Trump Team Targets ‘Protected’ Predators

The Trump administration is threatening to cut millions in federal funding from school districts across the country that have been shielding sexually abusive teachers and ignoring federal sex discrimination law.

Story Snapshot

The Department of Education started termination proceedings against Maine’s K-12 federal funding and referred the case to the Department of Justice for ongoing Title IX violations.
Five Northern Virginia school districts were placed on reimbursement status for over $50 million in federal funds and labeled “high-risk” for refusing to follow Title IX rules.
Jefferson County Public Schools in Colorado received a final warning for allowing male students into female sports, bathrooms, and overnight accommodations.
Nine new investigations were opened in North Carolina, Michigan, and Maryland over allegations that schools allowed males into girls’ sports or private facilities.

Federal Government Puts Schools on Notice

The Department of Education marked the end of its second annual Title IX Month in June 2026 with a major enforcement recap. The department’s Office for Civil Rights took action against school districts in Maine, Kansas, Virginia, and Colorado for refusing to follow Title IX — the federal law that bans sex discrimination in schools receiving federal money. The actions ranged from formal warnings to funding termination proceedings and referrals to the Department of Justice.

Maine’s entire K-12 federal funding was placed in termination proceedings. Four Kansas school districts faced accountability actions, with three of those cases referred to the Department of Justice. Five Northern Virginia school districts were put on reimbursement status for more than $50 million in federal funds and flagged as “high-risk.” Each of these districts had refused to comply with Title IX rules even after receiving proposed agreements to fix the problems.

Colorado Schools Warned, New Probes Launched Nationwide

Jefferson County Public Schools in Colorado received a final warning letter from the Department of Education. The district faces an administrative enforcement action or a Department of Justice referral for allowing male students to compete in female sports, use female bathrooms, and share overnight accommodations with female students. The department also opened nine new investigations in North Carolina, Michigan, and Maryland. All nine involve allegations that schools allowed males into girls’ sports or private facilities.

The Trump administration is enforcing the 2020 Title IX regulations, which make clear that sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking are all banned under Title IX. Education Secretary Linda McMahon has framed this crackdown as protecting students from sexual misconduct and restoring the original meaning of the law. The administration rescinded six resolution agreements it called illegal and is pushing districts to either comply or lose their federal funding.

Critics Question Scope, But Core Facts Stand

Some left-leaning groups claim the department has not done enough. A report from WorkLife Law says the Office for Civil Rights resolved zero cases of sexual harassment or assault in the first year of Trump’s second term, despite thousands of open investigations. Critics also point out that many resolved cases dealt only with procedural issues like posting training materials, not actual findings of abuse. These are fair questions about pace and focus, but they do not erase the concrete enforcement actions already taken against named districts.

The counter-argument from school districts — that they followed proper procedures and lacked “actual knowledge” of abuse — is a legal defense, not a denial that problems exist. Schools in Maine, Kansas, Virginia, and Colorado have not publicly rebutted the specific evidence cited by the Department of Education. Parents and taxpayers deserve to know that their local schools are following the law, and the federal government has the right — and the duty — to pull funding from districts that refuse to protect children. The Trump administration’s enforcement push, whatever its pace, is moving in the right direction.