SJSU, CSU Sue Over Title IX Findings on 2022-24 Male Volleyball Player
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Jun 7
SJSU, CSU Sue Over Title IX Findings on 2022-24 Male Volleyball Player
1 articles · Updated · Fox News · Jun 7
Summary
San Jose State and the California State University system are challenging Education Department findings that the school violated Title IX in its handling of a male athlete who played on the women’s volleyball team from 2022 to 2024.
Federal investigators said SJSU knowingly recruited the athlete in 2022 for a competitive advantage, citing internal communications that the player was "good enough to make us better" and that university officials knew the athlete was male.
The findings also said most or all female players who shared dorms, hotel rooms or locker rooms with the athlete were unaware of the athlete’s birth sex, a claim echoed by former players and an ex-assistant coach in separate lawsuits.
The athlete became a top contributor — averaging 3.88 kills per set in 2024 and ranking second in the conference — as SJSU reached the Mountain West final during a season marked by seven opponent forfeits.
SJSU President Cynthia Teniente-Matson said the university sued in March because the findings were not grounded in fact or law and could expose the school to punitive action, including loss of federal funding.