Dakota Ridge High School gym, part of Jeffco Public Schools in Colorado, where parents allege a transgender player is on the girls’ junior varsity volleyball team while eight girls were cut from the roster. (Jeffco Public Schools parent)
Four parents of Dakota Ridge High School athletes are demanding answers from Jeffco Public Schools in Colorado after they said a transgender player was allowed to participate on the girls’ junior varsity volleyball team while eight girls were cut from the roster.
One mother, who spoke with Fox News Digital on the condition of anonymity, said her daughter had previously made the sophomore team as a freshman and was devastated after being cut this season.
"My daughter played volleyball at Dakota Ridge High School in Colorado’s Jeffco Public Schools during her freshman and sophomore years," the mother said. "Being part of that team meant everything to her. This year, about 35 plus girls, including my daughter, didn’t make the team, while a transgender player did. She was crushed, and as her mother, I feel her opportunity was taken from her. This is why Title IX protections in sports are so important for our girls."
Dynamic action of a volleyball match showing two teams competing fiercely near the net. (Getty Images)
Another told Fox News Digital that her family open-enrolled her junior daughter at Dakota Ridge specifically because of its volleyball program and that her daughter hopes to play the sport in college.
The mother said her daughter, a setter, attended a paid summer camp and additional training with the school program before coaches asked her shortly before tryouts to switch to right-side hitting, a position she had never played. She was ultimately cut from the program.
"For her, this meant losing a season of development, time with her teammates, and something she had built much of her high-school experience around," the mother said.
She said the coach later explained in writing that other athletes "demonstrated more consistency in the areas needed" and that her daughter "was beat out." She said her family subsequently learned that an athlete selected to play setter on the girls’ team is transgender, prompting questions about whether that athlete’s inclusion affected her daughter's opportunity.
"I cannot establish from the information available to me that my daughter would otherwise have made the team, or that her position change was connected to the other athlete’s placement," the mother said. "Those are questions I am asking the district to investigate through the eligibility records, tryout evaluations, and coaching communications."
"Across the country, this issue is discussed as a policy debate," she added. "For our family, it is personal: a teenage girl lost the chance to play the sport she loves at her school. We deserve a transparent examination of what happened and whether her rights were protected."
A third Dakota Ridge parent said the girls expected a fair tryout process and that the same eligibility standards should apply to every athlete.
California girls' track and field athletes protest trans inclusion in girls' sports at a postseason meet at Yorba Linda High School on Saturday, May 10, 2025. (Courtesy of Sophia Lorey)
"What makes this especially difficult to accept is that seven junior girls were cut from the team, any one of whom could have earned and held that roster spot," the parent continued. "These girls worked hard, dedicated their time, and put themselves through the tryout process with the expectation that the selection process would be fair and that the same standards would apply to every girl athlete. If it is determined that an ineligible player was permitted to participate, I believe there must be meaningful accountability."
"The program should be disqualified for the 26-27 season, and all the coaches and Athletic Director should be subject to dismissal or other appropriate disciplinary action based on the findings of a thorough investigation," the parent added. "Allowing a situation like this to stand without consequences sends a troubling message to the girls who were told there was no place for them on the JV team. As parents, we deserve transparency about how this decision was made, what policies were followed, and what steps Jeffco Public Schools will take to ensure that every student-athlete is treated fairly and that eligibility and roster standards are followed."
Fox News Digital is not aware of any completed investigation or findings in connection with this matter.
Another Jeffco parent confirmed to Fox News Digital that a complaint regarding the situation had been filed and that a Title IX coordinator was investigating. The Title IX coordinator also told a parent that Jeffco is always open to meeting with individual students who would prefer to have more privacy in school locker rooms.
A fourth parent told Fox News Digital, "I am concerned about the girls who did not make the team, a male on the court with our team and all opposing teams. This has to stop."
The parent said that school administrators confirmed to her that they were aware a boy was on the volleyball team, but that they could not share additional information.
The school said district and school administrators have stated that they did not confirm this to anyone, and no administrator has confirmed being aware of "a boy" being on the team.
There have not yet been findings that the district violated Title IX or failed to protect students in connection with tryouts and selection for the girls’ volleyball team.
SUPREME COURT MAKES RULING ON TRANS ATHLETES IN WOMEN'S SPORTS
Payton McNabb, a former North Carolina high school volleyball player injured by a transgender opponent, speaks during a hearing on "Unfair Play: Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" held by the Department of Government Efficiency Subcommittee at the U.S. Capitol on May 7, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)
This issue comes after the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights concluded in March that Jefferson County Public Schools violated Title IX by allowing male students to compete in female sports, among other findings.
