The U.S. Department of Education has launched an investigation into the Minnesota Department of Education after reports that some schools plan to use taxpayer-funded dolls with interchangeable genitalia as part of lessons on gender identity.
The federal inquiry, announced Wednesday, will examine whether Minnesota is complying with the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA), which governs parental rights regarding certain surveys, evaluations, and instructional activities in schools. The investigation stems from a complaint filed by Defending Education with the Department’s Student Privacy Policy Office, alleging that parents were not notified or given an opportunity to opt their children out of the activities.
In announcing the investigation, the Department of Education said it will review whether parents’ rights under federal law were violated. The department also argued that the use of sexually explicit dolls with young children in schools raises concerns about parental authority over their children’s education.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon criticized the program in a statement, saying, “While Governor Walz and the radical left continue to funnel taxpayer dollars to perverted ideologies that can harm children, the Trump Administration is fighting to protect children’s innocence and defend parents’ role as the first and primary decision-makers in their child’s education.”
“No four-year-old should be exposed to such material, especially without a parent’s knowledge or consent. ED will enforce the law to its fullest extent, putting parents and families firmly in the driver’s seat of their child’s education,” McMahon added.
The complaint was filed by Defending Education, whose president, Nicole Neily, welcomed the federal investigation.
“We are deeply grateful the Education Department is taking immediate action to protect Minnesota students from being subject to UMN’s appalling ‘My Gender Dolls,’” Neily said. “It is deeply perverse – and biologically false – to impress upon children that genitalia can be swapped out like Mr. Potato Head parts, with no lasting damage. And for the state to wrest control of these conversations from parents (while using their tax dollars to do so, no less) is truly insult to injury.”
The dolls, which were developed through research at the University of Minnesota and funded with taxpayer dollars, have been described as the “first-of-their-kind.” They feature interchangeable body parts and gender-neutral names, and are expected to be introduced in some educational settings beginning this fall, including for children as young as 4. According to the company behind the project, the dolls are designed as a therapeutic resource to “make gender fun” and are “built to help children tell their stories and see themselves represented.”
The Department of Education’s investigation will determine whether Minnesota’s implementation of the program complied with federal parental notification and consent requirements under the PPRA.
