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Policy across Tri-Valley school districts make it abundantly clear — students have state-supported protections for attributes including their identities, even as federal civil rights law dissipates.
State law allows students to use facilities and participate in sports that align with their gender identity.
Meanwhile, Title IX — the federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in education programs and activities receiving federal monies — dropped explicit protection this year for gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, sex characteristics and pregnancy.
Since the change to Title IX, the U.S. government has pursued an ongoing lawsuit against the California Department of Education and high school sports association California Interscholastic Federation for their alleged violation of Title IX.
“While there have been federal changes, our students in public schools are still protected by strong state laws and have local recourse if they have been the victim of harassment or discrimination,” said Lainie Pascall, education chair of LGBTQ+ advocacy group PFLAG Tri-Valley.
“However, rolling back Title IX protections nationally sends the message that LGBTQIA+ students’ rights can be tossed aside to score political points. It emboldens bullies and puts LGBTQIA+ students at increased risk of harassment,” Pascall added.
Nation sways one way
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 states, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance”.
The U.S. Department of Education may issue rules to make effective Title IX’s prohibition on sex discrimination, consistent with the objectives of the statute, according to its website.
In April 2024, the ED under then-president Joe Biden issued a final rule amending the regulations implementing Title IX in part to clarify that sex discrimination includes discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation and gender identity.
The 2024 Title IX regulations took effect Aug. 1, 2024, but its implementation was blocked in about half of the states.
Just months later on Jan. 9, 2025, a federal district court issued a decision vacating the 2024 Title IX regulations. The decision meant 2024 Title IX regulations and resources became ineffective in all jurisdictions, according to the ED website.
Title IX was reverted to its 2020 regulations, which does not include specific language referring to sexual harassment based on gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, sex characteristics or pregnancy.
Everyone, regardless of demographic, personal characteristics or identity, is entitled to the same protections against sexual harassment, according to the 2020 final rule.
A closer look at two examples in the final rule reveals the nuance of Title IX protections.
Sexual harassment directed at gay or lesbian students that is “sufficiently serious to limit or deny a student’s ability to participate in or benefit from the school’s program” is prohibited by Title IX, according to the 2020 final rule.
“If students heckle another student with comments based on the student’s sexual orientation (e.g. ‘gay students are not welcome at this table in the cafeteria’), but their actions do not involve conduct of a sexual nature, their actions would not be sexual harassment covered by Title IX”, according to the 2020 Title IX final rule.
The regulations provide the best protections for all people in a federally funded educational program or activity who experience sex discrimination, including sexual harassment, the ED states in the final rule.
On Feb. 5, an executive order by President Donald Trump — dubbed “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports” — stated U.S. policy to rescind all funds from educational programs that “deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities, which results in the endangerment, humiliation, and silencing of women and girls and deprives them of privacy”.
The executive order also states that the U.S. opposes “male competitive participation in women’s sports more broadly, as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity and truth”.
California backs its law, and the dispute lands in court
Despite the rollback of Title IX coverage, state protections remain.
California education code protections include the Sex Equity in Education Act, which permits students to participate in sex-segregated school programs and activities, including athletics and competitions, and use facilities consistent with their gender identity, regardless of the gender listed on the student’s records.
In accordance with state law, CIF permits students to participate in programs and activities consistent with their gender identity, according to CIF director of media Rebecca Brutlag.
“The CIF provides students with the opportunity to belong, connect, and compete in education-based experiences in compliance with California law,” Brutlag told the Weekly.
Additionally, the state’s education code prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender, gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation as well as disability, nationality, race or ethnicity, religion or any other characteristic that is contained in the definition of hate crimes including immigration status. The code applies to programs and activities at educational institutions that receive or benefit from state financial assistance or enroll pupils who receive state student financial aid.
Each local educational agency is responsible for following the state laws in addition to Title IX requirements, according to the CDE website.
In the Livermore Valley Joint Unified School District, Pleasanton Unified School District and Dublin Unified School District, board policy prohibits sex discrimination and sex-based harassment targeted at any student, based on the student’s actual or perceived sex; sex stereotypes; sex characteristics; sexual orientation; gender; gender identity; gender expression; pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy or lactation, including related medical conditions or recovery as well as parental, marital and family status.
In a recent move CIF considered consistent with California law, including education code, the association announced a pilot entry process in May for the 2025 CIF State Track and Field Championships.
Under the pilot, CIF invited any “biological” female student-athlete to compete in the championships if they “would have earned the next qualifying mark for one of their section’s automatic qualifying entries in the CIF state meet, and did not achieve the CIF state at-large mark in the finals at their section meet”, according to a May 27 statement by CIF officials.
“The CIF believes this pilot entry process achieves the participation opportunities we seek to afford our student-athletes,” CIF officials said in a statement.
But Pascall considers the pilot policy discriminatory, as it singles out trans students and makes their identities public in violation of California law.
