Trump administration continues defunding threats over 'gender ideology' in Maryland
WASHINGTON, D.C. (WBFF) — The Trump administration announced a new plan to continue its crackdown on what it describes as “gender ideology” in Maryland education.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a letter last week to the Maryland Department of Health (MDH) threatening to defund the Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP) provided to many public school students in Baltimore City and seven Maryland counties. The letter demands MDH remove specific examples of “gender ideology” included in the program, such as mentions of different gender identities.
Rosalind Hanson, a Montgomery County mother and the director of development for Moms for Liberty, celebrated the move from HHS.
“It's always great to get a win for common sense, biological truth, reality, and getting back to basics,” she told Spotlight on Maryland. “We're teaching lies, and this is well outside the scope of what this funding is for, so kudos to the administration for holding people accountable.”
Maryland’s PREP targets public school students aged 10 to 19. The program aims to “educate young people on both abstinence and contraception to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections,” according to MDH.
A spokesman for MDH said the agency is reviewing the letter from HHS “to assess any programmatic implications for Maryland’s program.”
HHS cites specific examples of concern in Maryland PREP, such as directing teachers to use gender-neutral language like “someone with a vulva” instead of “a girl or woman.” One specific lesson details a claim that sexual attraction changes over time.
“For example, always being attracted to one gender, and then finding someone or others of a different gender attractive later in life,” the lesson states. “That is different from sitting down and trying to change the way you feel – or from going to therapy or to church to try to influence your feelings. It doesn’t work, and can end up doing real psychological and emotional harm.”
Another cited lesson states that “Some may identify as male, female or transgender.”
A database of federal grants shows that MDH received about $11 million to head Maryland’s PREP. Data provided by HHS shows MDH is set to receive another $2.4 million for the program, pending changes to its curricula.
Hanson said MDH should work with HHS to correct PREP.
“I would hope that they would do the right thing, the biologically true thing, and reduce and redact this type of teaching and training so that we can keep this funding,” she told Spotlight on Maryland. “You stick to what you're supposed to be using the money for and not going out and trying to teach gender ideological lies, which are confusing America's youth. I think that's how it was intended to be used and how we should be using it.”
Participating jurisdictions for PREP, in addition to Baltimore City, include Allegany, Dorchester, Prince George’s, Talbot, Washington, Worcester and Wicomico counties.
Spotlight on Maryland previously reported on how another federally funded program headed by MDH may soon lose funding due to lessons on different gender identities. HHS sent a letter in July to grantees of the Teen Pregnancy Prevention (TPP) program threatening to remove funding unless lessons on “gender ideology” are removed.
Maryland has two TPP programs: one in Baltimore City, and one that targets rural counties on the eastern shore and in western Maryland.
Spotlight on Maryland previously reported on documents obtained in a public records request regarding True You Maryland, the TPP program targeting rural counties. The documents included a teacher training video where participants were told to use gender neutral language in the classroom.
“Some women might have a penis and testicles,” Vanessa Geffrard, the vice president of education and outreach at Planned Parenthood Maryland, told teachers in a 2023 video. “Rather than being like ‘this is women’s anatomy,’ or ‘this is men’s anatomy,’ we want to stick to ‘people with vaginas, people with uteruses.’ We want to identify the body part.”
MDH previously told Spotlight on Maryland it is reviewing the True You Maryland program in response to the letter from HHS.
The Maryland Comprehensive Health Education Framework for public schools requires lessons in kindergarten that teach how to, “Recognize a range of ways people identify and express their gender.”