وزارت آموزش آمریکا تحقیق تحت Title IX را درباره سیاست پذیرش زنان تراجنسیتی در Smith College، کالج زنان مستقر در ماساچوست، آغاز کرده است.
The U.S. Department of Education has opened a civil rights investigation into Smith College over the Massachusetts women’s college’s policy of admitting transgender women, escalating the Trump administration’s scrutiny of how schools interpret sex discrimination law.
The department announced Monday that its Office for Civil Rights will examine whether Smith violated Title IX, the 1972 federal law barring sex discrimination in education programs that receive federal funds. The department argues that Title IX’s exception allowing single-sex colleges applies on the basis of biological sex, not gender identity.
The investigation puts one of the country’s best-known women’s colleges at the center of a broader federal fight over transgender rights in education, including access to women’s spaces and athletic teams. An investigation does not by itself establish a violation, and it was not immediately clear from the supplied sources what timeline federal officials will follow.
Smith’s admissions policy says the college considers applicants who self-identify as women, including cisgender, transgender and nonbinary women. CBS News reported that Smith, a private liberal arts school founded in 1871, has admitted transgender women since 2015.
In a statement provided to Fox News Digital, Smith said it had received notice of the Office for Civil Rights investigation. “The College is fully committed to its institutional values, including compliance with civil rights laws,” the statement said. “The College does not comment on pending government investigations.”
The department said the inquiry will look at Smith’s admission of transgender women and their access to women-only spaces, including dormitories, bathrooms, locker rooms and athletic teams. Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey said in the department’s announcement that “an all-women’s college loses all meaning if it is admitting biological males,” adding that the administration sees privacy, fairness and compliance concerns under federal law.
CBS News reported that the Smith investigation stems from a complaint filed with the Office for Civil Rights in June 2025 by Defending Education, a conservative legal group. The group said in a release that it opposes sex discrimination in K-12 schools and higher education institutions.
The dispute follows a sharp federal policy shift. During the Biden administration, Title IX regulations were issued to protect against discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. CBS News reported that a federal judge struck down those regulations in January 2025, citing legal shortcomings. The Trump administration has since argued that Title IX bars transgender women from women’s sports and has sued states and opened school investigations tied to that position.
The case also arrives as women’s colleges have become far less common. According to the Women’s College Coalition, cited by CBS News, the number of women’s colleges in the United States has fallen from more than 200 to 30 as of fall 2023.
The next step is the federal civil rights review, which will determine whether Smith’s admissions and access policies comply with the Education Department’s current reading of Title IX.
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