Maddie Hanna

About 75 students walked out of school Friday to protest the school district's recent removal of three books: 'Gender Queer,' 'Fun Home,' and 'Blankets.'

Teachers and parents at Abington, Central Bucks and other school districts protested potential federal funding reductions amid sweeping changes to the Department of Education.

The new investigations come as President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking to end DEI programs at schools nationwide, while also laying off education department employees.

Rules adopted in 2023 for the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act say that discrimination based on gender identity is prohibited, along with other sex-based discrimination.

Lower Merion spends more per student than almost any other district in Pennsylvania, but Black parents say it’s not delivering the same caliber of education for all children.

An ad hoc committee convened by Radnor’s superintendent reviewed three books, and determined by a 5-1 vote that the challenged books “are not age-appropriate for students."

In a federal lawsuit, Holly Magalengo, the mother of the Quakertown student, said her daughter placed second to the Plymouth Whitemarsh athlete during a September cross-country meet.

The dispute comes as the Lower Merion school board has faced pressure from Jewish parents over its response to antisemitism, including during a fall debate around the district’s equity policy.

Residents have challenged the district’s analysis, asserting that the cost to the average taxpayer of building a new $120 million middle school is actually $20,000 over a 25-year period.

Michael Petitti, a spokesperson for Central Bucks, said the district “needs more clarity on PDE’s findings” before it could comment, but would "work through any remedies that may be needed."