This is not a definitive legal ranking or a substitute for state-specific legal advice. It is a practical resource list highlighting states that currently appear to provide some of the clearest, most explicit, or most usable protections for transgender, nonbinary, Two-Spirit, and gender-diverse students through state nondiscrimination laws, education codes, civil-rights frameworks, agency guidance, or public school resources.
States were selected based on the public accessibility, specificity, current relevance, and trans-affirming quality of their resources, with preference given to materials that students, families, educators, and school administrators can actually use.
Due to the rapid changes in federal Title IX interpretation, state law, litigation, and agency guidance, this list should be viewed as a starting point for further verification rather than a definitive authority.
To check protections in states not listed, visit the Movement Advancement Project (MAP).
California has unusually explicit statutory language. State law prohibits discrimination in education based on gender, gender identity, gender expression, and sexual orientation, and Education Code § 221.5(f) permits students to participate in sex-segregated programs, activities, athletic teams, competitions, and facilities consistent with their gender identity.
Washington OSPI states that civil-rights laws prohibit discrimination and discriminatory harassment based on gender expression and gender identity in Washington public schools, and that students have the right to be treated consistent with their gender identity at school.
Massachusetts remains one of the strongest states because it has long-standing state education guidance for transgender and gender-nonconforming students, and recent litigation has left Massachusetts school gender-identity policies standing rather than invalidating them.
New Jersey’s state transgender-rights page is very direct: LGBTQIA+ discrimination is illegal in schools, students must be treated consistently with their gender identity and expression, and students may use restrooms/locker rooms and participate in activities that correspond to their gender identity and expression.
New York belongs in the Top 10 because of its Dignity for All Students Act framework and transgender/gender-expansive student guidance. I would verify the current state-hosted guidance link before publishing, but conceptually it remains a strong state-protection environment.
The Oregon Department of Education (ODE) LGBTQ2SIA+ Student Success Plan explicitly addresses barriers for LGBTQ2SIA+ students and establishes a framework for safe, inclusive, welcoming schools. ODE’s gender-expansive student guidance is grounded in students’ civil right to be free from gender identity-based discrimination in education.
Colorado has strong state-law protections and active local/district implementation, but Burleton Education ranks it below Oregon because the current federal-state conflict around trans-inclusive school practices is especially visible there.
Connecticut has current, state-level civil-rights guidance for transgender or gender-diverse students, updated in January 2024. That makes it a strong inclusion-and-implementation state, especially compared with states that have only general nondiscrimination language.
Maine’s state education and civil-rights framework supports LGBTQ+, transgender, and gender-expansive students, with protections grounded in the Maine Human Rights Act and state-level school resources for inclusive, nondiscriminatory learning environments.
Illinois has explicit state civil-rights guidance stating that students have the right to attend school free from discrimination and harassment based on gender identity, and that schools may not discriminate because a student’s gender-related identity does not align with their sex assigned at birth.
A strong district-level example of how a school system can address names, pronouns, records, and privacy in a detailed way. MCPS says students have the right to be referred to by their identified name and pronoun without first changing permanent records, and its guidance also addresses confidentiality, disclosure, and record updates for former students who later change their legal name or gender.
