US Education Dept. Probes Smith College

The United States — United States Department of Education has launched an investigation into Smith College, an all-women's institution, over its policy of admitting transgender women. The probe, initiated on May 5, 2026, by the department's Office of Civil Rights, will determine if Smith College violated Title IX, a 1972 law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in education. The Donald Trump administration's stance is that Title IX's single-sex exception applies only to biological sex, not gender identity. This investigation stems from a complaint filed in June 2025 by the conservative legal group Defending Education. Kimberly Richey, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, stated that an all-women's college admitting biological males loses its meaning. Smith College, which has admitted transgender women since 2015, confirmed the investigation but declined further comment. Critics, like Shannon Minter of the National Center for LGBTQ Rights, view this as government overreach. The outcome could have significant implications for other women's colleges like Wellesley College and Bryn Mawr College that also admit transgender women, potentially affecting their federal funding and institutional policies.