News
Christopher Newport University Agrees to Reinstate Coed Sailing Team and Women’s Sailing Regattas, Develop Gender Equity Plan, Comply with Title IX
Christopher Newport University (“CNU”) has agreed to reinstate both its varsity coed sailing team and the female team members’ participation in separate women’s sailing regattas, have an independent Title IX expert conduct a gender equity review, and develop a Gender Equity Plan to ensure its varsity intercollegiate athletic program is complying with Title IX. The settlement agreement avoids a potential Title IX sex discrimination class action against the school for depriving its female student-athletes of equal opportunities and treatment.
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is the federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination at all educational institutions receiving federal funds.
This is the first Title IX case to preserve a coed team.
Female sailing team members Corine Glickstein, Hannah-Louise Roethel, and Shari-Ann Tremblay, who threatened the class action, said, “We were stunned that CNU eliminated the women’s sailing regattas and then our entire team when it was already depriving women of equal opportunities to participate in varsity sports. We are delighted that CNU chose to stand with us instead of against us and do the right thing: preserve the entire sailing team, reinstate the women’s sailing opportunities, and make sure it is complying with Title IX.”
“This is a huge victory for CNU, its female athletes, all of the women and men on CNU’s sailing team, and everyone who cares about gender equity and sailing in the CNU community and nationwide,” said Arthur Bryant of Arthur Bryant Law, P.C., in Oakland, CA, lead counsel for the women. said, “Title IX is the law. Schools need to follow it. To its great credit, that’s what CNU is going to do.”
Linda Correia of Correia & Puth, LLC, in Washington, DC, co-counsel for the women, declared, “These young athletes stood up for their civil rights and won not just for themselves, but for all female student athletes at CNU. The review of all varsity intercollegiate athletic opportunities at CNU should bring about better and more athletic opportunities for all CNU sports.”
The threatened lawsuit stemmed from CNU’s announcement on March 23, 2026, that it was eliminating its varsity sailing team, which includes both female and male athletes. The announcement was made only months after the team stopped providing opportunities for its female members to participate in separate women’s varsity sailing competitions. When these actions took place, CNU was already depriving women of hundreds of equal opportunities to participate in varsity intercollegiate athletics.
On May 22, 2026, Bryant and Correia wrote a letter to CNU President William Kelly behalf of the female sailing team members and informed him that the school’s actions violated Title IX. The law prohibits universities from eliminating female varsity opportunities for which interest, ability, and competition are available unless “intercollegiate level participation opportunities for male and female students are provided in numbers substantially proportionate to their respective enrollments.” The lawyers said CNU failed this test.
The letter noted that, according to the most recent publicly available Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act data that CNU submitted and verified to the U.S. Department of Education as accurate, CNU had a total undergraduate population of 4,289 in the 2024-25 academic year, including 2,250 women and 2,039 men. So, undergraduate enrollment was 52.5% women. The school’s varsity intercollegiate athletic teams had 668 athletes: 236 women and 432 men. They were only 35.33% women—creating a gap of 17.17% between the women’s undergraduate enrollment rate and their intercollegiate athletic participation rate. CNU needed to add women’s opportunities to comply with Title IX.
Instead of doing so, however, CNU was eliminating women’s opportunities to participate in varsity sailing entirely, shortly after eliminating their opportunity to participate in separate women’s varsity sailing competitions. As a result, the school’s athletic participation numbers for women would decrease when they needed to increase. After the cuts, based on the most recent publicly available numbers, CNU would need to add approximately 241 opportunities for women to reach gender equity under Title IX.
Bryant and Correia said they and their co-counsel would file a class action lawsuit in federal court against CNU for depriving women athletes and potential athletes of equal opportunities and treatment unless the school agreed to continue its sailing team, reinstate the female sailing team members’ opportunities to participate in separate women’s sailing competitions, and come into compliance with Title IX. In the settlement agreement, announced today, CNU does.
CNU has already hired an interim sailing head coach and will be announcing a nationwide search for a permanent full-time head coach today.
