Navigating Legal Issues Impacting Transgender Students (Update)

Over the past ten years, states and the federal government have dramatically shifted the legal landscape regarding the rights of transgender students in school. Presented by Collins Saint, an experienced civil rights and education attorney, this CLE program will focus on the changes in state and federal law since 2023, providing an update to his highly regarded CLE program on the same topic. In this program, Saint will cover a broad array of topics such as:

1. The changes to Title IX, from the Biden Administration rules clarifying that "sex" included "gender identity" to the federal court battles over the constitutionality of the Biden Administration's actions to the Trump Administration's novel interpretation of Title IX that inclusive sports practices violate Title IX
2. The increasing sports participation bans for transgender students, particularly girls, in a growing number of states
3. The influx of parents' bills of rights and federal guidance related to parents' rights to know their child's gender identity
4. The 2025 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Mahmoud v. Taylor, and states' adoption of laws impacting curriculum reflecting LGBTQ+ identities

Learning Objectives: 

1. Identify key changes in federal Title IX policy and enforcement since 2023, including the Biden Administration's gender-identity-inclusive regulations, subsequent constitutional challenges, and the Trump Administration's reinterpretation of Title IX in the context of athletics
2. Examine the growing body of state legislation restricting transgender students' participation in school sports and assess compliance risks for educational institutions operating across differing legal frameworks
3. Analyze the rise of parental rights legislation and related federal guidance requiring disclosure of students' gender identity, including the legal tensions between student privacy, parental authority, and civil rights protections
4. Evaluate the impact of Mahmoud v. Taylor on public-school curriculum decisions and state efforts to regulate or restrict instruction reflecting LGBTQ+ identities