A new grassroots campaign is encouraging schools and local communities to come together and change Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) policy that currently allows boys to participate in female sporting events.
The campaign, dubbed Make It Fair MN, is organized by Title IX MN, an organization named after the federal law which mandates that women and girls must be given equal access to educational opportunities and extracurricular sporting activities.
Title IX MN was informally launched last year as a group of more than 300 school board members who signed an open letter to Minnesota state government and MSHSL urging them to comply with Title IX and keep biological males out of female sporting events.
Now, Title IX MN is continuing that effort by urging MSHSL’s 509 member schools to amend MSHSL bylaws and ensure students only participate in sporting events that correspond with their biological sex. The MSHSL is the governing body of Minnesota’s high school sports.
According to Title IX MN, the MSHSL constitution gives its member schools the authority to change its bylaws without action from state government or the MSHSL Board of Directors.
“Make It Fair MN campaign organizers point out that many Minnesotans assume restoring fairness in girls’ sports requires new legislation or years of additional litigation, when in fact, it does not,” notes a press release from Title IX MN.
In turn, Title IX MN prepared a draft amendment for the MSHSL bylaws that would prevent males from participating in female sports.
“The MSHSL was created by its member schools, and those schools retain the authority to govern the League through the amendment process established in its Constitution,” Make It Fair MN organizers said in a press release. “Make It Fair MN is about encouraging schools to exercise that authority.”
Previously, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison issued a formal legal opinion that said banning transgender students from the sports of their choice is a violation of the Minnesota Human Rights Act. As such, MSHSL has not banned biological males from female sports.
However, Title IX MN says a June ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court has changed things. Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states can establish laws which ban males from participating in female sporting events.
While no law like that is in effect in Minnesota, Make It Fair MN organizers say that ruling “significantly changed the legal landscape surrounding athletic eligibility and provides Minnesota schools with a clear opportunity to reconsider existing MSHSL policies.”
Rachael Van Rossum
Rachael Van Rossum is a journalist and author who studies political science in the Twin Cities. She previously interned with the Illinois House of Representatives and recently published her debut fantasy novel "The Hellburner of Sovi." Rachael is passionate about telling compelling stories and bringing to life the voices of political figures, athletes, and members of her community through engaging writing. She is the Alpha News journalism fellow for the summer of 2026.
