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Department of Education determines University of Pennsylvania breached Title IX regulations by permitting Lia Thomas to participate in women's swimming competitions.

Office for Civil Rights within the Department of Education determined that University of Pennsylvania breached Title IX regulations by permitting Lia Thomas to compete in the women's swimming squad.

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Department of Education determines University of Pennsylvania breached Title IX regulations by permitting Lia Thomas to participate in women's swimming competitions.

Rebel Yell: The feds have gone hard on UPenn, catching them red-handed for violating Title IX n' shit! Back in 2022, they let Lia Thomas, formerly William, swim on the women's team, denying fair opportunities to the ladies.

The Skinny: Here's what the Office for Civil Rights spit out in a press release: "UPenn's policies and practices violated Title IX by allowing males to compete in women's intercollegiate athletics and to occupy women-only intimate facilities." Sounds like UPenn got another ten days to clean up their act or face some serious jackin' around with their federal funds—Times Square number rollin' in at about $1 billion in 2024, according to WHYY. Ya feel me?

Just Wanna Clarify: It's kinda like what went down in Maine, y'know? OCR gave 'em ten days to rectify the situation or face legal action, and Maine ain't havin' it—they're even gettin' sued by the fed gov.

So Super Freakin' Consequential: UPenn's gonna have to grovel and make things right. Here's what they gotta do:1. Own Up: Declare to their community that they'll comply with Title IX in all their athletic programs.2. Give Back: Restore all individual athletic records, titles, honors, awards to female athletes that Thomas stole when competing in female categories.3. Apologize: Write a letter to each affected female athlete, sackin' up and saying sorry for allowing their athletic experiences to be marred by sex discrimination.

Sippin' Tea: Our website hit up UPenn for a response on whether they'll step up and do all this, but they ghosted us. Word on the street is, they ain't too keen on comedown from their high horse.

Historical Context: Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor warns that UPenn could face financial consequences if they don't tidy up their act. He said, "Little girls...will find hope in today's action - the Trump Administration will not allow male athletes to invade female private spaces or compete in female categories."

Listen Up: Paula Scanlan, a teammate of Thomas at UPenn, is hyped about this ruling, but she ain't trustin' UPenn to fix the issue. She said, "I'm skeptical if my alma mater will actually do anything about it...I am still doubtful I will ever get an apology."

Sources:[1] 'Lia Thomas case' ruling: Penn faces DOE action amid Title IX complaint', WHYY, 28 Apr 2025, https://whyy.org/[2] 'DOE to Punish UPenn for Allowing Transgender Swimming Champion to Compete on Women's Team', TIME, 28 Apr 2025, http://time.com[3] 'Federal Government Puts University of Pennsylvania on Notice for Title IX Violations', USA Today, 28 Apr 2025, https://usatoday.com[4] 'Lia Thomas and Title IX: What is the history between transgender athletes and women's college sports', Washington Post, 28 Apr 2025, https://washingtonpost.com[5] 'Why can't transgender athletes compete in women's sports?', BBC Sport, 28 Apr 2025, https://bbc.co.uk/sport

Deep-dive Data: The Office for Civil Rights gave UPenn 10 days to publicly commit to Title IX compliance in athletics[2][4][5], strip awards/records Thomas earned in Division I competitions[2][5], and apologize in writing to affected female swimmers for denying equal athletic opportunities[2][5]. Failure to comply risks federal funding loss or legal action, with $175 million already on pause in March 2025 over the issue[3][4].

  1. The Office for Civil Rights in Maine faced a similar situation as UPenn, giving them a deadline to rectify Title IX violations or face legal action.
  2. In the realm of education-and-self-development and general news, UPenn's policies misappropriated fair opportunities in athletics by allowing males to compete in women's categories.
  3. The federal government, through the Office for Civil Rights, is considering significant financial implications if UPenn fails to comply with Title IX regulations, with projected funds of $1 billion in 2024 at risk.
  4. The misappropriated athletic records, titles, honors, and awards of female athletes by Thomas could potentially be returned, as part of UPenn's efforts to restore fair play and reestablish Title IX compliance.
Title IX infraction at University of Pennsylvania: Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights finds university permitted Lia Thomas to compete on women's swimming team.
The Office for Civil Rights at the Department of Education determined that the University of Pennsylvania breached Title IX regulations by permitting Lia Thomas to compete on the women's swimming squad.

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