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The U.S. Department of Education recently declared that San José State University (SJSU) has breached Title IX regulations by permitting transgender males to participate in women’s sports and access female-only spaces. This announcement came on Wednesday.
In February 2025, the department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) launched an inquiry into SJSU based on claims that a male athlete was allowed to join the women’s indoor volleyball team. The investigation also centered on accusations that female students and an assistant coach faced retaliation for opposing the university’s “gender identity” policies.
Kimberly Richey, the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, stated that SJSU’s actions caused considerable harm to female athletes by allowing a male to compete on their volleyball team. This decision, she claimed, led to unfair competition, safety risks, and deprivation of equal athletic opportunities for women, including scholarships and playing time. Richey criticized the university for reportedly retaliating against female athletes who spoke out, including filing a Title IX complaint against a female student for allegedly “misgendering” the male athlete. “This is unacceptable,” Richey emphasized.
Richey further asserted that the department would not cease its efforts until SJSU is held accountable and commits to adhering to Title IX to safeguard future athletes from similar issues.
The OCR’s findings revealed that SJSU actively recruited a male athlete to participate in the women’s indoor and beach volleyball teams starting in 2022. The university allegedly instructed coaching staff to withhold the athlete’s gender from female players.
The Education Department’s report highlighted concerns regarding privacy and safety due to the presence of the male athlete, who also gave SJSU an unfair physical advantage over competitors. It was reported that during one season, the male athlete forcefully spiked the ball, knocking down female players on opposing teams. As a result, seven all-female teams from other universities opted to forfeit their matches rather than face the SJSU team.
“In addition to privacy concerns, the presence of this male athlete presented a safety concern for female athletes and provided SJSU’s volleyball team with an unfair physical advantage over opposing teams. On multiple occasions, the male athlete spiked the ball so forcefully that it knocked females on the opposing team to the ground,” ED alleged. “During one season, seven all-women’s teams from other universities forfeited their competitions, accepting a loss rather than competing against a male.”
OCR also concluded that the school violated Title IX by not quickly and fairly investigating complaints filed by female athletes about the male athlete on their team, and by “taking action that discouraged women from participating in the Title IX process,” ED said. Title IX prohibits sex discrimination in education programs and activities as a condition of receiving federal funding.
“In addition, days after a SJSU female volleyball player joined a Title IX lawsuit against the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), she discovered that the male student had conspired to have a member of the opposing team spike her in the face during an upcoming match,” ED said in its release. “SJSU did not investigate the conspiracy, but later subjected this female athlete to a Title IX complaint for reportedly ‘misgendering’ the male athlete when discussing this incident in online videos and interviews.”
OCR issued a proposed Resolution Agreement to SJSU to voluntarily resolve the Title IX violations.
A spokesperson for SJSU told – News it received notification of the OCR’s findings and is in the process of reviewing ED’s investigation and resolution agreement.
“We remain committed to providing a safe, respectful, and inclusive educational environment for all students while complying with applicable laws and regulations,” the spokesperson said via email.
Katherine Hamilton is a political reporter for – News. You can follow her on X @thekat_hamilton.
