New York, NY; February 3, 2025—On Friday, Trump’s Education Department (ED) officially returned to the 2020 Title IX Rule. This announcement aligns ED with federal court rulings that found the 2024 Biden Title IX rule unlawful.
In particular, the Dear Colleague Letter cites the January 9, 2025, Kentucky court decision preventing the Biden rule from taking effect nationwide, reinstating Trump’s Title IX rule throughout the country. Trump's rule protects due process and recognizes that “sex” is a biological reality, not a "social construct," called gender, which ideologues continually redefine.
The Letter also noted Trump’s recent Executive Order, Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism,and that “every court presented with a challenge to the [Biden 2024 Title IX Rule] has indicated that it is unlawful.”
“More good news from Trump,” said Teresa R. Manning, Policy Director at the National Association of Scholars. “In case any doubt existed, the Trump administration today clarified its wholehearted agreement with recent federal court opinions that have thrown out the 2024 Biden Title IX rule as both unconstitutional and illegal."
The National Association of Scholars has long spoken out against the abuse of Title IX—including the disastrous rule proposed by the Biden administration. President Richard Nixon signed Title IX into law as part of the Education Amendments of 1972. The law protects students from sex discrimination in schools receiving federal funding. Over the years, the weaponization of Title IX by ideologues has seen the law redefined to address “sexual discrimination” as “sexual harassment.” The use of “Dear Colleague Letters,” during the Obama Administration further expanded the power of school administrators to adjudicate sexual harassment cases—effectively gutting the due process of accused students. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos reversed much of the unconstitutional expansion of Title IX policy in 2020, setting the stage for the Biden Education Department’s attempt to radically redefine Title IX’s purpose.
If the 2024 Biden Title IX Rule had taken effect, due process would have been gutted yet again—those accused of sexual misconduct would have had no access to live hearings or cross-examinations. Additionally, the Biden rule would have imposed a redefinition of “sex” to include gender ideology and sexual orientation.
Manning continued, "Trump’s Education team will instead enforce the 2020 Title IX rule and protect due process for those accused of Title IX violations—including the rights to see evidence, to be presumed innocent, and to cross examination and live hearings at the college level.”
The letter cites not only the federal court jurisprudence but also Trump's recent Executive Order on gender. Trump rejects the recent tinkering with the definition of "sex" to include "gender,” clarifying instead that “sex” is an “objective, immutable characteristic of being born male or female, as outlined in the 2020 Title IX rule.”
“Biden’s policies would have allowed federal officials to impose gender ideology in American schools. That won't be happening under President Trump.” Manning concluded, "With Friday’s Dear Colleague Letter from the Education Department, Trump restores sound law and common sense to Title IX Administration in American education."
NAS is a network of scholars and citizens united by a commitment to academic freedom, disinterested scholarship, and excellence in American higher education. Membership in NAS is open to all who share a commitment to these broad principles. NAS publishes a journal and has state and regional affiliates. Visit NAS at www.nas.org.
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If you would like more information about this issue, please contact Teresa Manning at [email protected].
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