President Donald Trump’s Department of Education is set to investigate California’s public school athletic association, the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), for allegedly failing to comply with his executive order banning transgender athletes from competing in girls’ sports. The California Family Council (CFC) has expressed support for this decision, stating, “The California Family Council celebrates the U.S. Department of Education’s decision to initiate a Title IX investigation into the CIF for its role in permitting males to compete in girls’ sports. For too long, CIF has disregarded the concerns of female athletes, parents, and coaches, prioritizing radical gender ideology over fairness, safety, and the integrity of women’s athletics. This investigation is a vital step toward restoring justice in high school sports.”
CFC Outreach Director Sophia Lorey shared her emotional response to the Trump administration’s involvement, saying, “As a four-year CIF varsity athlete and a three-year captain, I have been advocating for equal athletic opportunities for all girls. CIF’s policies have undermined decades of hard-fought victories for female athletes, and it’s time for them to be held accountable for the harm they’ve caused. CIF has ignored these injustices for too long, and we hope this investigation will compel them to prioritize the safety and fairness of girls over the feelings of confused boys.” Lorey has been an advocate for girls impacted by the inclusion of transgender athletes in California for three years.
In the fall, she intervened at Martin Luther King High School in Riverside, California, during a national controversy involving a transgender athlete who took a varsity spot from a female cross-country runner. That athlete, Taylor Starling, and her teammate Kaitlyn Slavin responded by creating T-shirts that read “Save Girls Sports” and wearing them to school. They subsequently filed a lawsuit against the school district after administrators allegedly reprimanded them for their shirts, comparing them to swastikas.
Starling’s father, Ryan Starling, expressed gratitude to the Trump administration for its investigation into the state’s noncompliance with the executive order, stating, “Our family can’t thank President Trump enough. We are thrilled to see common sense prevailing. This has been a long-fought battle for many people on various fronts. While the struggle continues in California, we are making progress each day thanks to courageous individuals like Taylor and Kaitlyn.”
Even school administrators within the CIF jurisdiction are welcoming the Department of Education’s investigation. Chino Unified School Board President Sonja Shaw has called for accountability regarding the CIF’s actions.
