On Wednesday, the Trump administration's Justice Department announced investigations into three public school districts in Michigan, focusing on whether they have included sexual orientation and gender ideology (SOGI) content in their instruction for pre-K through 12th grade. The Civil Rights Division is particularly concerned with whether parents were informed about their rights to opt their children out of such curricula and how the schools manage access to single-sex facilities, such as bathrooms and locker rooms, based on biological sex. This move highlights the administration's increased involvement in school policy disputes, particularly around issues of parental rights.

In conjunction with these investigations, the Justice Department is seeking to intervene in a federal lawsuit challenging a race-based admissions program and funding model in Los Angeles. This lawsuit has raised critical questions about equity and fairness in educational access, and the administration's involvement indicates a broader agenda to influence school governance and curriculum across the United States. The statement from Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon emphasizes a commitment to enforcing parental rights under Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination in education.

The implications of these actions extend beyond the immediate investigations, arguably reshaping the landscape of educational policy concerning gender and race in the US. The investigations and the lawsuit intervention are likely to erupt further debates surrounding civil rights issues in education, as the Trump administration's stance could provoke resistance from various stakeholders, including educators, parents, and civil rights advocates. This intensifying focus on personal beliefs in educational contexts raises significant questions about the future of curricula that address gender and race in American schools.