保守派团体正协助政府打压跨性别学生及校园中的多元化、公平与包容（DEI）政策

3月下旬，教育部长琳达·麦克马洪录制了一段视频，宣布对缅因州部分学区展开调查。这些学区允许学生在未经父母同意的情况下更改性别身份——这是特朗普政府重点打击的目标之一。

但她并非独自面对镜头。

长期从事保守派倡导工作的尼科尔·奈利（Nicole Neily）——教育捍卫组织主席——也参与其中。正是奈利领导的机构仔细审查了学区网站，寻找性别计划的证据，他们称之为“父母排斥政策”。麦克马洪在致缅因州教育专员彭德·梅金（Pender Makin）的信中，赞扬教育捍卫组织通过公开记录请求收集文件，并提及两家保守派网站《联邦党人》（The Federalist）和《缅因电讯报》（Maine Wire）发布了该组织的调查结果。

尼利表示：我们很自豪能与您及特朗普总统站在一起，共同确保法律得到遵守，并防止学区侵犯家长的权利。

当美国教育部民权办公室（OCR）对芝加哥和弗吉尼亚州费尔法克斯的学区公平政策展开调查时，尼利（Neily）发表了类似言论。今年二月，"捍卫教育"组织就芝加哥的《黑人学生成功计划》提出投诉，该计划旨在增加黑人教师数量、改善学生行为并使教学更具文化相关性。尼利认为，这项倡议"因肤色问题剥夺了其他学生的教育机会"。

该部门发言人朱莉·哈特曼（Julie Hartman）为在新闻声明中加入倡导者的做法进行了辩护。她表示，该机构“欢迎来自外部团体的支持，并经常与这些团体合作，这些团体致力于为学生和家庭发声，并帮助那些认为自身公民权利受到侵犯的人。”尼利（Neily）未就部门的沟通策略问题作出回应。

但她只是与教育部合作推动特朗普政府教育议程的多位活动人士之一。自2月以来，教育部至少有10份宣布调查的新闻稿引用了来自8个组织的倡导者的言论。这些言论均与政府立场一致，且如同教育部长一样，在民权办公室调查团队尚未启动调查前就已预先得出结论。

7月，麦克马洪宣布对俄勒冈州跨性别学生参加女子运动队一事展开调查。新闻稿称，此次调查是由美国优先政策研究所（AFPI）的投诉引发的——该保守派智库由她担任主席长达四年，之后她便出任部长一职。

智库执行总顾问杰茜卡·哈特·斯坦曼（Jessica Hart Steinmann）在声明中表示："得益于麦克马洪部长的领导，此次调查正作为恢复女性体育平等机会的关键步骤向前推进。"

该组织曾协助制定特朗普重返白宫后的政策议程，总统还任命了其数名领导人担任内阁级别职务。目前至少有六名美国优先政策研究所（AFPI）前职员就职于教育部。前职员克雷格·特雷纳（Craig Trainor）上周卸任民权事务助理部长代理职务，正式获任住房与城市发展部高级职位。

曾在奥巴马和特朗普首届政府时期任职于民权办公室的律师杰基·沃恩兹表示，这些新闻稿给教育机构带来了巨大压力，因为它们从一开始就被推定违反了法律。她指出，该部门已从民权纠纷的中立仲裁者转变为倡导组织。

曾在民主党和共和党政府（包括特朗普首个任期）期间任职于该部门的人士表示，此类策略可能会妨碍调查人员公平收集证据的能力。

当民权办公室（OCR）启动调查时，会向被调查对象说明投诉仅是流程的起点，并不代表该部门已作出最终决定。以2020年的一起案例为例，特朗普首任任期内的民权事务代理助理部长金伯莉·里奇（Kimberly Richey）在致某学区的信函中承诺，OCR将作为「中立的事实调查者」展开工作。

吉尔·西格尔鲍姆（Jill Siegelbaum）表示：“从历史上看，无论是哪一党派执政，该部门对公开调查发表公开声明都极为谨慎。”西格尔鲍姆曾在部门总法律顾问办公室任职20年，后作为麦克马洪大规模裁员的一部分被解雇。

上周确认将再次领导OCR（光学字符识别）部门的里奇（Richey），未就置评请求作出回应。

政府盟友淡化了与倡导团体关系的重要性，并将其比作前第一夫人吉尔·拜登（Jill Biden）在2021年乔·拜登（Joe Biden）总统就职时，邀请美国教师联合会主席兰迪·温加滕（Randi Weingarten）和全国教育协会主席贝基·普林格尔（Becky Pringle）作为白宫首批官方客人的决定。吉尔·拜登曾是一名社区大学教授，也是全国教育协会的成员。

保守派自由捍卫研究所的教育与家长权利倡导者金妮·金特尔斯表示："部长与其和民主党进步精英的传声筒——兰迪·温加滕的美国教师联合会接触，不如与捍卫家长和学生权益的'捍卫教育'组织合作更为明智。"她补充道："妮基·尼利和'捍卫教育'组织一直积极挑战腐败现状，放大家长呼声并要求问责。"

该部门采取的这些行动旨在彻底调整公民权利办公室的职能并大幅缩减其规模。麦克马洪称，该办公室此前一直专注于‘跨性别意识形态和其他进步事业’，且‘混淆了旨在保护学生的法律执行’。今年三月，她解雇了约250名员工，并关闭了12个地区办公室中的7个，这些举措目前仍在法庭上受到质疑。上周末，在又一轮裁员后，一名收到解雇通知的律师表示，另有三个办公室被关闭，影响了约45名员工。

曾于奥巴马和拜登政府时期执掌民权办公室（OCR）的凯瑟琳·拉蒙驳斥了此类对比。她将教育工会主席们受到的热烈欢迎比作政治活动，强调民权办公室本应保持中立。拉蒙指出，特朗普政府通过引用部门官员及其盟友的指控性言论启动调查，实则是暗中干预公平性。她回忆称，在拜登任内，调查结果往往令最初提出投诉的维权人士失望。

她表示："在我任职期间，遇到过许多投诉内容骇人听闻的案件。但经过调查后，我们发现事实并非如此。调查工作往往如此——起初你以为案件会朝某个方向发展，深入调查后却发现走向截然不同。这正是调查员的职责所在。"

本报道由美国非营利性独立新闻机构The 74制作，该机构专注于教育领域。

Conservative groups are aiding the administrations crackdown on transgender students and DEI in schools

I n late March, education secretary Linda McMahon recorded a video to announce an investigation into Maine school districts that allow students to change their gender identity without their parents permission C a key target of the Trump administration.

