Anne Arundel parents sued to opt out of a gender identity policy. Here’s what to know.

An Anne Arundel County Public Schools policy that protects students’ right to be called by their chosen name at school is the target of a federal lawsuit filed by parents who say it conflicts with the family’s religious beliefs.

Plaintiffs John and Jane Doe, represented by an attorney at America First Legal Foundation, allege teachers and staff at an area high school lied about and hid their child’s gender transition last school year because of district policy.

The lawsuit, filed last week, is America First Legal’s latest effort to bring conservative influence into public schools. The nonprofit was founded by Stephen Miller, an influential advisor to President Donald Trump, and has taken aim at other policies designed to support students regardless of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Here’s what to know about the school system’s policy and what’s at stake.

What does the lawsuit allege?

The Does allege an email about an assignment alerted them their child had adopted a new gender at school.

“If you or [male name] have any questions about the lab, please don’t hesitate to ask,” a high school staff member’s Dec. 2025 email to the parents states, according to the lawsuit.

When questioned about the unfamiliar name, the staff member who sent the email initially lied before admitting to the Does that their child requested to be called by that male name, the parents say.

They say they protested this change and ordered the school to “cease and desist” from referring to their child by the male name used in the email, according to the complaint.

The Does say the staff member who sent the email assured them only their child’s legal name would be used going forward. But the scenario repeated itself in May when another email was sent that included the male name, the complaint states.

Anne Arundel County Public Schools’ spokesperson Bob Mosier said the school district does not comment on pending litigation.

What do the plaintiffs want to happen next?

The parents are seeking a preliminary and permanent injunction against the Anne Arundel school system that allows them to opt out of any policy or practice that “facilitates or affirms a student’s gender transition at school or withholds information from parents regarding such matters.”

“The Does oppose Defendants’ acceptance, encouragement and facilitation of students’ self-selection of genders and pronouns,” the complaint states.

What does the school system’s policy say?

The lawsuit targets a 2021 Anne Arundel County Public Schools policy and corresponding regulation that was updated in 2023. That regulation grew out of an earlier guidance document on creating safe and inclusive school environments.

These plans are all crafted around the school system’s commitment to non-discrimination and to supporting students regardless of their sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression, according to the regulation.

“Every student has a right to be addressed by a name and pronoun that correspond to the student’s gender identity,” states Regulation JQ-RA.

No doctor’s note or medical evidence is required to establish a student’s gender identity, according to the regulation, and any student who consistently identifies with a specific gender identity gets to use the locker rooms and restrooms of their choice.

Students will also have access to physical education classes and intramural sports aligned with their gender.

Do schools have to notify parents if their child asks to use a different name?

Anne Arundel County doesn’t require or forbid schools from notifying parents about a student’s gender identity.

The regulation instructs school staff to work with a student’s parents to develop an appropriate plan to support the student and their gender identity, unless there is a genuine concern that doing so could threaten the student’s safety.

There’s also no statewide rule on whether schools must notify parents about their student’s gender identity.

According to the Colorado-based Movement Advancement Project, Maryland is one of 35 states that do not require school staff to out a transgender teen to their parents. Fifteen other states require notification — some only if a student requests to use a different name, others if a student even mentions a desire to change their gender identity.

Why do schools have gender identity policies?

These policies are typically intended to protect students’ wellbeing.

“Every student in our school system, no matter who they are or what their background is, deserves a school where they can be themselves,” said Joe Toolan, an advocate who works with LGBTQ+ groups in Anne Arundel County.

School policies considered hostile to LGBTQ+ students negatively impact their mental health, research conducted by the Trevor Project shows.

The organization’s national mental health survey found higher rates of anxiety, depression and serious thoughts of suicide among young LGBTQ+ people who attend schools with a large number of anti-LGBTQ+ policies than for peers who attend schools with fewer or no such policies.

Some of these policies censor discussions of LGBTQ+ people or issues through school curricula, while others block schools from adding LGBTQ-specific protections to anti-bullying policies.

“School should be a place where children get to try on different pieces of their identities and students may choose to dress different ways or hang out with different people,” said Ever Hanna, a policy specialist with Trans Maryland, a community-building organization. “It’s all part of the process of growing up.”

What are the potential consequences of the lawsuit?

The parents’ complaint is the latest in a series of similar lawsuits challenging school nondiscrimination policies, said Ash Lazarus Orr, a spokesperson for Advocates for Trans Equality. The goal is to narrow or eliminate legal protections for trans people, he said.

America First Legal Foundation, which represents the Does in this matter, has already had success in Montgomery County. School leaders there now require staff to share a student’s gender identity if their parents ask following the challenge the group lodged against the district’s previous policy.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Supreme Court also ruled in favor of Montgomery County public school parents who sought to opt their children out of reading some books on religious grounds.

Hanna speculated that the lawsuit was meant to be inflammatory and grab headlines in hopes of reaching the U.S. Supreme Court. Hanna suspects the conservative group who filed the lawsuit on the Does’ behalf is seeking blanket religious freedom protections against school policies that promise to accept students for who they are.

They noted that the district has not commented on the case, so there’s no way yet to know if the facts alleged in the complaint are true.

“It’s important not to lose sight of what is at stake,” said Paul Castillo, deputy director for legal education and public engagement at Lambda Legal, the nation’s oldest and largest LGBTQ+ advocacy group. “These cases are often framed as disputes between parents and schools, but public schools have obligations to educate and support all students.”