"OCR concluded that Jefferson County’s policies allowing access to intimate facilities and participation in sports based on ‘gender identity’ discriminates against females by denying them safety, dignity, and equal access to educational programs and activities," OCR said in the March press release. "OCR received athletic rosters from Jefferson County indicating that male students may occupy up to 61 roster positions on girls’ sports teams in the District."
The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights said Jeffco Public Schools had 10 days to voluntarily resolve alleged Title IX violations or face enforcement action. The proposed agreement required the district to remove or change policies involving access to female facilities, overnight accommodations and girls’ sports.
It also required Jeffco to adopt biology-based definitions of "male" and "female," base athletic eligibility and facility assignments on biological sex, clarify that Title IX requirements supersede conflicting state laws or athletic policies, and explain how students and families can report sex discrimination.
"Save Girls' Sports" protesters gather at a California high school volleyball game involving a trans athlete on Oct. 22, 2025. (Courtesy of Sophia Lorey)
The district would also have to publish the statement across its websites and notify staff, students and coaches of its obligations under Title IX.
On its website, Jeffco Public Schools says that it "is committed to providing a working and learning environment that is free from sexual harassment and discrimination based on sex in all of its education programs or activities, admissions and employment. The district's process aligns with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (‘Title IX’) and its regulations not to discriminate in such a manner."
In a statement to Fox News Digital Oct. 2, Department of Education Press Secretary Savannah Newhouse said, "Just this week, the Trump Administration restored the Title IX regulations that the Biden Administration unlawfully attempted to weaponize, making it undeniably clear that we will continue to enforce the law exactly as it was intended."
Newhouse added, "Allowing male athletes to strip roster spots from women who have dedicated years of intense training to their sport is both an egregious moral failure and a definitive violation of the law. Unfortunately, because Jefferson County Public Schools remains intent on defying Title IX and has refused every opportunity to come into compliance, they face enforcement action from the Department of Justice. To the parents who have watched their daughters be relegated to second-class citizens on the court and stripped of their privacy in locker rooms, know this: the Trump Administration will not waver in pursuit of accountability."
A Department of Education spokesperson told Fox News Digital that "after issuing a final warning letter," the department "took action against Jefferson County Public Schools in Colorado for allowing male students to participate in female sports, occupy female bathrooms and locker rooms, and even share overnight accommodations with females. Jefferson County Public Schools was given 10 days to comply or face enforcement action. This investigation was turned over to the U.S. Department of Justice."
In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson at the Department of Justice said, "The Department of Education referred Jefferson County Public Schools to the Justice Department after the district refused to come into compliance with Title IX. Title IX guarantees girls equal opportunity in school sports, and no girl should lose her place on a team to a male athlete. The Civil Rights Division is committed to enforcing that guarantee."
The DOJ told Fox News Digital they declined to comment on whether DOJ enforcement action has begun due to ongoing litigation.
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Female athletes party to the case speak outside the US Supreme Court after justices heard arguments in challenges to state bans on transgender athletes in women's sports on January 13, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Oliver Contreras / AFP)
In a statement to Fox News Digital, a spokesperson for Jeffco Public Schools said, "Under federal law (FERPA) and state privacy regulations, Jeffco Public Schools cannot confirm, deny, or comment on the gender identity, administrative records, or athletic participation of any individual student."
The spokesperson said that Jeffco Public Schools runs its high school athletic programs under the governing bylaws of the Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) and the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act, and that its nondiscrimination policies, including Policy AC (Nondiscrimination/Equal Opportunity and similar policy are fully active and in effect.
The spokesperson continued, "In accordance with Colorado state law (including the Colorado Anti-Discrimination Act), Jeffco Public Schools is committed to providing a safe, welcoming, and inclusive environment for all students. Our policies ensure that every student, regardless of gender identity or expression, has equal access to educational programs, facilities, and district-sanctioned activities."
The spokesperson continued, "Any student or family concern that has been brought to school leadership is being addressed. All students may request and have accommodations in the locker room."
A Department of Education sign is displayed outside the federal student aid office on May 18, 2025, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images)
The spokesperson added criticism that the media would cover the story and asked for consideration of the students involved.
In a separate development, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights notified a Jeffco parent Oct. 6 that it is opening another Title IX investigation into Jefferson County Public Schools, this time examining allegations that the district failed to appropriately respond to reports of sexual harassment of students by district employees.
The new probe adds to federal scrutiny of the district, though it is separate from the transgender-athlete dispute. OCR stressed that opening an investigation "is not itself evidence of a violation" and said it will collect and analyze evidence before reaching a determination.
On Nov. 3, Colorado voters will vote on the ballot initiative, "Protect Women and Girls Sports Act," which would require school athletic teams to be designated based on biological sex and prohibit male students from participating on teams designated for females, women or girls.
