The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has determined that Denver Public Schools violated Title IX regulations by converting sex-separated multi-stall restrooms into all-gender facilities and by implementing policies allowing students to use intimate facilities based on their gender identity rather than biological sex.
The investigation, which began on January 28, marks the first Title IX directed inquiry conducted by the Trump Administration’s OCR. According to Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor, “Denver Public Schools violated Title IX and its implementing regulations by converting a sex-segregated restroom designated for girls in East High School to an 'all-gender' facility and by allowing students to use the high school’s intimate facilities on the basis of their ‘gender identity’ rather than their biological sex. As a result, the District is creating a hostile environment for its students by endangering their safety, privacy, and dignity while denying them access to equal educational activities and opportunities,” said Trainor. “Denver is free to endorse a self-defeating gender ideology, but it is not free to accept federal taxpayer funds and harm its students in violation of Title IX. The Trump Administration will work relentlessly to hold accountable school districts that harbor the ideological fanatics and policies that sully students’ educational experience with sex discrimination.”
Following this finding of noncompliance, OCR has issued a proposed Resolution Agreement requiring Denver Public Schools to take several corrective actions. These include redesignating all multi-stall restrooms back to being separated by sex in every district school; rescinding any guidance or policy—such as those found in the “Denver Public Schools LGBTQ+ Toolkit”—that allows restroom access based on gender identity instead of biological sex; issuing a memorandum emphasizing protection of student privacy, dignity, safety, and comparably accessible facilities for each sex; and adopting biology-based definitions for “male” and “female” across all relevant policies.
The investigation focused on events at East High School where, in December 2024, a girls’ multi-stall restroom was converted into an all-gender facility. While male students retained exclusive access to another boys’ restroom on the same floor, female students were required to seek other accommodations elsewhere in the building. OCR concluded this arrangement placed an unequal burden on female students regarding access to educational facilities.
In response to complaints about these changes—including reports from female students who felt uncomfortable or unsafe sharing restrooms with male peers—the district converted another boys’ restroom into an all-gender facility. However, OCR determined this did not resolve concerns under Title IX because males could still enter spaces previously reserved only for females.
Complaints cited discomfort among female students due both to interactions with male peers in restrooms and situations where male teachers entered these spaces during checks. One student described feeling her rights had been taken away after experiencing taunting behavior from boys inside the restroom.
Although Denver Public Schools stated it lacked an official policy assigning restrooms based on sex alone, OCR identified language within online documents linked from multiple school websites—the “Denver Public Schools LGBTQ+ Toolkit”—affirming that transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming students have rights to use facilities matching their expressed gender at school.
Title IX prohibits discrimination based on sex within federally funded education programs or activities.
