In recent years, a handful of high-profile legal challenges have emerged in response to state laws requiring the display of religious texts in public school classrooms, particularly in conservative states. Both Texas and Louisiana have enacted legislation mandating that public schools prominently display the Ten Commandments, prompting lawsuits from parents and advocacy groups who argue that such measures violate the First Amendment. While courts have expressed skepticism toward state-sponsored religious displays in schools, ongoing litigation means the future of these laws—and the separation of church and state in public education—remains uncertain.
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Some Recent Motions for Unitary Status Seem to Be Facing Less Careful Scrutiny
Numerous school districts across the United States still operate under desegregation orders originally implemented in the decades following the Supreme Court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education, which held that racially segregated school districts were unconstitutional. 347 U.S. 483 (1954). Achieving unitary status marks the point at which a formerly racially segregated school system is deemed to have dismantled de jure segregation and, therefore, may be released from federal court supervision. Generally, school districts operating under desegregation orders not only must comply with the specific requirements set forth in those orders but also have an “affirmative duty to take
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Disparate Impact No Longer Federal Policy
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) has ceased investigating claims based solely on alleged disparate impact discrimination. Traditionally, disparate impact discrimination claims could be proven when a seemingly neutral employment policy or practice disproportionately affected members of a protected class—such as race, gender, or age—even if there was no evidence of an intent to discriminate.
This change, announced in an internal memo and effective as of September 30, 2025, follows President Trump’s April 2025 executive order abandoning the use of disparate impact as a legal theory in federal discrimination cases. Nearly all employees who might have asserted federal
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Iowa Every Student Succeeds Act Waiver Approved by U.S. Department of Education
On January 7, 2026, the U.S. Department of Education (the “Department”) approved Iowa’s “Returning Education to the States Waiver,” making Iowa the first state to receive such approval. This waiver frees Iowa from several requirements related to the Every Student Succeeds Act (“ESSA”) and thereby give it greater flexibility in how it uses certain federal education funds.Background: July 29, 2025 Dear Colleague LetterOn July 29, 2025, the Department’s Office of Elementary and Secondary Education issued a Dear Colleague letter to the chief school officers of each state, along with an accompanying press release. The letter began by noting, “[T]he
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Transgender Rights in the Courts: A Year of Landmark Decisions and Pending Questions
The legal landscape for transgender rights in the United States continues to evolve rapidly, with the U.S. Supreme Court (the “Court”) and federal courts issuing pivotal decisions. The past year has seen high-profile cases on access to gender-affirming care, participation in school sports, restroom policies, and the intersection of First Amendment rights with issues of gender identity. These cases have resulted in a patchwork of rulings and left many legal questions unresolved, with significant implications for students, educators, and families nationwide.
Supreme Court Action
Last June, in United States v. Skrmetti, the Court upheld Tennessee’s ban on gender-affirming
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Supreme Court to Hear Case on Legal Standard for Cases Brought by Students with Disabilities
The Supreme Court of the United States granted certiorari on January 17, 2025, in A.J.T. by and through A.T. v. Osseo Area Schools, Indep. Sch. Dist. No. 279, 96 F.4th 1058 (8th Cir. 2024), cert. granted sub nom. A.J.T. v. Osseo Area Schools, No. 24-249, 2025 WL 226839 (U.S. Jan. 17, 2025). At issue is whether students with disabilities are required to satisfy a “bad faith or gross misjudgment” standard when seeking relief against school districts they allege have violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) or Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act.
Factual Background
The plaintiff, referred to as Ava in court documents,
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Title IX Litigation Tracker: 2024 Title IX Regulations Vacated by District Court
The legal saga surrounding the 2024 Title IX Regulations reached a new peak earlier this month. On January 9, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky granted summary judgment in favor of the plaintiffs in Tennessee v. Cardona, one of the cases challenging the 2024 Title IX Regulations. In doing so, the court vacated the 2024 Title IX regulations nationwide.
Although the litigation in the Eastern District of Kentucky did not challenge every provision of the 2024 regulations, the court nonetheless found that the challenged provisions so permeated the regulations the regulations in their entirety
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Title IX Litigation Tracker: Where Do Things Stand Two Months After Implementation?
It has been two months since the August 1, 2024 implementation date for the 2024 Title IX regulations promulgated by the U.S. Department of Education (“Department”) and schools across the country still face uncertainty from the court cases challenging the regulations.
