Brainerd School Board Discusses Title IX Policy During Work Session

A discussion among Brainerd School Board members regarding Title IX and a federal policy barring transgender athletes from participating in girls’ and women’s sports was sparked during a work session earlier this month.

On September 30, the U.S. Department of Education and Department of Health and Human Services issued a 10-day notice for Minnesota to change its Title IX policies in allowing trans athletes, threatening to cut federal funding if the state does not comply. Board members DJ Dondelinger, Stephanie Etterman, and Randy Heidmann have joined more than a hundred school board members from across Minnesota in signing a letter urging state leaders and the Minnesota State High School League to comply with the federal stance.