Federal Officials Demands Removal of Transgender Topics from Sexual Health Curricula, Multiple Jurisdictions Agree

No fewer than eleven jurisdictions and two territories have complied with a new directive from the Trump administration to eliminate references of transgender issues and the presence of transgender and non-binary individuals from a federal sex education initiative, authorities confirmed.

The administration established a recent cutoff for removing these mentions, warning the withdrawal of millions in federal funds. Nearly all of the complying states have GOP-led state legislatures and predominantly GOP governors.

Court Battles and Funding Conflicts

An additional sixteen jurisdictions and the nation's capital have initiated legal action against the administration's demand, arguing it infringes on Congressional authority, which established the $75 million sexual health initiative, known as the PREP initiative.

All states involved in the legal challenge are led by Democratic governors.

In a late Monday judicial ruling, a federal judge prevented the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which manages the program, from cutting funding to the suing jurisdictions if they refuse to comply.

“HHS fails to show that the updated requirements are justified, nor does it offer any reasonable explanation, other than pretext, for its actions,” wrote the judge, a U.S. district judge in the state. “HHS provides no evidence that it made informed determinations or took into account the legal goals.”

Program Goals and Government Scrutiny

Prep seeks to educate adolescents on positive interactions and how to avoid unplanned parenthood and the transmission of sexually transmitted infections.

In the spring, the federal government required all states and territories obtaining Prep funds to provide a version of their educational materials to HHS and its subsidiary, the Administration for Children and Families, for a health content assessment.

By late summer, the administration sent letters to numerous jurisdictions, stating that, during the review, it had found “content in the curricula that deviate from the purview of Prep’s authorizing statute.”

In particular, the administration said it had uncovered evidence of “gender ideology,” a term often used by rightwing factions to refer to the idea that gender is a changeable social construct and that transgender individuals exist.

Notable Cases of Required Alterations

The administration directed Illinois to remove a lesson that said: “Adolescents may express themselves in ways that differ from their biological sex.”

It instructed another state to delete a line from a middle school lesson that stated: “People of all sexual orientations and gender identities need to know how to prevent unplanned pregnancy and infections.”

Moreover, sex educators in many jurisdictions could no longer be told to “demonstrate acceptance and respect for all participants, irrespective of individual traits, including race, heritage, religion, economic status, orientation or gender identity,” according to the notices dispatched to states.

Official Statements and State Responses

“Oversight is imminent,” declared Andrew Gradison, interim leader of the Administration for Children and Families, in a announcement. “Government money will not be used to poison the minds of the next generation or promote dangerous ideological agendas.”

Multiple states and territories stated they would eliminate the content or had already done so. These include eleven specific states, as well as the two territories.

Another pair of jurisdictions, Alabama and South Dakota, reported their educational programs never included the terminology referenced in the government's notices.

Effects on Adolescents and Mental Health

Collectively, these jurisdictions are inhabited by more than 120k trans people between the ages of 13 and 17, according to projections from a university department.

“When the aim is to support youth and give them a secure environment, I’m not sure why we are targeting the most vulnerable youth in the community,” commented Cindi Huss, who leads an organization that provides sex education in one state.

“When the government says that there’s something incorrect about you and the educators aren’t allowed to tell you things or they have to out you to your parents – when you know that that’s not safe – that’s horrible for mental health.”

Nearly half of trans and non-binary youth seriously considered suicide in the previous twelve months, according to a 2024 survey from a suicide-prevention group. Educational backing for these youths is linked to reduced numbers of self-harm attempts, the organization discovered.

Previous Actions and Continuing Conflicts

Earlier this year, the federal government instructed a state to remove mentions to transgender topics from its educational program.

When the jurisdiction declined, the government withdrew its funding, eliminating about $12 million in federal funding and stopping sex education programs in educational institutions, youth centers and group homes for foster children.

The California health department is challenging the termination. To date, it has been unsuccessful in make up for the lost funding.

The government has additionally informed instructors who receive funding from additional national programs, the $50 million SRAE program and the $101 million Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program (TPPP), that they may not teach about “gender-related concepts.”

An early October court order blocked the administration from changing TPPP, while the latest ruling stops it from changing SRAE in the Democratic states that challenged Prep.

The ACF office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.