Philadelphia Schools Defy Trump Trans Athlete Ban
The School District of Philadelphia will refuse to comply with President Trump's order to bar transgender athletes from female sports.
The School District of Philadelphia announced it will defy President Donald Trump’s executive order prohibiting transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports.
This move contrasts with the actions of the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association, the governing body of K-12 sports in the Keystone State.
The PIAA revised its policy to comply with Trump’s executive order, replacing references to a student’s “gender” with sex. It removed principals’ authority to make a final determination regarding a student’s sex and allowed a school to determine it (presumably based on the gender marker on school records and birth certificates, although the policy lacks specifics).
The PIAA’s policy also requires schools to consult with school solicitors to ensure they are complying with the order and keeping transgender athletes from competing on teams that don’t match their assigned sex at birth.
The Philadelphia school district, however, said it will continue to comply with its own transgender student policy, known as “Policy 252.”
The policy allows students to be addressed by gender-affirming pronouns, access facilities that align with their gender identity, and participate in school activities, including physical education classes and intramural sports, based on their gender identity.
It discourages district staff from adopting gendered practices, such as requiring one graduation gown for females and another for males.
The policy also forbids school staff from outing transgender students to others, including their parents. In terms of competitive interscholastic sports, Policy 252 says that determinations will be “resolved on a case-by-case basis.”
Philadelphia’s school district said it “strives to ensure safety, equity and justice for all students, regardless of gender identity or gender expression, so that they can imagine and realize any future they desire.”
Kristina Moon, an attorney with the Education Law Center, told the Philadelphia Inquirer that Trump’s executive order does not supersede Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in school-related activities.
Moon also told the Inquirer that various court decisions siding with transgender students remain binding, and as do regulations adopted by Pennsylvania’s Human Relations Commission, finding that discrimination based on gender identity or gender expression is a form of sex-based discrimination.
She contended that the PIAA’s recent change to comply with Trump’s executive order is “part of a broader, really harmful politicization of trans folks in general, and part of the scapegoating of students who just want to be able to attend school and be themselves and participate just like everybody else.”
The School District of Philadelphia’s schools are supposed to adhere to PIAA rules as members. It remains to be seen whether the district will challenge the policy in court.
As part of his executive order, Trump has threatened to pull federal funding away from districts that fail to comply, potentially setting up a showdown between the Philadelphia school district and the federal government.
As noted by the Inquirer, most of the Philadelphia School District’s $4.5 billion operating budget is not dependent on federal funds.
However, it still receives some federal grant funding — approximately $619.3 million — for special education services and early childhood programs. It also receives Title I money — typically given to schools or districts with a high incidence of poverty among their student population — which has been used to cover expenses like some teachers’ salaries and instructional programs.
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