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San Jose State University responded to a notice from the U.S. Department of Education Wednesday that found the school violated Title IX over its past handling of a transgender athlete on its women’s volleyball team.
“San Jose State, a member of the California State University system, received notice from the federal Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights regarding its investigation into athletic participation on our former women’s volleyball team. The department informed the university of the outcome of its investigation and its findings. The university is in the process of reviewing the institute’s findings and a proposed settlement agreement,” an SJSU statement said.
“We remain committed to providing a safe, respectful and inclusive educational environment for all students, while complying with applicable laws and regulations.”
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Blaire Fleming of the San Jose State Spartans tries to block a shot during the first set against the Air Force Falcons on Falcon Court at East Gym on October 19, 2024 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. (Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)
The Education Department has given the university 10 days to comply with a series of agreements or risk “imminent enforcement action.”
The necessary conditions include:
- Issue a public statement to the SJSU community that SJSU will adopt biology-based definitions of the words “male” and “female” and recognize that a person’s gender – male or female – is immutable;
- Specify that SJSU will comply with Title IX by segregating athletic and intimate facilities based on biological sex;
- State that SJSU will not delegate its obligation to comply with Title IX to any outside association or entity and will not contract with any entity that discriminates on the basis of sex;
- Restore to individual female athletes all individual athletic records and titles wrongfully appropriated by male athletes competing in female categories, and issue a personal letter of apology on behalf of SJSU to each female athlete for allowing her participation in athletics to be marred by gender discrimination; and
- Send a personal apology to all women who played in SJSU women’s indoor volleyball (2022-2024), beach volleyball in 2023, and to any woman on a team that lost instead of competing against SJSU while a male student was on the roster – expressing sincere regret for putting female athletes in that position.
The Ministry of Education launched an investigation into the university in February last year after a highly publicized college volleyball season with seven teams losing games to SJSU amid the controversy.
WHITE HOUSE STATES AFTER BROOKE SLUSSER COMES FORTH WITH SJSU VOLLEYBALL ALLEGATION
Blaire Fleming of the San Jose State Spartans looks on during the third set against the Air Force Falcons on Falcon Court at the East Gym on October 19, 2024 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. (Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)
Former SJSU co-captain Brooke Slusser joined multiple lawsuits against the NCAA, Mountain West Conference and university officials after alleging she was forced to share locker rooms and bedrooms with trans teammate Blaire Fleming in 2023 without being told that Fleming is biologically male.
Former assistant coach Melissa Batie-Smoose was suspended and later not re-signed to a new contract after filing a Title IX complaint against the school for its handling of Fleming.
U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon addressed the findings in a statement Wednesday.
“San Jose State University caused significant harm to female athletes by allowing a man to compete on the women’s volleyball team – and when female athletes spoke out, SJSU retaliated. Today we found SJSU in violation of Title IX and we will hold them accountable,” McMahon said.
Among the department’s findings, it determined that a female athlete discovered the trans student allegedly conspired to have a member of an opposing team spike her in the face during a game. ED alleges that “SJSU did not investigate the conspiracy, but later subjected the female athlete to a Title IX complaint for ‘misgendering’ the male athlete in online videos and interviews.”
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SJSU trans player Blaire Fleming and teammate Brooke Slusser went to a magic show and spent Thanksgiving together in Las Vegas despite an ongoing lawsuit alleging Fleming was transgender. (Thien-An Truong/San Jose State Athletics)
In 2025, the Department of Education came to terms with the University of Pennsylvania for its handling of transgender swimmer Lia Thomas and Wagner College for its handling of transgender fencer Redmond Sullivan. However, it was unable to reach agreements with state agencies in Maine and California, resulting in departmental lawsuits.
SJSU’s response will determine the next chapter in the president’s mission to “save women’s sports.”
