The U.S. Department of Education has opened a Title IX investigation into Fairfax County Public Schools to examine whether Virginia’s largest school system properly responded to reports of sexual assault involving an adult student at Fairfax High School.

The Education Department told WTOP it will review whether the school district discriminated on the basis of sex in its response to the sexual assault accusations, which came from a dozen female students.

“Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) received the complaint yesterday and is reviewing it. We are prepared to fully cooperate with the U.S. Department of Education’s inquiry,” the school system told WTOP in an email Tuesday.

Israel Flores Ortiz, an 18-year-old who attends Fairfax High School, has been charged with multiple counts of assault and battery after several female students told police he touched them inappropriately in school hallways. He was arrested March 7 and remains held without bond.

The school system is working with law enforcement as police investigate, according to the statement.

“To maintain the integrity of the ongoing investigation, we cannot share additional details at this point,” FCPS said.

Last week, superintendent Michelle Reid said FCPS has hired an outside law firm to conduct an independent review of the case and determine whether school policies were followed, as WTOP’s Neal Augenstein previously reported.

“The goal is clear: to establish a definitive understanding of what occurred, when it occurred, and confirm that all policies, procedures, and regulations were properly followed. The firm of McGuireWoods will conduct this thorough, objective, and independent review,” the school system wrote in an emailed statement.

The Education Department said its investigation into the school system is part of a broader review of compliance with federal law involving several Northern Virginia school systems, including policies around bathroom use based on students’ gender identity.

WTOP’s partners at 7News were first to report on the investigation into FCPS’ response to the reported sexual assaults.

The Department of Homeland Security has said Flores Ortiz entered the U.S. illegally in 2024 from El Salvador. He’s scheduled to appear in Fairfax County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court for an adjudicatory hearing April 9.

In juvenile court, a judge hears evidence during an adjudicatory hearing and determines whether the defendant is guilty.

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