‘PROTECT Kids Act’ to Stop Schools Requiring Parental Consent Before Schools Change a Student’s Gender or Pronouns

Michigan Congressman Tim Walberg/Image: @EdWorkforceCmte/X

This week (5/22/2026), the House passed H.R. 2616, the Parental Rights Over the Education and Care of Their Kids Act, also called the PROTECT Kids Act.

H.R. 2616 requires public elementary and middle schools that receive federal funding (under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act) to obtain explicit parental consent before changing a student’s gender markers, pronouns, or preferred name on school records/forms.

Further, it also prohibits the use of federal funds to teach or advance “gender ideology.”

Instead of focusing on basics like math and reading, many teachers and schools were introducing controversial lessons on gender ideology and pronouns, all while student achievement plummeted and continues to this day. In the years since, those concerns have eroded parental rights.

Schools— schools are facilitating gender transitions or encouraging students to change their names and pronouns without telling parents. These are enormously consequential decisions that have lasting impacts on a child’s well-being and development. Parents deserve to be part of those conversations.

H.R. 2616 affirms the right of parents to be in charge of their children’s upbringing and ensures schools remain partners in a child’s education. Instead of usurping the role and rights of parents altogether, the bill also establishes clear guardrails to ensure taxpayer dollars are used to support learning, not indoctrinate kids in radical ideology and agendas.”

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/05/only-eight-house-democrats-voted-protect-kids-act/