The state Department of Education was issued a corrective action plan that required school leaders to share student records with parents.
The California Department of Education allowed public schools to conceal records on gender transitions and to use software that hid student name changes on the parent portal, a senior U.S. Education Department official said on Wednesday.
An investigation into Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) violations across the Golden State found that many districts maintained records about student gender transitions that were purposely kept out of cumulative files that parents have a legal right to access.
The California Department of Education also authorized districts to use the Aries software for hiding related information, including name changes, on the parent portal.
About 300 children were put on “gender support plans,” many of them without parental consent, the official said during a media call.
California also enforced state laws and policies, often with the threat of lawsuits, which prohibit school personnel from disclosing information about a child’s sexuality or gender to parents in certain circumstances, the official said.
“State laws do not supersede federal law,” the Department of Education senior official said, calling California’s actions “morally reprehensible.”
“Children do not belong to the state,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a Jan. 28 news release. “They belong to families.”
McMahon said the California agency abused its authority by pressuring its school districts to violate federal law.
“We will use every available mechanism to hold California accountable for these practices and restore parental rights,” she said.
The California Department of Education has been notified of the federal government’s findings and has been offered a corrective action plan. A response is due in two weeks.
The corrective action plan includes informing all K–12 school superintendents and administrators in California that “gender support plans” or other related documents are, under federal law, subject to parental inspection upon request.
The state education department is also asked to publicize these federal regulations and note that noncompliance is subject to the loss of federal funding.
McMahon seeks written assurance from the state agency that all school districts will be allowed to adhere to and enforce federal law, and school district leaders are expected to certify that they understand and are in compliance with it.
