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A congressional Democrat has come forward to support San Jose State University and California State University in their lawsuit against President Donald Trump’s administration.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, Democrat of California, expressed support on social media for SJSU’s legal challenge to the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED) findings that the university violated Title IX in its handling of a transgender volleyball player.
“I strongly support SJSU and the lawsuit it just filed against the federal government to prevent any punitive action against the university,” Lofgren wrote.
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“The Trump Administration is attempting to freeze its federal funding based on alleged Title IX violations during the 2022-24 volleyball seasons. These claims have no basis in fact or law, and I applaud SJSU for standing firm and defending its students and institution against these politicized attacks.”
PK Press Club Digital has reached out to ED for a response.
The ED Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced in late January that an investigation into the university for its handling of a trans athlete and other players concluded that the the school violated Title IX and issued an ultimatum to the school to resolve the violation by agreeing to a series of conditions.
Among the department’s findings, it determined that a female athlete discovered that the trans student allegedly conspired to have a member of an opposing team punch her face during a game. The department claims that “SJSU did not investigate the conspiracy, but subsequently subjected the female athlete to a Title IX complaint for ‘misgendering’ the male athlete in online videos and interviews.”
But now, instead of complying as the University of Pennsylvania did last summer regarding its handling of trans swimmer Lia Thomas, SJSU and CSU are filing a lawsuit to prevent possible cuts in federal funding.
FORMER SJSU VOLLEYBALL STAR OPENS UP ABOUT LIVING WITH A TRANS TEAMMATE WITHOUT KNOWING THE ATHLETE’S BIOLOGICAL SEX
A shared image of Blaire Fleming and Todd Kress of the San Jose Spartans. (Andrew Wevers/Getty Images and Andrew Wevers/Getty Images)
“Because we believe OCR’s findings are not based in fact or law, SJSU and CSU today filed a lawsuit against the federal government to challenge these findings and prevent the federal government from taking punitive action against the university, including the potential withholding of critical federal funding,” SJSU President Cynthia Teniente-Matson said Friday.
“This is not a step we take lightly. However, we have a responsibility to uphold the integrity of our institution and the rule of law, while ensuring that every member of our community is treated fairly and in accordance with the law. Our position is simple: we followed the law and cannot be punished for it.”
The school is also asking OCR to reverse its findings and close its investigation.
Teniente-Matson affirmed the university’s commitment to advocating for the LGBTQ community in the announcement.
“Our support for LGBTQ members of our community, who have suffered threats and harm in recent years, remains unwavering. We know that the attention the university has received on this matter and the investigative process that followed have been destabilizing for many members of our community,” the president said.
“We have heard the fear and anxiety this has created and recognize that waiting for the university’s response has been difficult at a time already filled with uncertainty.”
The university and its volleyball program were thrust into the national spotlight in 2024 after it was revealed that the team had trans athlete Blaire Fleming on the roster since 2022.
Former SJSU co-captain Brooke Slusser joined a lawsuit and led her own, alleging that she was never told that Fleming was a biological male when she joined the team and unknowingly shared changing rooms and spaces with Fleming. Slusser has since said she shared an apartment and even, at times, beds with Fleming without knowing Fleming’s birth sex.
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A federal judge ruled last Tuesday on Slusser’s motion to dismiss the lawsuit. Colorado District Judge Kato Crews dismissed all of the plaintiffs’ charges against the Mountain West Conference, but did not dismiss charges of Title IX violations against the CSU system.
Crews postponed his decision on whether to dismiss these charges until a decision is made in the ongoing case BPJ v. West Virginia Supreme Court case, expected in June.
