Four More Virginia School Districts Defy Trump, Reject Trans Bathroom Ban Demand
Following Loudoun County, four more Virginia schools have defied Trump's Department of Education and will continue to allow trans youth to use the bathroom of their gender.
This weekend, four additional major school districts in Virginia publicly declared they will not comply with demands from the Trump administration’s Department of Education to ban transgender students from using bathrooms that match their gender. Their statements follow Loudoun County Public Schools’ vote last week to uphold protections for transgender students. Together, the five districts represent one of the most significant coordinated acts of defiance against the administration’s anti-trans education policy to date—especially as universities and hospital systems elsewhere have capitulated under similar pressure. In response, the Department of Education has begun the process to revoke funding for programs supporting students with disabilities, low-income families, and free and reduced-price lunches—heightening the stakes in what has become a nationwide battle over civil rights in education.
The school districts refusing compliance with the Trump administration include Alexandria City Public Schools, Arlington Public Schools, Fairfax County Public Schools, and Prince William County Public Schools. This is in addition to Loudoun County Public Schools, which was the first district to defy Trump administration demands.
“As a school board member, I cannot sit idly by while adults who should know better try to pit one group of students against another. Our responsibility is to ensure that every child — including those who are transgender or gender nonconforming — has an opportunity to achieve their full, unique, and limitless potential. We can and must meet the needs of all students without undermining the dignity or rights of any of them. That includes ensuring they have full and equal access to all the incredible academic and enrichment opportunities we offer. To uphold our shared values of equity, dignity, and respect for all students, we owe them nothing less,” read a post from Fairfax County School Board Member Karl Frisch.
In late July, the Trump administration’s Department of Education, led by Linda E. McMahon, issued threatening letters to multiple Virginia school districts after America First Legal—a far-right organization helmed by former Trump White House official Stephen Miller—alleged that Title IX requires discrimination against transgender students rather than prohibits it. This view represents a fringe legal theory now being pushed all the way to a Supreme Court that the administration believes will be willing to embrace such arguments. In a rushed and seemingly predetermined process, the Department “investigated” the schools and unsurprisingly sided with this interpretation. The administration’s demands explicitly contradict longstanding legal precedent, including Grimm v. Gloucester County School Board, which found that denying transgender students access to bathrooms matching their gender identity violates Title IX. Nevertheless, the administration ordered the schools to disregard such rulings and comply with its directive or risk losing federal funding.
In statements issued by the Virginia school districts refusing to comply with the Trump administration's demands, officials cite binding legal precedent in the Fourth Circuit—under which the districts fall—as a central reason for their decision. They assert both a legal obligation and a moral imperative to protect the rights of all students, including transgender students. Alexandria City Public Schools, for example, stated: “Fundamentally, ACPS is committed to following the law and protecting the members of the ACPS community; that means complying with governing law as it exists today. Grimm was decided by the Fourth Circuit in 2020, and the U.S. Supreme Court subsequently declined to review that decision.” The district also directly pushed back on the administration’s claims that transgender bathroom access causes “real and serious harms,” stating instead that there had been “no formal or informal complaints” related to transgender students using restrooms, and affirming that their schools “function well, without disruption” when transgender students are allowed to use bathrooms aligned with their gender identity.
In response, the U.S. Department of Education has announced that it will pull federal funding from these schools. Fairfax County Public Schools will see up to $160 million in funding revoked, and other schools could see tens of millions similarly blocked. In its statement, Prince William County Public Schools notes the heavy impact this will have on children in need: “Federal grants are an important source of funding in PWCS. In FY25, aside from funding for the National School Lunch Program, majority of federal money PWCS goes to three programs: Title VI programs for children with disabilities; Title I remedial and intervention programs for economically disadvantaged elementary students; and Head Start preschool programs.”
Despite facing serious federal threats, these Virginia school districts are doing what some of the nation's most prestigious universities and hospital systems have refused to: standing up for the transgender individuals in their care. In recent months, multiple hospital networks have capitulated to Trump administration pressure by eliminating gender-affirming care for trans patients, often in violation of state laws that explicitly protect such care. Meanwhile, elite institutions like Brown, Columbia, and Penn have bowed to similar demands—implementing transgender bathroom and sports bans, and adopting restrictive definitions of sex that explicitly exclude transgender students from full recognition and protection. In pushing back, these districts refuse to help set the precedent that the protection of transgender students can be “bought off” with funding threats.
You can read full responses from the following school systems here:
I'm glad people are finally standing up to pedophiles and professional wrestlers who think they know best.
Now let's make sure Spanberger gets to where she can best help them, the governor's office.