Federal Agency Allocates Nearly $1M for Gender Diversity Studies in Biology Education

The federal agency, National Science Foundation (NSF), is allocating nearly one million funds to three universities to conduct a study claiming biology courses inaccurately portray sex and gender as binary, aiming to make them more inclusive for transgender and non-binary students.

Study Objectives

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Entitled “Collaborative Research: A qualitative inquiry into sex/gender narratives in undergraduate biology and their impacts on transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming students,” the project seeks to foster inclusivity in undergraduate biology classes for transgender students by challenging the binary nature of sex.

Far-left Ideologies

This move is part of a wider initiative by the Biden administration to infuse far-left ideologies through the federal bureaucracy.

Boasting Identity-based Group

The NSF prioritizes diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives, boasting various identity-based employee resource groups, including one for “LGBTQ+ and Allies.”

Research Beneficiaries

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The University of Minnesota, Colorado State University, and Florida International University are the recipients of this federal funding, with a total of $905,694 allocated for their collaborative research efforts.

Challenges for TNG Students

“The oversimplification of sex and gender into binary categories can make biology classrooms particularly challenging for TNG students,” states the award abstract, referring to transgender, non-binary, and non-conforming students.

Data Suggestions

The description reads, “Early data suggest that how sex and gender topics are represented in the biology curriculum impacts TNG students’ sense of belonging and interest in biology.”

NSF’s Stance

In response to inquiries, the NSF emphasized its commitment to this inclusive effort, citing a strong theoretical basis and a rigorous merit review process that identifies the study’s intellectual merit and broader impacts.

Goals for Inclusion

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The study aims to explore current representations of sex and gender in biology education, assess their impact on TNG students, and develop more inclusive teaching strategies and curriculums.

Three Objectives

The study sets three main objectives: to investigate the portrayal of sex and gender in undergraduate biology materials, assess how this affects the classroom environment and sense of inclusion for transgender, non-binary, and gender non-conforming students, and to evaluate how biology teachers are working towards fostering a more welcoming atmosphere for these students.

Scientific Perspective

The initiative also strives to develop interventions and curriculums that accommodate TNG and intersex students to enable all biology students to acquire inclusive and scientifically precise perspectives on sex and gender.

Analytical Approach

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Data for the study will be gathered through interviews and analyzed using feminist phenomenology, qualitative content analysis, and document analysis under the guidance of Carrie Hall from the NSF’s Division of Equity for Excellence in STEM.

Prompting Gender Ideology

The foundation’s funding of the study isn’t the sole instance of taxpayer dollars promoting radical gender ideology and the diversity, equity, and inclusion agenda.

Transgender-inclusive Education

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The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) also allocated nearly $700k to an organization for developing transgender-inclusive sex education programs for children as young as 14 years old.

Prompting DEI Ideologies

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Under President Joe Biden, various federal agencies have vigorously promoted ideological initiatives, with multiple executive orders signed to advance left-wing beliefs on race and the diversity, equity, and inclusion agenda through the federal government.

Politicization Federal Agencies

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However, there are concerns about the politicization of federal agencies and the wasteful expenditure of public funds to instill extreme gender ideologies in institutions, particularly within broader DEI initiatives, especially considering the limited evidence for related medical interventions.

Plan to Dismantle Administrative State

Former Trump administration officials and former President Trump have proposed strategies to dismantle the administrative state in the upcoming administration, aiming to curtail and dismiss unelected bureaucrats who might impede the president’s agenda.