House Committee on Education and the Workforce demands Chicago Public Schools superintendent Macquline King answer concerns that schools hide gender transition information from parents.
Committee Cites Policies and Supreme Court Ruling
In a letter obtained by Fox News Digital, Rep. Tim Walberg, R‑Mich., wrote to King after her June 10 testimony on “Breaking Trust: Attacks on Parental Rights, Inappropriate Content, and Legal Abuses in America’s Schools.”
Walberg said CPS’s interim guidelines and a “Gender Diversity Toolkit” forbid staff from disclosing a student’s transgender status or gender‑nonconforming presentation without the student’s permission and do not require parental consent.
The congressman warned that the vague language could block teachers from communicating with parents, violating the Supreme Court’s Mirabelli v. Bonta decision, which held that parents have primary authority over their children’s upbringing and education.
Supreme Court Decision Impacts Policy
The high court ruled in Mirabelli v. Bonta that a California law barring schools from informing parents about a child’s gender identity likely violates the First Amendment’s free exercise clause and the Fourteenth Amendment’s substantive due process right, though the case remains pending at the Ninth Circuit.
Walberg noted that King deflected a question from Rep. Bob Onder, R‑Mo., about whether CPS had updated policies to align with Mirabelli, replying only that “the parent, the families, the student…and the school would all be in communication.”
Committee Demands Documentation
Walberg and the committee request all guidance documents, written complaints and professional‑development training related to gender and sexuality, with a response deadline of Sept. 11.
In a statement to Fox News Digital, Walberg said, “Parents deserve the right to know what goes on in their child’s classroom and have a say in decisions regarding their child — that is commonsense and that right doesn’t go away at the schoolhouse door.”
He added, “Our Committee will always stand up for parents’ rights and defend their God‑given role in their children’s lives and education.”
Fox News Digital has not yet received a comment from Chicago Public Schools.
Lindsay Kornick, associate editor for Fox News Digital, can be reached at lindsay.kornick@fox.com or on Twitter @lmkornick.
