by Jennifer Smith Richards and Jodi S. Cohen

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In the three-and-a-half weeks since Donald Trump returned to the presidency, investigations by the agency that handles allegations of civil rights violations in the nation’s schools and colleges have ground to a halt.

At the same time, there’s been a dramatic drop in the number of new cases opened by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights — and the few that attorneys have been directed to investigate reflect some of Trump’s priorities: getting rid of gender-neutral bathrooms, banning transgender athletes from participating in women’s sports and alleged antisemitism or discrimination against white students.

The OCR has opened about 20 new investigations since Trump’s inauguration, sources inside the department told ProPublica, a low number compared with similar periods in previous years. During the first three weeks of the Biden administration, for instance, the office opened about 110 new investigations into discrimination based on race, gender, national origin or disability, the office’s historic priorities. More than 250 new cases were opened in the same time period last year.

Historically, the bulk of investigations in the office have been launched after students or their families file complaints. Since Trump took office, the focus has shifted to “directed investigations,” meaning that the Trump administration has ordered those inquiries.

“We have not been able to open any (investigations) that come from the public,” said one longtime OCR attorney who asked not to be named for fear of losing their job.

Several employees told ProPublica that they have been told not to communicate with the students, families and schools involved in cases launched in previous administrations and to cancel scheduled meetings and mediations. “We’ve been essentially muzzled,” the attorney said.

A spokesperson for the Education Department did not respond to requests for comment.

Even though new case openings typically slow during a presidential transition as new political appointees gain their footing and set priorities, it is not typical for it to all but stop. “Under the first Trump administration, of course things shifted and there were changes, but we never had this gag order on us,” said another OCR attorney who also asked not to be named.

The shift at the OCR comes as Trump has called the Education Department a “con job” and is expected to issue an executive order that the department be dismantled. In her confirmation hearing on Thursday, Trump’s nominee to be education secretary, Linda McMahon, said she hadn’t decided whether to cut........

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