A group checked 193 Pa. school districts for censorship, LGBTQ+ policies. What did it find?

According to the Education Law Center, Adams, Beaver, Bucks, Lancaster, and York counties each have more than two districts with policies that ban books, suppress certain forms of expression, and bar transgender students from bathrooms, locker rooms, or sports teams that match their identities.

A recent analysis of dozens of Pennsylvania school boards found one in five of them have adopted culture war policies that censor material, ban books or target LGBTQ+ students. 

The group School Board Spotlight—which has ties to the progressive Pipeline Fund—determined that 39 of the 193 districts examined had adopted one of these policies since 2023. The Education Law Center, a Pennsylvania-based nonprofit, on Oct. 23 highlighted these findings as demonstrating that some school boards are putting “partisan agendas” ahead of the students they serve. 

“These policies not only limit educational opportunities but also put vulnerable students, including LGBTQ+ youth, at serious risk,” Kristina Moon, senior attorney with the Education Law Center, said in a statement. 

The Education Law Center noted that Adams, Beaver, Bucks, Lancaster, and York counties each have more than two districts with policies flagged by the analysis. 

The law center said they’ve also been tracking the rise in policies that ban books, suppress certain forms of expression and bar transgender students from bathrooms, locker rooms, or sports teams that match their identities. 

“School leaders need to be aware that both federal and state courts have found schools liable for discriminating against students on the basis of gender identity,” Moon said.

Parents and other community members from 37 school districts have reached out to the law center or a partner coalition in the past school year to ask for help or to question various policies. In many cases, these people say the local decisions reflect the views of specific school board members and aren’t representative of the broader community, the law center press release states. 

School Board Spotlight has made their findings searchable by county on its website.