Ann Arbor Public Schools is waiting to learn whether a policy change it approved Aug. 26 will be enough to protect an estimated $15 million in annual federal funding.

The U.S. Department of Education had set a deadline tied to the start of the school year for the district to address allegations that AAPS required staff to conceal students' transgender status from parents. That deadline has passed, according to an MLive post on X on Wednesday, Sept. 2, and no federal response to the district's amendment has been made public.

The AAPS board voted Aug. 26 to amend its policy on transgender and gender nonconforming students. The district has said the change clarifies language while keeping student protections in place. AAPS has denied the federal allegation that its policy violated the law.

District attorney Richard Landau warned of the stakes before the vote. "Failing to meet this deadline puts an estimated $15 million in annual federal funding, which supports special education, Title I, and USDA school lunch programs, at immediate risk and exposes us to potential Department of Justice civil litigation," Landau said in WEMU's Aug. 28 report on the board vote. That funding flows to the district's 32 schools, which serve about 16,871 students.

Trustee Rima Mohammad cast the only "no" vote. Mohammad said there were other ways to address the federal accusations without singling out students who are already targeted, WEMU reported. Supporters of transgender and gender nonconforming students sat in protest at the meeting.

The federal government has taken a harder line against other districts with similar policies. The U.S. Department of Justice on Tuesday, Sept. 1, sued Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools in what it called a "first-of-its-kind" lawsuit. That suit alleged the district maintained policies directing staff to help students socially transition without informing parents.

Whether AAPS faces similar escalation remains an open question. No statement from the Department of Education or Department of Justice confirming or denying whether the Aug. 26 amendment satisfies their requirements has surfaced as of Thursday, Sept. 3.