The U.S. Department of Education on Monday launched an investigation into Smith College, a women’s college in Massachusetts, over its admissions of transgender women.
The investigation by the department’s Office for Civil Rights will examine whether the college violated the 1972 Title IX law prohibiting sex discrimination in education.
It is the latest move by the Trump administration to limit the rights of transgender people in the United States. The Trump administration’s rhetoric often includes attacks on transgender people. The government says Title IX bars transgender women from competing in girls’ sports, suing several states and launching investigations into schools that don’t comply.
Smith College, a private liberal arts college founded in 1871, has joined many other elite women’s colleges in admitting transgender women since 2015.
In 2013, the school’s admissions policy drew attention and sparked activity on campus after a transgender high school senior was denied admission because his gender identity did not match what was listed on a financial aid form.
Its website now says that “any applicant who self-identifies as female; cis, trans and non-binary women” is eligible to apply to the school. Advocates have supported the shift for years, saying women’s colleges were founded to educate those marginalized because of their gender.
As of fall 2023, the number of women’s colleges in the United States has dropped from more than 200 to just 30, according to the Alliance for Women’s Colleges and Universities.
A spokesman for the college did not immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.
Title IX contains an exception that allows colleges to be all-male or all-female, but it only applies “based on biological sex differences, not subjective gender identity,” according to a press release from the Department of Education.
The investigation into Smith College stems from a complaint filed with the Office for Civil Rights in June 2025 by the conservative legal group Defending Education.
“DE and its members oppose gender discrimination in America’s K-12 schools and higher education institutions,” the organization said in a press release.
During the Biden administration, new Title IX regulations were enacted to prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. However, the rules were struck down in January 2025 by a federal judge who found them legally flawed.