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Contacts:
Arthur Bryant, arthur@arthurbryantlaw.com, 510-507-9972
Linda Correia, lcorreia@correiaputh.com, 202-349-1044
California Lutheran University Agrees to Reinstate Women’s Lacrosse Team, Conduct Gender Equity Review, Ensure Compliance with Title IX
California Lutheran University (“CLU”) has agreed to reinstate its women’s lacrosse team, have an independent Title IX expert conduct a gender equity review, and ensure its varsity intercollegiate athletic program is complying with Title IX. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is the federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination at all educational institution receiving federal funds.
Shea Simpson, an incoming junior on the women’s lacrosse team said: “Two months ago, CLU announced it was eliminating our team. My teammates and I thought the decision violated Title IX, so we took action. We are proud that CLU has agreed to reinstate our team and make sure it is complying with Title IX. We are eager to get back on the field and keep building the team and program we love.”
The other women’s lacrosse team members who successfully fought for their rights are Christina Arellanes, Nicki-Jean Henderson, Tess Keenan, Marina Markrud, Alexa Miller, Susan Rosas, and Daphne White.
“These women deserve our praise and our gratitude,” said Arthur Bryant of Arthur Bryant Law, P.C., in Oakland, CA, lead counsel for the women. said, “They understood and confirmed what the history of Title IX has shown: if women want equality, they need to fight for it. CLU will be better for all because they did.”
Eric Grover of Keller Grover LLP in San Francisco, CA, co-counsel for the women, added, “CLU deserves our praise, too, for agreeing to do the right thing. It is going to reinstate the women’s lacrosse team and ensure its women athletes are receiving the equal opportunities to participate and equal treatment and benefits that Title IX requires.”
Benjamin Schenk of Schenk Law Firm in San Diego, CA, and Robert Spencer of Keller Grover LLP are also co-counsel for the women athletes.
The Title IX dispute stemmed from CLU’s announcement on April 28, 2026, that it was immediately eliminating the women’s lacrosse team, when the school was already offering male athletes more opportunities to participate in varsity sports.
On May 26, 2026, Bryant wrote a letter to CLU’s President on behalf of women’s lacrosse team members and informed him that the team’s elimination violated Title IX. The law prohibits universities from eliminating women’s teams for which interest, ability, and competition are available unless “intercollegiate level participation opportunities for male and female students are provided in numbers substantially proportionate to their respective enrollments.” Bryant’s letter said CLU failed this test. CLU maintains it was not and is not violating Title IX and that it conducted the appropriate Title IX analysis before making any decisions that affected the women’s lacrosse team.
According to the most recent publicly available Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA) data that CLU submitted and verified to the U.S. Department of Education as accurate, CLU had a total undergraduate population of 2,248 in 2024-25, including 1,228 women (54.63%) and 1,020 men (45.37%). The school's intercollegiate athletic teams had 615 athletes: 233 women (37.89%) and 382 men (62.11%), creating a gap of 16.74% between the women's undergraduate enrollment rate and their intercollegiate athletic participation rate. CLU is adding flag football, but, based on its EADA data, Bryant’s letter asserted that CLU needed to add many more women's opportunities to comply with Title IX.
Instead of adding women's opportunities, CLU had just announced it was eliminating the women's lacrosse team, which it reported as including 15 women in 2024-25. As a result, the school's athletic participation numbers and rates for women would decrease when they needed to increase. After the cuts, according to CLU’s most recent publicly available numbers, it would need to add approximately 164 opportunities for women to reach gender equity under Title IX. The female athletic participation gap would grow from 149 to 164, not including any new opportunities CLU was adding with flag football.
Bryant said he and his co-counsel would file a class action lawsuit in federal court against CLU for depriving women athletes and potential athletes of equal opportunities and treatment unless the school agreed to reinstate the team, hired a gender equity specialist they approved of, and made sure it complied with Title IX. The settlement agreement, announced today, provides that relief and avoids the need for the suit.
Under the agreement, CLU will immediately reinstate its women’s lacrosse team, hire an agreed gender equity specialist to conduct a gender equity review, and, to the extent necessary, develop and implement a gender equity plan to ensure that CLU’s intercollegiate athletic program complies with Title IX no later than the 2028-2029 academic year and beyond.
The women’s lacrosse team will continue competing in the upcoming academic year.
