The U.S. Department of Education has announced it has launched an official investigation into Burlington Public Schools in Massachusetts.
It comes after students were reportedly given a sexually explicit survey and forced to answer the questions despite their parents opting them out.
The department said its Student Privacy Policy Office began investigating the district after reports surfaced that a “Youth Risk Behavior Survey” was distributed in late March to students at Marshall Simonds Middle School and Burlington High School.
The survey included questions about sexual experiences, alcohol use, and gender identity.
It’s unclear why the school was seeking the information from minors.
According to a complaint filed by the Massachusetts Liberty Legal Center, participation in the survey was voluntary.
Many parents exercised their right to opt their children out.
However, parents say the survey was still distributed to all students.
Children were told they were required to complete it, even if it was against their parents’ wishes.
One question in the 2025 survey asked students if they had ever had sexual intercourse, defining the act in detail and also describing oral sex, anal sex, and sex toy use.
In a statement, U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said:
“Parents must be the primary decision-makers in their children’s education.
“The allegations that Burlington violated parents’ rights by administering a survey against parents’ wishes – and particularly one that is graphic, and downright inappropriate in nature – is unconscionable.
“The Department will investigate this matter thoroughly and continue to resolutely defend parents’ rights.”
The department noted that the schools’ actions could violate the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment, which “allows parents to recuse their children from participating in school surveys or questionnaires that ask students certain sensitive, private information.”
Burlington Superintendent Eric Conti apologized at an April 1 school committee meeting, admitting the district failed to honor the opt-out policy and calling it a “mistake.”
On April 8, the school committee voted unanimously to suspend all student surveys until a new policy could be adopted.
“We remain committed to transparency, accountability, and the well-being of all students, and we value our continued collaboration with families and the broader community,” the district said in an April announcement.
Parents voiced outrage at the time over the explicit content.
“I felt absolutely sick to think that they were asking such explicit questions to children,” Adrianne Simeone, a Burlington mother of a 13-year-old boy, told Fox News in April.
“I’ve talked to my kids about sex.
“My children know about sexual reproduction, but I have not talked to them about anal sex or oral sex, or sex toys.
“I don’t think those were appropriate for minors of any age, let alone children as young as 11.”
This week, Burlington Public Schools reiterated there was “no new news” regarding the federal investigation.
The district acknowledged in a statement that five students were given the survey against their parents’ wishes.
“The district apologized, hired an outside investigator, acknowledged faults in its opt-out procedure, put a moratorium on all new surveys, and has begun to put corrective action in place with its legal counsel,” the district said in a statement.
“Nothing was intentional, and nothing new has happened since the school district publicly and transparently discussed this last spring.”
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