OCR rules UPenn violated Title IX by allowing transgender swimmer Lia Thomas to compete in women's sports

By lauraharris // 2025-05-04

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The OCR ruled that UPenn violated Title IX by allowing transgender swimmer Lia Thomas (a male at birth) to compete in women's sports and access female facilities, undermining fairness for female athletes.
UPenn must publicly commit to Title IX compliance, restore records/awards to affected female swimmers (e.g., erasing Thomas's wins), and issue written apologies to athletes harmed by "sex discrimination."
UPenn has 10 days to comply or risk losing federal funding and potential DOJ prosecution.
The decision aligns with Trump's "Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports" executive order, enforcing Title IX based on biological sex and threatening penalties for schools allowing transgender athletes in women's sports/locker rooms.
OCR officials emphasized protecting female athletes' rights, citing Trump's policy to prevent male participation in women's categories and spaces.

The Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has ruled that the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) violated Title IX by allowing male athletes to compete in women's sports and access female-only facilities, undermining equal opportunities for female athletes. The issue stems from the complaints filed by female athletes following the participation of transgender Lia Thomas on the women's swim team during the 2021-2022 season. Thomas, who broke multiple records at the school, became the first transgender woman to win a national championship. (Related: UPenn nominates male swimmer Lia Thomas for NCAA woman of the year.) However, the OCR asserts that UPenn violated the core purpose of Title IX – protecting sex-based fairness in sports and education. In line with this, the OCR ordered UPenn to take three immediate actions: publicly committing to full compliance with Title IX; restoring all awards, records and honors to female athletes that were impacted by male competitors in women's events, specifically referencing Division I swimming; and apologizing in writing to affected female athletes for allowing their achievements to be "marred by sex discrimination." The OCR has given UPenn 10 days to comply with federal law or risk losing federal funding and a potential criminal referral to the Justice Department. "Little girls who look up to Riley Gaines and Paula Scanlan can find hope in today's action – the Trump Administration will not allow male athletes to invade female private spaces or compete in female categories," acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor said. "UPenn has a choice to make: do the right thing for its female students and come into full compliance with Title IX immediately or continue to advance an extremist political project that violates federal anti-discrimination law and puts UPenn's federal funding at risk."

OCR decision aligns with "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" executive order

The decision came a few months after President Donald Trump signed an executive order barring transgender athletes from competing in female sports. The order, titled "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports," directs federal agencies to enforce Title IX in line with the Trump administration's definition of sex as biological gender at birth. Schools and athletic associations that permit transgender women, individuals assigned male at birth, to compete against cisgender women risk losing federal funding. "With this executive order, the war on women’s sports is over," Trump declared during a signing ceremony in the East Room, flanked by lawmakers and female athletes, including former collegiate swimmer Riley Gaines, a vocal advocate for banning transgender competitors. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated the order would require "immediate enforcement actions" against institutions violating single-sex sports policies, including penalties for schools that allow transgender athletes in women's locker rooms. The executive order authorized the Education Department to investigate and penalize non-compliant schools under Title IX. It also targets the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, with Trump threatening action against international transgender athletes. The latest news about transgender madness can be found at Transhumanism.news. Watch this clip of President Donald Trump signing his new EO that bans transgender athletes from women's and girls' sports.

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OCR decision aligns with "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" executive order

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