based on gender identity. Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in federally funded education programs and activities.

"This guidance is crystal clear and leaves no room for uncertainty on the part of schools regarding their legal obligation to protect transgender students from discrimination," said Ian Thompson, ACLU legislative representative. "The Office for Civil Rights must now take the next step and issue comprehensive guidance on Title IX and transgender students."

The guidance released today builds on numerous court decisions and a landmark ruling from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission establishing that transgender people are protected under existing prohibitions on sex discrimination.

The guidance document can be viewed here:
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/qa-201404-title-ix.pdf