The Department of Education said it would take action against a Virginia school district following allegations that a school official aided a 17-year-old student in getting an abortion.

The department’s Student Privacy Policy Office will bring the enforcement action against Fairfax County Public Schools under the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment, which, per the Education Department, requires schools to notify parents of an invasive physical examination and allow parents to opt their children out of the procedure.

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The enforcement action stems from a social worker who has been accused of scheduling an abortion appointment for a 17-year-old high school student during the 2021-22 school year. The social worker allegedly paid the clinic fees and told the student not to tell her parents. A second student at the high school was also allegedly pressured by the social worker to have an abortion.

“It shocks the conscience to learn that school personnel in Fairfax have allegedly exploited their positions of trust to push abortion services on students without parental knowledge or consent. Children do not belong to the government—decisions touching deeply held values should be made within loving families. It is both morally unconscionable and patently illegal for school officials to keep parents in the dark about such intimate, life-altering procedures pertaining to their children,” said U.S. Department of Education’s acting General Counsel Candice Jackson.

“The Trump Administration will not stand by idly as these abuses unfold in our schools. We will take swift and decisive action to put an end to this and restore parental authority, which stems from their ultimate responsibility for their children’s wellbeing,” Jackson continued.

The Department of Education said SPPO will require the school district to investigate the alleged incident and provide a written response by Oct. 17, including copies of policies that “relate to non-emergency, invasive physical examinations or screening and how parents were consulted in the development of such policies and procedures,” and “documentation of any communications, directives, or training materials provided to school staff regarding the handling of sensitive medical services, including abortion-related referrals or procedures,” among other requested items.

Fairfax County School District said in a statement it is “launching an immediate and comprehensive investigation as we take all concerns of student wellbeing very seriously.” 

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Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R-VA) directed the Virginia state police to look into the matter last month. Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) also said he was investigating the school district as chairman of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.

“If these reports are true, they represent a betrayal of Fairfax County parents and families and warrant comprehensive oversight by the HELP Committee to determine how this could have occurred and who must be held accountable,” Cassidy said last month.