What LGBTQ+ Students, Families, and Educators Need to Know About the Updated Title IX Guidelines

What’s going on with the updated LGBTQ-inclusive Title IX guidelines?

In April of this year, the Biden administration announced updated Title IX guidelines that, among many other updates, expanded protections for LGBTQ+ students. The rules made clear that discrimination against students on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation is a violation of student’s federal civil rights under Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972.

This determination is in line with a long history of federal case law that discrimination based on “sex” (prohibited in Title IX) encompasses discrimination against LGBTQ+ people. Most prominently, the 2020 Bostock v. Clayton County decision from the U.S. Supreme Court found that federal workplace nondiscrimination protections prohibiting discrimination based on “sex” also protect LGBTQ+ people. As Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote, “An employer who fires an individual for being homosexual or transgender fires that person for traits or actions it would not have questioned in members of a different sex. Sex plays a necessary and undisguisable role in the decision, exactly what Title VII forbids.”

Unfortunately, these updated Title IX guidelines have been blocked from implementation in twenty-six states–including every Southern state except North Carolina. Even in states where the updated guidelines are going into effect, implementation has been blocked in some schools and districts. Across the country, students, families, teachers, and school administrators are confused about what the updated guidelines, or lack of updated guidelines, will mean for their right to an educational environment free from discrimination. This guide explains how the updated Title IX guidelines apply to anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination, where the updated guidelines are in effect, and what your rights are under Title IX even if the guidelines have been blocked in your state or school district.

What is Title IX?

Title IX is the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination at schools, and the Department of Education interprets Title IX to cover discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Under Title IX, schools:

Cannot separate, deny benefits to, or exclude a person on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity;
Must investigate and resolve allegations of discrimination, harassment, bullying, or physical harm based on sexual orientation and gender identity;
Are required to take steps to protect students from harassment, bullying, physical harm, or discrimination

These protections apply to all school-run programs and extracurricular activities, including sports and clubs.

What do the updated Title IX guidelines say about discrimination against LGBTQ+ students and school staff?

The revised guidelines update Title IX to align with the Supreme Court Bostock ruling, which once and for all affirmed that the definition of ‘discrimination on the basis of sex’ encompasses discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity. The updated guidelines prohibit harassment and discrimination against LGBTQ+ students, employees, and others, with provisions that specifically protect transgender, intersex, and other gender-expansive people. The guidelines specify that students should:

Be able to use restroom and locker rooms that align with their gender identity;
Not be prevented from participating in educational programs offered by the school because of their gender;
Be able to wear clothing that aligns with their gender identity and expression without dress codes being applied in a discriminatory way;
Not be subjected to invasive examinations to “prove their gender.”

The updated Title IX guidelines do not provide specific guidance on all possible instances of sex-based discrimination, instead stating that situations should be dealt with on a case-by-case basis. Students, school staff, and families should not let this lack of specificity deter them from filing a Title IX complaint if they have experienced discrimination or harassment on the basis of their sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation. For more information on who can file Title IX complaints, how to file a complaint, and examples of complaints filed due to anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination, visit our Support Filing A Title IX Complaint page.

Finally, it’s important to note that the updated guidelines do not address anti-trans discrimination in interscholastic sports. Due to state laws, many transgender and gender-expansive students are prohibited from playing on the school sports team that aligns with their gender identity. These laws clearly discriminate against students on the basis of their gender identity, and we hope to see federal regulations address this discrimination soon. The Biden administration is undertaking a separate rulemaking process to address the issue of transgender and gender-expansive student inclusion in school sports, and updated rules are expected to be finalized later this year. Students experiencing discrimination in athletics have the right to file a Title IX complaint, even while waiting for the administration’s guidance to be released.

Where and when did the updated Title IX guidelines go into effect?

The map below, from USA Today, shows which states have blocked the updated Title IX rules from being enforced. As of August 16, the Supreme Court rejected the Department of Justice’s request to allow the rules to go into effect while litigation proceeds. In some of the states where the updated guidelines are going into effect, they are blocked from taking effect in certain school districts because a federal judge in Kansas ruled that the updated guidance cannot take effect in any school in the nation that has members of Moms for Liberty and two other groups who are opposing the rule change. North Carolina is one of the states where some schools and districts will be allowed to enforce the updated Title IX guidelines, and others will not. Check out this article from The News & Observer to see if your school district is blocked from enforcing the updated rules. For all states and counties that will be implementing the updated Title IX guidelines, they took effect August 1st, and local school boards are working to adjust current policies to comply with the rules.

What does it mean if the updated Title IX guidelines are blocked in my state or school district?

Although the updated Title IX guidance solidifying protections for LGBTQ+ students has been blocked from taking effect in some states and school districts, it is important to understand that LGBTQ+ students in those schools still have rights under Title IX. The Title IX rights of LGBTQ+ students have actually been well established through earlier guidance, case law, and Title IX precedents stretching back for two decades. Right-wing groups have misrepresented the court decisions about the 2024 update, saying that they block all LGBTQ+ protections under Title IX, which is absolutely untrue. LGBTQ+ students in all U.S. schools have the right to an education free from discrimination. However, in places where the updated Title IX guidance is blocked from taking effect, attorneys and Title IX Coordinators cannot simply refer to the clearly defined LGBTQ+ protections in the 2024 guidance. Instead, they must use guidance from the 2020 Title IX update or earlier Title IX precedents and case law to make the case against anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination. The result is a chaotic landscape of Title IX compliance, where even those whose job it is to enforce the law are unsure which provisions are in effect.

It is also important to note precisely what the courts have blocked: the enforcement of the updated Title IX guidance by the US Department of Education. Non-discrimination protections at the local and state level are still fully in place, and there is no reason why school districts may not voluntarily comply with the updated guidance. Also, because nearly all the LGBTQ-related protections in the updated guidance were established by case law and precedent long before the 2024 update, the rights and protections for trans students are still in effect even where enforcement of the updated guidance has been blocked. When you file a Title IX complaint with your district, it is the responsibility of the Title IX Coordinator to determine what precedents and case law may be in effect, even if the current guidance has been blocked.

Despite the chaos and confusion, the fundamental principle is clear: discrimination against students on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation is a violation of student’s federal civil rights under Title IX, and LGBTQ+ students, staff and families can and should stand up for their civil rights. Some core rights all students have in school, school-run programs, and extracurriculars are:

They cannot separate, deny benefits to, or exclude a person on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity;
Schools must investigate and resolve allegations of discrimination, harassment, bullying, or physical harm based on sexual orientation and gender identity;
They are required to take steps to protect students from harassment, bullying, physical harm, or discrimination.

If I or someone I know experience anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination at school, what can I do?

If you or someone you know experience anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination at school, you have a right to file a Title IX complaint. Campaign for Southern Equality has more information about when and how to file a complaint, examples of past complaints filed, and staff members ready to walk you through the process and answer any questions. Go to our Support Filing A Title IX Complaint page for more information.