* WBEZ…
The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday said it is investigating 35 Illinois school districts, including several in the suburbs, and a Chicago charter operator to see if they are teaching about sexual orientation and “gender ideology” in classrooms and if so, whether parents are allowed to opt out.
The investigations also will examine whether the districts limit access to single-sex locker rooms and bathrooms and girls sports teams. That essentially means they’ll be looking at whether or not districts allow transgender students to use facilities and play on athletic teams that correspond with their gender identity. […]
In a news release, Justice Department officials cited Title IX, the federal law that prohibits sex discrimination in education, as the basis for the investigations, as well as a recent Supreme Court decision that ruled parents have the religious right to opt their children out of lessons at school if they do not align with their faith. It appears the Trump administration is trying to take that further by proactively looking into whether school districts have opt-out procedures in place.
* The Department of Justice…
The Illinois School Districts under investigation include:
- Atwood Heights School District 125
- Bloomington Public Schools District 87
- Bluford Unit School District 318
- Buncombe Consolidated School District 43
- Center Cass School District 66
- Central School District 104
- Community High School District 155
- Country Club Hills School District 160
- Crete-Monee School District 201-U
- DeKalb Community Unit School District 428
- East Dubuque Unit School District 119
- Elmwood Park Community Unit School District 401
- Freeport School District 145
- Galena Unit School District 120
- Gillespie Community Unit School District 7
- Iroquois County Community Unit School District 9
- Leyden Community High School District 212
- Lick Creek Community Consolidated School District 16
- Lyons School District 103
- Martinsville Community Unit School District C3
- Meridian Community Unit School District 223
- Noble Network of Charter Schools
- North Chicago Community Unit School District 187
- North Palos School District 117
- Norwood Elementary School District 63
- O’Fallon Community Consolidated School District No. 90
- Oak Lawn-Hometown School District 123
- Odin Public School District 722
- Oregon Community Unit School District 220
- Pembroke Community Consolidated School District 259
- Reavis Township High School District 220
- Ridgeview Community Unit School District 19
- Stockton Community Unit School District 206
- Tamaroa School District 5
- Thornton Fractional Township High School District 215
- Will County School District 92
* The Tribune…
If the school districts are found to have included this type of content in classroom instruction, then the Department of Justice said it would look into whether schools have informed parents of their “right to opt their children out of such instruction.” The department said it would also examine whether girls’ sports teams and access to locker rooms, bathrooms and other “single-sex intimate spaces” are restricted by biological sex.
Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon accused Illinois public schools of “keeping parents in the dark about how sexuality and gender ideology are being pushed in classrooms” in a statement accompanying the announcement.
“Supreme Court precedent leaves no doubt: parents have the fundamental right and primary authority to direct the care, upbringing, and education of their children,” Dhillon said in the statement. “This includes exempting their children from ideological instruction that contradicts their values or decisions about their children’s health and best interests.”
The news release referenced two recent cases centering on parents’ rights to gender and sexuality-related information and decision-making in public schools: Mahmoud v. Taylor and Mirabelli v. Bonta, which dealt with questions on whether parents in these cases could opt their children out of LGBTQ+-related curricula or receive information on their child’s gender identity at school.
* ABC Chicago…
“The Trump Administration continues to punish states the President does not like and this is yet another sham investigation carried out by an office with no regard for the rule of law or the well-being of the American people,” Illinois Governor JB Pritzker’s Office said in a statement. “The Civil Rights Division used to investigate actual discrimination concerns to ensure all individuals are treated equally under the law, but they’re now focused on belittling the rights and humanity of LGBTQ+ communities.”
* 25News Now…
Bloomington’s school district is among three dozen Illinois schools being investigated for sexual orientation and gender identity education. […]
“Our priority remains what it has always been: providing safe, welcoming, and engaging learning environments for all students while supporting our teachers and staff in the important work they do every day,” Superintendent Dr. Mouser said in a statement to 25News.
“We will respond appropriately to the DOJ’s requests and will continue to work in good faith to ensure clarity and compliance with applicable education requirements,” he continued.
The DOJ said the Civil Rights Division has not reached any conclusions about the districts under investigation, including District 87, and the review process is now underway. District 87 said it will cooperate with the review.
* WIFR…
The Freeport School District released the following statement acknowledging the investigation:
“At this time, we do not know why our district was selected for this review; however, we have learned that more than 30 other school districts across the state received the same notice. It is possible that a sample of Illinois school districts was selected. We are confident that our instructional and student practices are in full compliance with state and federal law, as well as applicable court precedents. We intend to cooperate fully with this inquiry and will provide updates to the community as appropriate.” […]
Oregon School District also acknowledged the investigation in a post of Facebook.
