Title IX Officials Bash Policies That Protect Women’s Sports, Call For Schools To “Tell The NCAA To Shove It”

June 16, 2025

Top Takeaways

• In February 2025, President Trump signed an executive order prohibiting biological men from competing in women’s sports.
• The same day, NCAA President Charlie Baker announced that his organization would make policy changes to align with the order.
  • The changes limited “competition in women’s sports to student-athletes assigned female at birth only,” however allowed impacted students to continue practicing with their respective teams and receiving “other benefits.”
  • Critics seized on the NCAA’s rule changes, however, saying they were ridden with loopholes and should go further. 
  • The state of Texas has since sued the NCAA to force it to implement mandatory gender testing.
    
• Two days later, an anonymous user posted on a listserv belonging to the Association of Title IX Administrators (ATIXA) that they were “greatly disappointed” and wanted a “recourse” to fight to “advance the rights of our trans athletes.”
  • ATIXA is a 13,000 member  collection of Title IX administrators and affiliated staff at educational institutions that are “[advancing] gender equity in schools and colleges.”
    
• ATIXA president Brett Sokolow wrote, “Can I at least have a fantasy that 1,000 schools finally band together and tell the NCAA to shove it?”

Background

In February 2025, President Trump Signed An Executive Order Aimed At Restricting Biological Men From Competing In Women’s Sports. “President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday prohibiting transgender women and girls from competing in female sports. The measure, called the ‘No Men in Women’s Sports Executive Order,’ is the fourth executive order targeting transgender people he has signed since he took office Jan. 20.” (Brooke Sopelsa, Jo Yurcaba, Katrina Lambert, “Trump Signs Executive Order Banning Trans Women From Women’s Sports,” NBC News, 2/5/25)

After The Order, NCAA President Charlie Baker Announced That His Organization Would “Take Necessary Steps To Align NCAA Policy” With The Order. BAKER: “The NCAA is an organization made up of 1,100 colleges and universities in all 50 states that collectively enroll more than 530,000 student-athletes. We strongly believe that clear, consistent, and uniform eligibility standards would best serve today’s student-athletes instead of a patchwork of conflicting state laws and court decisions. To that end, President Trump’s order provides a clear, national standard. The NCAA Board of Governors is reviewing the executive order and will take necessary steps to align NCAA policy in the coming days, subject to further guidance from the administration. The Association will continue to help foster welcoming environments on campuses for all student-athletes. We stand ready to assist schools as they look for ways to support any student-athletes affected by changes in the policy.” (Press Release, “NCAA President Charlie Baker Issues Statement Regarding Trump Administration Executive Order,” NCAA, 2/5/25)

• The Next Day, The NCAA Released Policy Changes Limiting “Competition In Women’s Sports To Student-Athletes Assigned Female At Birth Only.” “Today, the NCAA announced the Board of Governors voted to update the Association’s participation policy for transgender student-athletes following the Trump administration’s executive order. The new policy limits competition in women’s sports to student-athletes assigned female at birth only. The policy permits student-athletes assigned male at birth to practice with women’s teams and receive benefits such as medical care while practicing. This policy is effective immediately and applies to all student-athletes regardless of previous eligibility reviews under the NCAA’s prior transgender participation policy.” (Press Release, “NCAA Announces Transgender Student-Athlete Participation Policy Change,” NCAA, 2/6/25)
• The Policy, However, Did Allow Those Students To Continue Practicing With Their Respective Teams And Receive “Other Benefits.” “NCAA women’s sports: A student-athlete assigned male at birth may not compete for an NCAA women’s team[;] A student-athlete assigned male at birth may practice on an NCAA women’s team and receive all other benefits applicable to student-athletes. Division I leadership is planning to adopt roster limits in place of scholarship limits and new practice squad policies are still in development[;] A student-athlete assigned female at birth who has begun hormone therapy (e.g., testosterone) may not compete on a women’s team. If such competition occurs, the team will be subject to NCAA mixed-team legislation, and the team will no longer be eligible for NCAA women’s championships[;] A student-athlete assigned female at birth who has begun hormone therapy (e.g., testosterone) may continue practicing with a women’s team and receive all other benefits applicable to student-athletes.” (Press Release, “NCAA Announces Transgender Student-Athlete Participation Policy Change,” NCAA, 2/6/25)
• Critics, However, Claim The Policy Does Not Go Far Enough And Has Too Many Loopholes. “Many critics have insisted this policy does not go far enough or establish clear enough barriers to protect women’s athletes in the college ranks. The most common criticism has been that the policy allegedly allows trans athletes to bypass the restriction by changing the gender on their birth certificate. In the U.S., 44 states do allow birth certificates to be altered to change a person’s birth sex. The only states that do not allow this are Florida, Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Montana. Meanwhile, there are 14 states that allow sex on a birth certificate to be changed without any medical documentation required, including California, New York, Massachusetts and Michigan.” (Jackson Thompson, “NCAA Responds As Critics Call Out Potential Loopholes In Its New Trans-Athlete Policy,” Fox News, 2/19/25)
• The State Of Texas Later Sued The NCAA To Force It To Implement Mandatory Gender Testing To Keep Biological Males Out Of Women’s Sports. “Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton sued the NCAA for its recent revised gender eligibility policy, demanding the governing body begin mandatory sex screening to keep trans athletes out of women’s sports.  The NCAA announced its revised policy on Feb. 6 in response to President Donald Trump’s ‘No Men in Women’s Sports’ executive order, which was signed just one day earlier. The revised policy states that biological male trans athletes are not eligible to compete in women’s competitions, but may continue practicing and receive ‘other benefits’ from women’s teams. But the policy came under heavy scrutiny by women’s rights activists over concerns biological males will use amended birth certificates to gain entry into women’s sports. Now, Paxton has joined that list of critics and is taking legal action to try and amend the policy further.” (Jackson Thompson, “Texas Sues NCAA Demanding Mandatory Gender Testing To Keep Trans Athletes Out Of Women’s Sports,” Fox News, 2/25/25)
  

College Official Criticized The NCAA For “Immediately” Caving To The Trump Administration Executive Order

Two Days Later, An Anonymous User From A Public College Posted On An Association Of Title IX Administrators (ATIXA) Listserv That They Were “Greatly Disappointed To See The NCAA Immediately Cave To The [Trump Administration’s] EO Banning Trans Women From Competition.” (Anonymous Post, Email To ATIXA Listserv, 2/7/25, Western Carolina University FOIA Request, 3/27/25, P. 199)

• ATIXA Is A National Organization That Connects “Title IX Coordinators, Investigators, And Administrators” With The Goal Of “[Advancing] Gender Equity In Schools And Colleges.” (“About,” ATIXA, Accessed 5/27/25)

The Anonymous Poster Noted That Their School Was In A “Blue State With A Strong Law Against Discrimination” And Wanted A “Recourse” To Fight To “Advance The Rights Of Our Trans Athletes.” (Anonymous Post, Email To ATIXA Listserv, 2/7/25, Western Carolina University FOIA Request, 3/27/25, P. 199)

ATIXA President Fantasized About Banding Together Schools To “Tell The NCAA To Shove It”

ATIXA President Brett Sokolow Wrote, “Can I At Least Have A Fantasy That 1,000 Schools Finally Band Together And Tell The NCAA To Shove It?” (Anonymous Post, Email To ATIXA Listserv, 2/7/25, Western Carolina University FOIA Request, 3/27/25, P. 200)