Regional School Unit 24 voted Tuesday night to reaffirm its policy requiring students to use bathrooms and compete on sports teams according to their biological sex, becoming the latest district to hold its ground as the Maine Human Rights Commission pursues a lawsuit targeting schools with similar rules.
Comprising Sullivan and a handful of other Hancock County towns, RSU 24 is one of a half dozen Maine school districts that voted to change its policies regarding who participates on what team in school sports, specifically surrounding the question of biologically-assigned gender versus self-identification.
RSU 24 joined districts in Aroostook, Androscoggin, Sagadahoc and Washington counties to uphold the federal government’s definition of Title IX, which asserts biology defines gender. Most Maine school districts follow the state Department of Education and Maine Principals’ Association guidance which allows students to decide what gender they are and play on the teams they choose, which many assert disadvantages biological girls.
Despite a parliamentary move to table the vote on the motion while the board withdrew to executive session, when they returned to open session the measure to hold firm on the policy clearly defining genders narrowly passed, one member of the public attending told The Maine Wire.
The board also voted to change its legal counsel, according the local member of the public who shared his notes.
[RELATED: School Boards Holding Firm, For Now, Against MHRC Efforts to Strong Arm Them on Title IX Policies]
The decision follows last week’s vote in RSU 73, where board members likewise declined to alter their gender-based policies despite mounting state legal pressure.
RSU 24’s policy aligns with the new federal Title IX interpretation adopted this year under the Trump administration, which directs schools to separate sports and facilities by biological sex. But the Maine Human Rights Commission argues the approach violates state law, which guarantees students access to school programs and activities without discrimination based on gender identity.
With six districts now entangled in the legal fight, the clash between state civil rights mandates and federal directives has become one of the most contentious education battles in Maine, fueling community debates that show no signs of slowing.
