Warner, Kaine slam Trump administration for threat of federal funding cuts to Alexandria schools
U.S. Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine condemned the Trump administration Monday for beginning the process to cut federal funding from Alexandria City Public Schools and four other Northern Virginia districts over their refusal to change transgender student policies.
The senators released a joint statement Monday as the U.S. Department of Education began suspending federal aid to the districts after they rejected demands to rescind policies allowing transgender students to use facilities matching their gender identity.
“Disastrous Economic Policies”
“The Trump Administration destroyed the federal Department of Education and forced out an exceptional president at the University of Virginia. Now it wants to punish high-performing, award-winning schools districts in Northern Virginia,” Warner and Kaine said in their statement.
The senators tied the education funding cuts to broader economic concerns, saying: “You can’t have a strong economy without strong schools, so add this to the list of President Trump’s disastrous economic policies, alongside his sweeping tariffs and rolling back of investment incentives that were creating tens of thousands of jobs in Virginia.”
Congressional Support for Districts
Rep. Don Beyer, D-Va., who represents Alexandria, also criticized the federal action Monday, praising local education leaders for “following the law and ensuring a strong start to the year for all Northern Virginia students, as opposed to joining the Trump Administration’s political stunts.”
The congressional pushback comes as Alexandria and neighboring districts face potential loss of millions in federal education funding for maintaining policies the Trump administration says violate Title IX civil rights law.
Federal Enforcement Underway
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Communications Madi Biedermann told WTOP Monday that the Education Department will now begin “the suspension or termination of federal financial assistance to these divisions.”
“The Virginia districts will have to defend their embrace of radical gender ideology over ensuring the safety of their students,” Biedermann said.
Alexandria’s Rejection
Alexandria rejected the federal demands Friday, with School Board Chair Dr. Michelle Rief and Superintendent Dr. Melanie Kay-Wyatt saying the district “disagrees with the legal analysis in the Letter of Findings, and cannot agree to the VRA currently proposed by OCR.”
The district maintained that its current policies allowing transgender students to use facilities matching their gender identity “will remain in place” despite federal threats.
Regional Resistance
Alexandria joins Loudoun County, which voted 6-3 against compliance Tuesday, and Arlington Public Schools in refusing federal demands.
The funding cuts affect some of Virginia’s highest-performing school districts as classes began Monday across Northern Virginia, with Alexandria students returning to school as the federal enforcement action commenced.
The legal dispute is expected to continue toward potential U.S. Supreme Court review of transgender student rights nationwide.