Since their publication, the new regulations have faced strong opposition by states and national advocacy organizations. Twenty-six states and numerous private parties have filed or joined lawsuits seeking to block the implementation and enforcement of the regulations. Though the litigation has slowed down a bit from the pace leading up to the August 1, 2024 implementation deadline, multiple key
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Title IX Litigation Tracker: Tensions Rise as Litigation Remains Active Between States and the Federal Government Over Title IX Regulations
On April 19, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education (“Department”) released the long-awaited Final Rule to Title IX. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is a statute with corresponding regulations that protect people from being excluded, denied benefits, or subject to discrimination under any education program or activity “on the basis of sex.” These regulations apply to every school at the K-12 and postsecondary level that receives federal financial assistance.
Since their publication, the 2024 Title IX regulations have faced strong opposition by states and national advocacy organizations who argue that they violate the Administrative Procedures
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OCR Releases Fact Sheet on School Districts’ Obligations under Title VI
On July 2, 2024, the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a Fact Sheet, which provides guidance to help school districts prevent and address discrimination, including harassment, based on race, color, or national origin. The Fact Sheet clarifies the legal obligations of school districts under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI), which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin in programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance.
Through the fact sheet, OCR provides guidance related to identifying and addressing harassment that may create a
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In Bed with Book Vendors: Fifth Circuit Upholds Preliminary Injunction Against Texas’ Sexual Book-Rating Law
In 2022, state and local governments banned 2,571 different books. This is more books than were subject to such bans in the previous three years combined (2,436). Most of these efforts are taken at the local level. Texas’ Restricting Explicit and Adult-Designated Educational Resources (READER) Act marked a departure from this practice and sought to ban books statewide. However, the United States Court of Appeals for Fifth Circuit (the “Fifth Circuit”) recently upheld a preliminary injunction against portions of Texas’ law.
Background on Texas’ Sexual Book-Rating Law
In June 2023, Texas Governor Greg Abbott signed the READER Act, which
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Civil Rights Data on Students’ Access to Educational Opportunities During the Pandemic Released by U.S. Department of Education
On November 15, 2023, the U.S. Department of Education’s (“Department”) Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) released new civil rights data from the 2020-2021 school year, as well as seven data reports and snapshots which provide an overview of that data. OCR also launched a redesigned Civil Rights Data Collection (“CRDC”) website that includes public-use data files, reports, and snapshots, which school districts can use to review their own and other districts’ data, available here.
OCR’s CRDC, a mandatory survey of public schools, provides the federal government and the public with data about the extent to which students have
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U.S. Department of Education Guidance and Resources about Addressing Discrimination and Harassment on the Basis of National Origin
The Biden Administration has made concentrated efforts to address the rise in reports of antisemitic, Islamophobic, and other hate-based or bias-based incidents in schools and on college campuses since the beginning of the Israel-Hamas conflict. On November 7, 2023, the U.S. Department of Education’s (“Department”) Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) issued a Dear Colleague Letter reminding schools of their legal obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Title VI”) to provide all students with a school environment free from discrimination based on race, color, or national origin.
The Dear Colleague Letter states that OCR will
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DOJ Releases Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on Online Accessibility Requirements
On August 4, 2023, the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) published in the Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), on accessibility requirements for online and app-based services offered by state and local government entities, including public schools, community colleges, and public universities.
According to a press release from DOJ, the purpose of the proposed rule is to make online and app-based services more accessible for individuals with disabilities. The rule also aims to offer clarity to state and local governments as they shift traditionally in-person services onto virtual platforms. DOJ created a fact
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OCR Fact Sheet on Ensuring Meaningful Participation in Advanced Coursework and Specialized Programs for Students Who Are English Learners
In 2023, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) released a Fact Sheet on Ensuring Meaningful Participation in Advanced Coursework and Specialized Programs for Students Who Are English Learners (“Fact Sheet”), which is available here. The Fact Sheet provides data showing OCR found that students who are English Learners (“ELs”) have lower participation rates in specialized or advanced programs offered at elementary and secondary schools. OCR noted that schools must ensure eligibility for such programs, such as evaluation and testing procedures, do not screen out ELs because of their limited English proficiency, unless a program requires
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Anticipating Regulations on Athletics Opportunities Under Title IX: A Look Back at 2023 Guidance from OCR
In April 2023, the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) released a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) on Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs and Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams. The final rule is expected to be released in spring 2024. For highlights from the Department’s NPRM, see our blog post available here.
Last winter, the Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released three resources to support equal opportunity in athletics under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX). OCR designed the documents to help
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