DENVER — The U.S. Department of Education said Thursday that Denver Public Schools violated Title IX, a federal law that bars discrimination based on sex in education, after it established all-gender bathrooms and allowed students to use facilities based on gender identity instead of biological sex.

The Department’s Office for Civil Rights opened an investigation into the district in January over changes to the restrooms at East High School, which involved redesignating a girls’ restroom as an all-gender facility. The decision was at odds with federal requirements under Title IX, officials said.

District Revised Bathroom to All-Gender Facility

Denver Public Schools created an all-gender bathroom after a student-led process and converted a restroom previously designated for girls to an all-gender space, according to district leaders. At the time, officials emphasized that the new facilities were equipped with privacy and security measures such as 12-foot-tall partitions that completely enclosed the toilets in the multi-stall bathrooms.

The federal government, however, determined the changes were a violation of Title IX. The school district “effectively denied students equal access to restrooms” and “created a hostile environment,” said Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor, who heads the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights, in a statement.

The district also added a second all-gender restroom on the same floor to help address concerns about fairness, officials noted. Students were still able to access the existing male and female bathrooms as well as use single-stall, all-gender restrooms at East High School, according to district leaders.

Federal Government Releases Resolution Plan

The Education Department shared a proposed resolution with Denver Public Schools on Thursday that outlined a series of demands the district would need to meet in order to avoid further enforcement. The federal government gave the district 10 days to respond to the proposal, which included four major conditions.

The plan from the Department of Education would require Denver Public Schools to:

Convert all all-gender multi-stall restrooms back to sex-specific facilities.

Remove policies that allow students to use bathrooms and intimate facilities on the basis of gender identity instead of biological sex.

Update all Title IX-related policies and practices to use “biology-based definitions” of “male” and “female.”

Issue a memo to schools that reiterates the need to maintain student privacy, dignity, and safety while ensuring access to bathrooms is comparable for both sexes.

The district risks enforcement action if it does not agree to the conditions within 10 days, which could include loss of federal funds.

Federal Officials Point to Privacy and Safety

Federal officials zeroed in on the privacy and safety of students in a statement from Trainor, who accused the district of rolling out policies that “endanger student safety, privacy, and dignity.”

“Denver Public Schools violated Title IX and its implementing regulations by converting a sex-segregated restroom designated for girls in East High School to an ‘all-gender’ facility and by allowing students to use the high school’s intimate facilities on the basis of their gender identity rather than their biological sex,” Trainor said.

“Denver is free to endorse a self-defeating gender ideology, but it is not free to accept federal taxpayer funds and harm its students in violation of Title IX,” Trainor continued. “The Trump Administration will work relentlessly to hold accountable school districts that harbor the ideological fanatics and policies that sully students’ educational experience with sex discrimination.”

Denver Public Schools Points to Student-Led Process

Denver Public Schools maintained that the changes to the bathrooms were developed as part of a process that was student-led, highlighting the needs and input of students who live with certain needs. The district said the creation of the new facilities was done with privacy and security as a top priority.

The district has not yet released a public response to the Education Department’s findings. Denver Public Schools has previously noted that it has offered a variety of bathroom options for students, including single-stall restrooms that can be used by anyone who wants additional privacy.

Dispute Is Part of Wider National Battle

The conflict in Denver has been part of a larger national debate over policies involving gender identity in schools. In March, President Donald Trump signed an executive order preventing transgender girls from participating on sports teams that do not align with their biological sex.

Republican members of Congress have proposed legislation to bar transgender students from using bathrooms and taking part in sports that align with their gender identity.

In recent months, the Education Department has opened a number of cases that pertain to the treatment of gender in schools and universities. For example, the Trump administration said this week that George Mason University violated federal law with illegal DEI initiatives under Title VI.