There is no reason for families or community members to panic, nor should anyone assume this signals wrongdoing on the part of our district. We are taking this seriously, as we would any federal inquiry, but we are doing so from a position of professionalism, preparation, and confidence in our practices. Since receiving notice, we have already been in contact with all appropriate partners, including insurance, legal counsel, and professional associations, to ensure we are approaching this process strategically and responsibly.
The superintendent says they’re unsure why Oregon has been selected for review but is prepared to cooperate fully. The full statement can be found here.
- Juice - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 9:52 am:
Ah, the radical teachings going on in Galena, Freeport and Oregon that have long been a bastion of promoting Maoism and leftist gender ideology.
I imagine this is mostly simply because some MAGA and/or Q adjacent parents called in to report rampant groomerism based on their own imaginations than anything else.
If there were mayoral control of the schools in Elmwood Park, the DOJ might find some colorful language that is mandated in the curriculum. But since its not, can’t imagine there is much to see there either.
With Noble, my guess is whatever they’re looking at just happens to be originating from Pritzker College Prep.
- Seventh Floor - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 9:57 am:
I live in Lyons School District 103 and roughly 80% of the student population is Hispanic and over 75% are considered low income (source: Illinoisreportcard.com). The last thing these kids and their families need is for the federal government to be in their schools investigating who uses which locker rooms…
- low level - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 9:58 am:
Trump’s DOJ sure likes to waste time and money investigating nonsense while we have real criminals running around our neighborhoods. No wonder so many career prosecutors are leaving the office. Ridiculous.
- Southern_Dawg - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 9:59 am:
Totally agree with Juice. The list is from “tips” called in or emailed by MAGA supporters who got scared when they saw a boy wearing a dress in the school play. All the while king draft dodger has blonde hair plugs and an orange spray tan.
- Jocko - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:05 am:
The irony of tasking the Civil Rights division for this is simply delicious.
I challenge anyone at the DOJ (or MAGA) to explain how someone can be born intersex and whether or not students should be informed of this fact.
- Excitable Boy - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:07 am:
Dozens of my coworkers will be excited that they’re finally going to remove the litter boxes from their kids’ schools.
- NIU Grad - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:11 am:
I was trying to find a rhyme or reason with this list of schools…I have to agree this might be based more on tips and online chatter than anything else. Would be curious about other theories, especially leaving CPS and more progressive school districts around Chicagoland off the list.
- Candy Dogood - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:22 am:
I agree with the other commenters that suggest that this many actually be complaint driven. Quite a few of these schools are in counties that would be silly to intentionally target on the federal level. That wouldn’t stop a handful of lunatics going on a crusade against the Oregon Hawks who are teaching kids to identify as birds.
- hisgirlfriday - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:24 am:
Surprised to see Bloomington and Ridgeview on this list and not Unit5 (Normal) when Unit 5 is usually the focus of the McLean County rabble rousers worked up about school stuff.
Bummed that a portion of these unlucky school’s property taxes will not be going to classroom instruction and instead will have to go to lawyers to defend against an ideological Trump DOJ attack on them for political purposes
- Stephanie Kollmann - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:34 am:
I hope the AG and ISBE coordinate action on this to ensure districts do not have to rely on local resources and political will to defend themselves from the Trump Administration’s divide-and-conquer attacks.
The way DOJ (and other agencies’) BS “investigations” have been rolled out has resulted in “hypercompliance” by targeted institutions that achieves voluntary censorship and suppression well beyond what even the most conservative judge would require - and in this case could run afoul of IL law.
School districts absolutely should not be issuing statements about fully complying with the feds absent state guidance, IMO.
But the likelihood of biased local politics/spinelessness/lack of $ resources to fight looks to be part of the strategy of how districts were selected.
- Stephanie Kollmann - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:39 am:
And: school districts definitely should not be relying on their usual legal counsel for advice on how to deal with USDOJ.
That sector (education counsel) of the legal profession’s response to these attacks so far has been nothing short of shameful.
- Stephenson County - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:40 am:
I find it interesting that 5 of the school districts are in State Senator Chesney’s district, who is an Illinois Freedom Caucus member. Not a bastion of liberalism by any means. Waiting for him to comment on this.