“LGBTQIA+ students do not give up their right to privacy and dignity simply because they play sports or attend a public school,” Pascall said. “California can, and should hold the line to protect students when federal leadership has failed.”
Following investigations of CDE and CIF, the ED’s Office for Civil Rights announced in a June 25 statement deeming both were disobeying Title IX.
“The state must swiftly come into compliance with Title IX or face the consequences that follow.”
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon
“California has actively prevented equality of opportunity by allowing males in girls’ sports and intimate spaces”, the ED Office for Civil Rights officials said in a statement.
“The Trump Administration will relentlessly enforce Title IX protections for women and girls, and our findings today make clear that California has failed to adhere to its obligations under federal law,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement. “The state must swiftly come into compliance with Title IX or face the consequences that follow.”
The federal government filed a lawsuit July 9 against CDE and CIF in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California over allegedly violating Title IX.
The U.S. seeks a judgment granting declaratory, injunctive and damages relief for the alleged violations of Title IX and the federal funding contracts the defendants entered with the promise of Title IX compliance and its implementing regulations.
“This lawsuit is a cruel and baseless political stunt,” Tony Hoang, executive director of the statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization Equality California, said in a statement. “This is not about fairness in sports — it is about erasing trans people from public life.”
“Transgender youth are not a threat, but they continue to be targeted by the Trump Administration in a coordinated campaign of hate and misinformation,” Hoang added.
Tri-Valley districts wade through uneven guidance
Mirroring contention at the state and federal level, the subject of LGBTQ+ students and sports participation arose at the LVJUSD Board of Education regular meeting Aug. 12 during public comment.
On one side, three commenters suggested that transgender female students have an unfair advantage in competitions with cisgender female students. A fourth commenter shared this opinion and wrote his opposition to the board.
Among the commenters opposing transgender females’ participation in girls’ sports was Moms for Liberty, Contra Costa County chapter chair Lisa Disbrow.
Moms of Liberty is a conservative political organization that advocates for parents to “defend their parental rights at all levels of government”, according to their mission statement.
“There are no trans people,” Disbrow said during the meeting. “There are females (and) there are males who have a psychology that they want to identify as the other sex.”
The district’s permission of students to participate in sports based on gender identity will be overturned because of Title IX, Disbrow added.
Moms of Liberty does not express the viewpoint of the Livermore community, public commenter Joanne Morrison said.
“What all kids need to learn is tolerance for those who are different from themselves.”
Joanne Morrison
Morrison was among the two public commenters to voice support for students participating in the sport aligned with their gender identity. A third commenter submitted their agreement via letter to the board.
“Parents can teach their kids whatever they like at home or in their places of worship, but it does not belong in public school curriculum,” Morrison said. “What all kids need to learn is tolerance for those who are different from themselves.”
Another public commenter expressed general support for Livermore being a welcoming place for all.
Prior to the meeting Aug. 12, the district planned to agendize a Title IX discussion.
“After careful consideration, we will not be agendizing this item at this time,” LVJUSD Superintendent Torie Gibson said in a statement. “The issue of gender identity and participation in school athletics is currently under legal review at the national level, with conflicting court rulings and an expected U.S. Supreme Court decision to provide clarity.”
“Given the unsettled legal landscape, our district is required to follow the law as it stands — regardless of personal beliefs or viewpoints,” Gibson added.
The district is committed to complying with all applicable laws, including Title IX, and continues to monitor guidance from the ED, the CDE and CIF, according to Gibson.
Within neighboring Dublin, DUSD rescinded an administrative regulation this spring regarding Title IX sex discrimination grievance procedures that had been developed in accordance with the 2024 Title IX regulations.
“With the rescission of the 2024 regulations, these administrative regulations are now misaligned with federal requirements,” according to the March 11 DUSD agenda item prepared by assistant superintendent of human resources Heather Campos.
“To ensure compliance, we must cancel the 2024 regulations and revert back to the 2020 standards,” the agenda states.
“While recent changes to Title IX may alter federal protections, our dedication does not waver,” DUSD assistant superintendent of educational services Matt Campbell told the Weekly. “We are firmly committed to protecting all students from discrimination, including that based on sexual orientation and gender identity.”
DUSD will continue to safeguard student rights through other means such as the uniform complaint process and general complaint procedures, Campbell added.
Meanwhile, Pleasanton has not completed the process of updating its board policies to align with current Title IX regulations, according to PUSD spokesperson Susanne Frey.
The district is currently reviewing updated model policies that the California School Board Association released in June 2025, Frey added.
“Although federal regulations narrowed in 2025, California law continues to fully protect our students regardless of the federal rollback,” Frey said.
A complaint alleging harassment and discrimination on the basis of gender identity, gender expression or sexual orientation would be handled pursuant to the uniform complaint procedures, Frey explained.
“Importantly, all complaints are investigated and no protections have been lost,” Frey added.
Neither the ED nor the San Ramon Valley Unified School District responded to requests for comment.
