Federal Investigation Targets Connecticut School System Over Transgender Athlete Policies

Connecticut School System Investigated for Transgender Athlete Policies

CROMWELL, Conn. — The U.S. Department of Education is investigating a Connecticut school system over its transgender athletic policy, adding fuel to the national debate on trans girls’ participation in youth sports. The investigation, confirmed by the department, could result in the Cromwell school district losing nearly $1 million in federal funding if found to be in violation of Title IX.

Mayor James Demetriades, a Democrat, stated that the district would be ineligible for the state’s athletic conference if it didn’t allow student athletes to compete on sex-segregated sports teams consistent with their gender identity. He emphasized that the district is following all applicable state and federal laws and the rules of the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference.

Demetriades expressed confusion over why Cromwell was targeted and noted that the investigation also includes restroom and locker room usage. Craig Trainor, head of the U.S. Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights, said the investigation aims to determine if the district’s policies are depriving girls and young women of equal athletic opportunities. U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon affirmed the administration’s commitment to protecting women’s and girls’ sports.

This investigation follows a 2019 probe into Connecticut’s policy allowing transgender high school athletes to compete as their identified gender, prompted by a complaint from three girls’ families. A federal appeals court dismissed a challenge to the policy in 2022, but the case was later revived and remains pending, with a potential trial in 2026.

President Trump signed an executive order in his second term titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” which threatens to rescind funds from programs that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities. Demetriades has asked state officials to help protect the town from liability and intervene if sued by the Department of Justice.

In a related case, the Department of Education is also investigating Portland Public Schools in Oregon over a transgender athlete competing on a high school girls’ track-and-field team.