Contacts:
Arthur Bryant, arthur@arthurbryantlaw.com, 510-507-9972
Eric A. Grover, eric.grover@kellergrover.com, 415-321-8604
Benjamin Schenk, ben@schenklawfirm.com, 858-424-4444
Female Athletes Reach Landmark Title IX Sex Discrimination Class Action Settlement with San Diego State University
SDSU will Pay $300,000 to Women for Denying Them Equal Athletic Financial Aid in Past; Adopt Gender Equity Plan; Comply with Title IX; Provide Equal Athletic Financial Aid, Treatment, and Benefits in Future
Fifteen former women’s rowing and track & field varsity team members who filed a class action against San Diego State University (SDSU) in 2022 for discriminating against its female student-athletes in violation of Title IX have reached a landmark settlement in the case. In a national first, the settlement requires SDSU to pay $300,000 in class-wide damages to female athletes for depriving them of equal athletic financial aid in the past. It also requires SDSU to hire an agreed-upon outside expert to conduct a Gender Equity Review, develop a Gender Equity Plan, provide equal athletic financial aid and treatment & benefits to its female athletes in the future, and ensure its entire athletic department complies with Title IX by the end of the 2026-27 academic year.
Yesterday afternoon, U.S. District Judge Todd W. Robinson of the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, in San Diego, issued an order approving the settlement and the “unprecedented monetary award” in it.
Title IX is more than 50 years old and, despite settlements and legal victories requiring numerous universities to comply with the law, schools throughout the country are still depriving their female athletes of equal opportunities to participate, athletic financial aid, and treatment & benefits. This is the first case to seek—or recover—class-wide damages from a school for depriving its female athletes of equal athletic financial aid.
“We are extremely proud we fought SDSU’s sex discrimination against its female athletes and won this ground-breaking settlement,” said plaintiff and former rower Madison Fisk. “SDSU is going to comply with Title IX in the future and pay for violating it in the past.”
“In a time when college sports are rapidly changing, we hope this settlement sends a message to schools around the country that women are done accepting less than what Title IX requires, equity in all areas,” said Lori Bullock of Bullock Law PLLC in Des Moines, Iowa, co-counsel for the women. “Schools need to address these inequities now, not after female athletes file suit, and hopefully, the prospect of paying damages will spur stronger compliance efforts throughout college athletics.”
“This lawsuit should not have been necessary, but SDSU refused to give women athletes the equal athletic aid, treatment, and benefits they deserve and Title IX requires,” said plaintiff and former track & field athlete Carina Clark. “Now, it will. And it will pay damages.”
“These women have made history,” said Arthur Bryant of Arthur Bryant Law in Oakland, CA, lead counsel for the athletes. “This is the first school to pay class-wide damages to female athletes for discriminating against them in violation of Title IX. But it sure won’t be the last.”
The other plaintiffs and former SDSU athletes who reached the cutting-edge settlement are Raquel Castro, Greta Viss, Helen Bauer, Natalie Figueroa, Erica Grotegeer, Kaitlin Heri, Olivia Petrine, Aisha Watt, Kamryn Whitworth, Sara Absten, Eleanor Davies, Alexa Dietz, and Larisa Sulcs.
“We are profoundly proud of the women athletes who gave their time, strength, and voices to drive the change this lawsuit demanded. Their courage is a powerful reminder that equality in collegiate sports is not a privilege to be granted. It is a fundamental right, earned through persistence and worth every effort to achieve,” said plaintiffs’ co-counsel Gayle M. Blatt of Casey Gerry Francavilla Blatt LLP in San Diego.
“Our clients showed extraordinary courage by coming forward and trusting us to challenge entrenched inequality,” said Jenna Rangel of Haeggquist & Eck LLP in San Diego, co-counsel for the plaintiffs. “This settlement proves that when women speak out, institutions can be forced to change.”
Plaintiffs’ counsel also include Amber Eck of Haeggquist & Eck LLP and David Casey of Casey Gerry Francavilla Blatt LLP.
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Contacts:
Arthur Bryant, 510-507-9972, arthur@arthurbryantlaw.com
Lori Bullock, 515-231-6008, lbullock@bullocklawpllc.com
Jenna Rangel, 619-255-4173, jennar@haelaw.com
Gayle Blatt, 619-238-1811, gmb@cglaw.com