- Stephanie Kollmann - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:46 am:
Sadly, Tom DeVore has been readmitted to the Bar, so I assume he is plotting how to spin this into some kind of Concerned Moms Compliance Grift
- old guy - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:51 am:
Maybe she can investigate evolution and whether they are teaching whether the world in round…
- Casper The Ghost Bus - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 10:58 am:
I have to wonder how much is being spent on federal agents to investigate Tamaroa 5 and its 96 students and roughly 10 teachers?
- Stephanie Kollmann - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:05 am:
=the likelihood of biased local politics/spinelessness/lack of $ resources to fight looks to be part of the strategy of how districts were selected.=
the reason I think there are other considerations superceding complaints is that complaints, like everything else, are concentrated (by volume but not per capita) in population centers
And yet look at (the absence of) BluePage districts where plenty of Moms4Liberty types live and presumably complain but do not control decisions and districts have more resources and political will to fight back
I highly doubt Noble Charter got these complaints
But DOJ is probably right that it’s unlikely to redirect cash to defense and liable to overcomply (absent the state stepping in)
- Stephanie Kollmann - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:11 am:
==Iroquois County Community Unit School District 9==
I mean. Watseka. LOL.
- Stephanie Kollmann - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:12 am:
==I have to wonder how much is being spent on federal agents to investigate Tamaroa 5 and its 96 students and roughly 10 teachers?==
LOL
- H-W - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:12 am:
On the one hand, the solution is easy. Inform parents going forward regardless of past practices.
On the other hand, imagine the DOJ attempting to fine or punish a school district. Killing primary education and public education, or bankrupting communities will certainly backfire in the long run.
It will be interesting to see how this plays out. A money grab will not garner votes. And you can’t force communities to stop schooling children. If corporations are people, the so are communities and their schools. Seems like an eventual 1st Amendment case to me. But I am not trained in law.
- Jocko - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:18 am:
Maybe the DOJ can ask Jeanne Ives to go undercover./S
::wearing a red baseball cap and holding a skateboard::
“How do you do, fellow kids?”
- Garfield Ridge Guy - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:23 am:
==I was trying to find a rhyme or reason with this list of schools…I have to agree this might be based more on tips and online chatter than anything else.==
This has been a trend for the administration. Their investigations, executive orders, and administrative actions for colleges, med schools, law schools, law firms, and the such have been lists informed by personal animus. We all remain complicit every time we pay our taxes.
- H-W - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:24 am:
=== has resulted in “hypercompliance” by targeted institutions that achieves voluntary censorship and suppression ===
Amen to that. I was a planned, keynote speaker on my state university campus for MLK Day. My topic was understanding racism for white people (our county including students is 90% white).
Then someone informed the radical right press. A story appeared in The College Fix. Then Turning Point USA mentioned it.
Within a week, my university administration cancelled my talk for fear that we might garner notice as a university.
But at least I am now a bona fide member of the Professor Watchlist at Turning Point USA. I take great pride in that accolade.
Self censorship due to fear is contrary to standing up against those government agents who would violate the First Amendment.
- JoanP - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:27 am:
I don’t need an investigation to convince me that the school districts in question are indoctrinating their pupils into a heteronormative gender ideology.
Probably making them read all about Dick and Jane and Spot.
- Bigtwich - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:36 am:
Or to investigate Lick Creek C.C.S.D. #16 which is comprised of grades pre-kindergarten through 8th grade.
- Stephanie Kollmann - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:49 am:
Thank you for your service, H-W. I know several other recipients of that particular accolade. Great people.
- Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:52 am:
Had to read it twice to make sure it said Lick Creek School District.
If you’re looking for leftist teachings in a Union County school district you really have no idea what you’re doing.
- Rich Miller - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 11:57 am:
Well, Bluford Unit School District 318 is the Home of the Trojans, so there may be something to this.
- Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 12:16 pm:
“Well, Bluford Unit School District 318 is the Home of the Trojans, so there may be something to this”
If you’re waiting for a rimshot, the drummer fell asleep.
- Grandson of Man - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 12:18 pm:
“The Trump Administration continues to punish states the President does not like”
This and so much more was brought by a number of Democrats and leftists who couldn’t vote for a supremely qualified Black woman, not to mention considering who her opponent was. Certainly they’re not crying about any of this now.
- Two Left Feet - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 12:23 pm:
School board member here. Back about 13 years ago, the Office of Civil Right did similar investigations with disparate impact of student discipline. In my opinion, they intentionally spread the investigations around to appear unbiased and to send a broader message. Some areas will get a quick “all clear” letter and some will negotiate a settlement. Suits are very rare. The IL AG may step in with a lawsuit. Inquiring minds will follow up with the districts on when the matter is closed, the letters back and form, and the amount of attorneys fees spent.
