UPenn Restored All The Biological Women Swimming Records

The U.S. Department of Education announced last 1 July that the University of Pennsylvania has agreed to ban transgender women from its women's athletics teams to resolve a federal civil rights case that determined the school violated Title IX.

Title IX is a 1972 law that prohibits sex discrimination in any educational program or activity receiving federal financial aid.

Penn's violation resulted from the university allowing "allowing a male to compete in female athletic programs and occupy female-only intimate facilities," according to the Department's news release.

The case centered around Lia Thomas, the first openly transgender athlete to win a Division I title. Thomas, who won the women's 500-yard freestyle championship in 2022, last competed for Penn that same year.

Thomas first competed on the Penn men's team before transitioning. After undergoing testosterone suppression therapy for more than two years, she met NCAA standards to compete as a woman. Before claiming a national title, she also broke two school records and posted the fastest times in the country in the 200 and 500-yard freestyle events.

But now, more than three years later, the university has agreed to restore all individual UPenn women's swimming records and titles of female athletes Thomas defeated or surpassed, the Department said.

Additionally, Penn agreed to send personalized apology letters to each impacted female swimmer. Plus, according to the Department's release, the university will issue a public statement to the Penn community, noting that Penn will adopt "biology-based definitions" of the words "male" and "female."

U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon called the news a "great victory for women and girls."

"Today’s resolution agreement with UPenn is yet another example of the Trump effect in action," McMahon said in a statement. "Thanks to the leadership of President Trump, UPenn has agreed both to apologize for its past Title IX violations and to ensure that women’s sports are protected at the University for future generations of female athletes."

Following President Trump's "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" executive order in February, the Trump Administration's Office for Civil Rights opened the Title IX investigation into Penn for allowing Thomas a roster spot on its women's swimming and diving team. In late April, the Office for Civil Rights found in its investigation that Penn violated Title IX.

Had Penn not signed the proposed resolution agreement, it would have jeopardized its federal funding, risking referral to the U.S. Department of Justice for enforcement proceedings.

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Feds: California Has Violated Civil Rights Of Women

The U.S. Department of Education announced last 25 June that California and the California Interscholastic Federation violated the civil rights of female students on the basis of sex by allowing transgender athletes to compete in school sports according to their gender identity.

Having concluded its investigation, the President Donald Trump administration is calling on California to "voluntarily agree" to change what it determined are "unlawful practices" within 10 days or risk "imminent enforcement action."

"Although Governor Gavin Newsom admitted months ago it was 'deeply unfair' to allow men to compete in women’s sports, both the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation continued as recently as a few weeks ago to allow men to steal female athletes’ well-deserved accolades and to subject them to the indignity of unfair and unsafe competitions,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon said in a statement.

"The Trump Administration will relentlessly enforce Title IX protections for women and girls, and our findings today make clear that California has failed to adhere to its obligations under federal law. The state must swiftly come into compliance with Title IX or face the consequences that follow."

California Department of Education spokesperson Liz Sanders said in a statement that the state education office "believes all students should have the opportunity to learn and play at school, and we have consistently applied existing law in support of students’ rights to do so."

It was not clear exactly how the state would respond to the findings or how much federal education funding is at stake.

"It wouldn’t be a day ending in 'Y' without the Trump Administration threatening to defund California," Izzy Gardon, a spokesman for Newsom, said in a statement. "Now Secretary McMahon is confusing government with her WrestleMania days — dramatic, fake, and completely divorced from reality. This won’t stick."

A spokesperson for California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta said in a statement that his office was reviewing the proposed resolution and closely monitoring Trump administration officials' actions. "Our office remains committed to defending California laws that protect the rights of all students to inclusive education environments and school athletic programs," the spokesperson said.

In an email, a spokesperson for CIF, an independent, non-profit group, said the organization "does not comment on legal matters."

Triston Ezidore, the Culver City Unified school board president, said the department's finding "does not protect women and girls — it harms them."

"Barring transgender students from participating in sports based on the president of the United States deciding who is 'woman enough' is both discriminatory and unjust. True protection for female athletes means fighting for fairness and inclusion, not using exclusionary definitions to marginalize vulnerable students," he said in an interview with The Times.

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