First Day Of School In Loudoun County Held Amid New Academies, Bathroom Policy Controversy

LOUDOUN COUNTY, VA — Loudoun County Public Schools welcomed students back for a new school year and is introducing two new academies. But the start of the school year didn't come without controversy, as LCPS continues to be enveloped in a transgender student bathroom debate.

LCPS has about 82,000 students enrolled in the 2025-26 school year. As of Aug. 13, nearly 99 percent of school-based licensed positions were full. According to the school district, it has worked with US Teach to seek international teachers for hard-to-fill special education roles.

New teachers are receiving signing bonuses, and extra incentives are provided for teachers in special education and Title I schools. For veteran teachers joining LCPS, the step placement cap is being removed to match their verified eligible years of experience. The school district is also helping new and current employees to get a path to licensing to fill teacher roles and has more former LCPS students joining the Teacher Cadet program.

The school division is trending better than last year to fill school bus driver vacancies. As of Aug. 15, there were 25 driver vacancies, 17 staff in training, seven getting more training in September and 25 bus drivers in the pre-boarding process.

Two new programs are joining the school district in the 2025-2026 school year.

The new Recovery Academy is geared toward students in the early stages of recovery from substance use disorders. These students will work toward their high school diploma while receiving supports for their recovery. According to LCPS, the students have the option to work on internships, work or other commitments.

The Access Academy (Accelerated College and Employability Skills) will help students get hands-on career experience and skills in information technology and receive college credit. The locations are Potomac Falls High School for grades 9 and 10 and the the FUSE Center at Mason Square for grades 11 and 12. The program is a partnership between LCPS, George Mason University and Northern Virginia Community College.

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Transgender Bathroom Policy and Title IX

LCPS has been facing more scrutiny about its policy allowing students to use bathrooms and locker rooms based on their gender identity.

As reported by Loudoun Now and other news outlets, an attorney for two 16-year-old male students at Stone Bridge High School in Ashburn said the students got a 10-day suspension over "sexual harassment and sex-based discrimination." The decision stems from a Title IX investigation into a locker room encounter with male students and a transgender student. One of the suspended students no longer lives in Loudoun County.

Supporters of the two students say the boys were punished for raising concerns about a transgender student in the locker room and the LCPS policy, as well as locker room video recording by the transgender student. However, advocates for LGBTQ+ students said the boys were harassing the transgender student, who they believe was the victim. A statement from Loudoun4All noted that the transgender student has also faced a suspension for the locker room recording violation.

The boys' attorney Josh Hetzler with the Founding Freedoms Law Center said at a news conference Wednesday that an appeal filed with LCPS has temporarily paused the suspensions. The attorney said they are exploring other legal options and urged the U.S. Department of Justice to intervene. A third male student in the locker room investigation is not facing discipline from LCPS, according to the attorney.

LCPS and four other Northern Virginia school divisions rebuked pressure from the Trump administration to withdraw their transgender student bathroom policies. Statements published by several of the school districts mentioned the federal ruling in the Grimm v. Gloucester County School Board case as basis for the policy. That case involved a transgender student fighting a Virginia school district on allowing him to use the boy's bathroom that matches his gender identity. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ruled in favor of Gavin Grimm, who claimed the school district's action violated Title IX's Equal Protection Clause.

On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Education announced it would put the five school districts on "high-risk status," which means federal funding going to the school districts will be completed by reimbursement only. The feds claim the school districts' bathroom policies are violating Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.