Students, Student-Athletes, and the Title IX Religious Exemption

Title IX ostensibly protects students from sex-based discrimination, yet the law allows religiously affiliated schools to claim an exemption (i.e., to discriminate, while still receiving federal aid). The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) “ensures equal access to education” and “serves student populations facing discrimination” while also facilitating exemption claims. Exemption-claiming schools may be less than forthcoming with their students and student-athletes. Female student-athletes remain unaware of their Title IX rights. A unique and innovative descriptive analysis of 456 OCR letters illustrates that 243 colleges claimed exemptions from specific student-focused Title IX elements. More than 80% claimed exemption to Title IX’s protections for admission and/or marital/parental status while more than half claimed exemptions to athletics. A detailed content analysis of one National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I school’s extensive exemption claims and its Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act report, student policies, Title IX lawsuit resolutions, faith statements, and state law wholly undermined its claim that it did not discriminate. Similarly, the NCAA, National Association for Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), and National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA), while publicly committed to gender equity, have not addressed the discriminatory effects of Title IX exemptions on gender equity, competitive advantage, the student-athlete experience, or name, image, and likeness (NIL) requirements. Against that backdrop, we recommend clarifying students’ rights to exemption information and clarifying the effects of Title IX exemptions on gender equity in college athletics. Religious organizations and the schools they control are asked to consider disclaiming their Title IX exemptions.