But she didnt face the camera alone.

She was joined by Nicole Neily, a longtime conservative advocate and president of Defending Education. It was Neilys organization that scoured district websites for evidence of gender plans C what they call parental exclusion policies. In a letter to Maine education commissioner Pender Makin, McMahon gave Defending Education credit for gathering the documents through public records requests and referenced two conservative websites, The Federalist and Maine Wire , that published the groups findings.

Were proud to stand with you and President Trump as you ensure that the law is being followed and that the school districts do not infringe on parents rights, Neily said.

Neily offered similar quotes when the Department of Educations office for civil rights (OCR) opened investigations into school district equity policies in Chicago and Fairfax, Virginia. In February, Defending Education filed a complaint about Chicagos Black Student Success Plan , which aims to increase the number of Black teachers, improve student behavior and make instruction more culturally relevant. Neily argues the initiative denies other students educational opportunity because of the color of their skin.

Julie Hartman, a department spokesperson, defended the inclusion of advocates in press statements. She said the agency welcomes support from C and has often worked with C outside groups who want to advocate for students and families and help those who believe that their civil rights have been violated. Neily did not respond to questions about the departments communications strategy.

But she is just one of several activists working with the department to advance the Trump administrations education agenda. Since February, at least 10 department press releases announcing investigations have featured quotes from advocates representing eight organizations. They all echo the administrations position and, like the secretary, stake out conclusions before the OCR team has begun investigating.

In July, McMahon announced an investigation into transgender students playing on girls sports teams in Oregon. The probe, the press release said, was prompted by a complaint from the America First Policy Institute (AFPI) C the conservative thinktank she chaired for four years before she became secretary.

In the release, Jessica Hart Steinmann, the thinktanks executive general counsel, said: Thanks to Secretary McMahons leadership, this investigation is moving forward as a vital step toward restoring equal opportunity in womens athletics.

The organization helped set the agenda for Trumps return to the White House and the president appointed several of its leaders to cabinet-level positions . At least six former AFPI staffers work at the education department. Former staffer Craig Trainor served as acting assistant secretary for civil rights until last week, when he was confirmed to a top position at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

The press releases create a significant pressure point on educational institutions because theyre presumed to have violated the law from the get-go, said Jackie Wernz, an attorney who worked in the civil rights office during the Obama and first Trump administrations. The department, she said, has changed from a neutral arbiter of civil rights disputes to an advocacy organization.

Those who have worked at the department during both Democratic and Republican administrations, including in Trumps first term, say such tactics could hinder investigators ability to gather evidence fairly.

When OCR opens investigations, it assures subjects that a complaint is just the beginning of the process and doesnt mean the department has reached a decision. In one case from 2020, for example , Kimberly Richey, acting assistant secretary for civil rights during Trumps first term, committed in a letter to a school district that OCR would act as a neutral fact-finder.

Historically on both sides of the aisle, the department has been extremely cautious about making public statements about open investigations, said Jill Siegelbaum, who spent 20 years in the departments general counsels office before she was let go as part of McMahons mass layoffs.

Richey, who was confirmed last week to once again lead OCR, did not respond to requests for comment.

Administration allies downplayed the significance of the relationships with advocacy groups, comparing them to former first lady Jill Bidens decision to host Randi Weingarten, the America Federation of Teachers president, and Becky Pringle, the National Education Association president, as the first official White House guests when President Joe Biden took office in 2021. A former community college professor, Jill Biden is an NEA member.

Its far better for the secretary to engage with Defending Education, which champions parents and students, than with Randi Weingartens AFT, a mouthpiece for the Democratic Partys progressive elite, said Ginny Gentles, an education and parental rights advocate at the conservative Defense of Freedom Institute. Nicki Neily and Defending Education have aggressively challenged the corrupt status quo, amplifying parents voices and demanding accountability.

The actions by the department are among several designed to radically repurpose and drastically downsize a civil rights office that McMahon said had been focused on transgender ideology and other progressive causes and that muddled the enforcement of laws designed to protect students. In March, she laid off roughly 250 employees and shuttered seven of 12 regional offices, moves that are still being challenged in court. Over the weekend, after another round of layoffs, one attorney who received notice that she had lost her job said three more offices had been closed, affecting roughly 45 additional staff members.

Catherine Lhamon, who ran OCR during the Obama and Biden administrations, dismissed the comparisons. She likened the warm welcome for the teachers union presidents to a political event. OCR, by contrast, is supposed to be neutral. By opening investigations with accusatory quotations from department officials and their allies, she said, the Trump administration is putting its thumb on the scale. Under Biden, she recalled, investigations frequently led to outcomes that disappointed the advocates who brought the initial complaints.

There were lots of cases during my time where the complaints were appalling. Then wed investigate and find that they werent, she said. You might think at the beginning of a case youre going in one direction and then when you investigate, you find youre going in another. Thats the job of an investigator.

This story was produced by the 74, a non-profit, independent news organization focused on education in the US