by Misty Severi
The Departments of Education and Justice sent a joint letter Monday to all state attorneys general reaffirming the Trump administration’s commitment to protecting parental rights and reminding them that parents have a right to direct their child’s education.
The letter reminded the attorneys general that under federal law, parents have the right to know and be informed of the most sensitive and personal information pertaining to their children.
“Schools, districts, and states must be held accountable for violating the law. Our Departments are committed to enforcing these laws and to providing technical assistance for your office and educational agencies in your state to ensure full compliance,” the letter said.
“Under the Biden Administration, parents were the enemy. They were labeled as terrorists, targeted, and investigated by a government weaponized against them,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “That era is over. The Trump Administration is acting with unprecedented energy and purpose to restore parents’ natural rights as the primary protectors of their children.
“The Department of Education is committed to fully enforcing the [Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act] and the [Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment],” she continued. “We are grateful to the Department of Justice for partnering with us to hold rogue schools accountable … and urge all state Attorneys General to work with us in upholding the letter of the law.”
According to Harmeet K. Dhillon, assistant attorney general for civil rights, “Parents are children’s natural providers and protectors.”
“Biden-Harris DOJ labeled concerned parents as threats for exercising their right to know what was happening at their kids’ schools. This Civil Rights Division stands with parents, and we will continue to partner with the Department of Education to enforce parents’ rights under federal law,” she said.
The departments are also taking action against the Los Angeles Unified School District for policies that require staff to keep sensitive information hidden from parents, including the child’s “self-professed” gender identity.
Federal privacy laws safeguard parents’ rights to access their children’s education records, seek amendments to those records, and exercise control over the disclosure of personally identifiable information.
The PPRA, which is a federal privacy law, requires schools to provide notification and attain written parental consent when conducting surveys and evaluations that ask students for certain sensitive and private information such as sex behaviors and attitudes, religious beliefs and mental and psychological problems.
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Misty Severi is a reporter for Just the News. Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network and contributed to this story.