- Stephanie Kollmann - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 1:11 pm:
Two Left Feet, I don’t think you’re wrong about what districts are expected to do (especially: quick settlement) but almost nothing done by the Obama DOJ is relevant to how things are done now
- Friendly Bob Adams - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 1:46 pm:
They are this close to sending people in to check students for impermissible appendages.
- JS Mill - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 1:53 pm:
=But DOJ is probably right that it’s unlikely to redirect cash to defense and liable to overcomply (absent the state stepping in)=
I doubt the state will step in, they have not for schools when the Fed has come calling in the past. But for most of us, our extensive insurance coverage will take care of most of the legal. I am close to two of these district and know the supts well. They have already contact their carriers.
=School districts absolutely should not be issuing statements about fully complying with the feds absent state guidance, IMO.=
Good luck with that. Tell me you have never worked in rural school district, or any for that matter. Our public expects us to cooperate with law enforcement even if it is a joke like the current DOJ. Cooperate does not me surrender.
This is purely performative for the knuckle draggers. It is really telling that so many of these are small rural districts. It also appears that, at least for the ones closest to me, they are all experiencing financial challenges. Freeport just RIF’ed 54 staff for instance. The point is to cause some fear and puckering and hope to get some forced compliance, but I doubt many of them even need to comply as they already are. Teachers, board members, and community members will all begin to question the school and worry about funding loss. It will further the undermining of public education with some sectors of the public.
=On the one hand, the solution is easy. Inform parents going forward regardless of past practices.=
99% of school districts use the PRESS Policy service through the IASB. Their lawyers create the policy wording and do the legal research. That means 99% of the districts have Policy 6:260 which informs them of their right to opt out of instruction. Most handbooks also have that language and our actually describes the “sex ed topics” we cover in health and at what grade level.
This is a direct response to the effort by the ISBE and ILGA to require many of the mentioned topics related to gender and sex identity as part. of curriculum. Ultimately, they made it required if you taught a class labeled “sex education” but not health. A survey revealed that more than 80% of Illinois schools stuck with health and are not teaching it. There was quite a bit of pushback at the time (2 or 3 years ago), I know I had to answer a lot of questions from teachers and the public at the time.
To me, it felt like ISBE overreach at the time.
Personally
- Mason County - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 1:58 pm:
Do I support sex education in schools? YES.
Should parents have the right to have their children to opt out? YES.
- low level - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 2:29 pm:
==Do I support sex education in schools? YES.
Should parents have the right to have their children to opt out? YES.==
What else should they be able to opt out of?
- btowntruth from forgottonia - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 2:45 pm:
Odin? Of all places?
Are they just throwing darts at a map?
- Mason County - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 3:57 pm:
=What else should they be able to opt out of?
I was addressing this issue. Got it.
You must have some point to your questions. Say it fully.
- Illiana - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 3:59 pm:
I saw that the Galena superintendent claimed the following as the reason for why the schools were chosen:
“The most important thing for the community to understand is that this review is the result of our status as a recipient of a $500,000 school safety grant related to our high school construction project. Galena is one of 36 Illinois public school districts included in this review and all districts received this federal funding–this is what triggered the review.”
Has any media or officials been able to confirm if that is truly the reasoning? If so, seems like it will deter schools from seeking federal grants for important things.
- low level - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 4:06 pm:
== I was addressing this issue. Got it.==
As usual, you were too clueless to miss the point. Try harder next time.
Have a great weekend.
- OneMan - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 4:10 pm:
==Well, Bluford Unit School District 318 is the Home of the Trojans, so there may be something to this.==
I bet they take some ribbing for that…
Bloom Trail HS is the Trojans, and well, I want to say we never made the obvious jokes when we played them in football or basketball.
We were much more mature than that.
I bet some DOJ lawyer is going to be so happy they went to law school while doing the discovery on this stuff.
- Mason County - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 4:15 pm:
= low level - Friday, May 1, 26 @ 4:06 pm:
== I was addressing this issue. Got it.==
As usual, you were too clueless to miss the point. Try harder next time.
Have a great weekend.=
Please get a life and stop this senseless snarky sniping.
- Dragnet - Monday, May 4, 26 @ 7:53 am:
Much ado about nothing- the typical 5% “audit” now an “investigation”? Spin much? This is a spot check not based on complaints but based on a typical audit process. Calm down.