Toreros address SDSU Title IX lawsuit

Female varsity rowers face unequal athletic financial aid

JAREK MORGAN / ASST. SPORTS EDITOR / THE USD VISTA

A group of current and former female athletes at San Diego State University (SDSU) filed a federal lawsuit on Feb 7, 2022 alleging that the university violated Title IX gender equity requirements by not providing women’s sports with sufficient scholarship money in proportion to their men’s athletes.

The California State University system has repeatedly pledged their commitment to a just and balanced treatment of all student-athletes. The current lawsuit against San Diego State is just one example of this pattern.  Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) lawsuit was filed against SDSU in addition to the Board of Trustees of The California State University system. 

This is a sex discrimination class action against SDSU for depriving its female varsity student-athletes of equal athletic financial aid in violation of Title IX. SDSU has not paid its female varsity student-athletes equal athletic financial aid for over a decade, failed to pay them over $1,200,000 in equal athletic financial aid in the last two academic years, and is not paying them equal athletic financial aid this academic year, according to the allegations made by the SDSU athletes. 

This lawsuit seeks to make SDSU pay its female varsity student-athletes the equal athletic financial aid they have been and are being deprived of — and require SDSU to provide them with equal athletic financial aid in the future. 

According to the U.S. Department of Education on NCAA.org, Title IX states, “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.” 

It is important to note that there are three main components of Title IX as it applies to the athletics programs: 

(1) Effective accommodation of student interests and abilities (participation), (2) Athletic financial assistance (scholarships), and (3) Other program components (the “laundry list” of benefits to and treatment of athletes). 

The “laundry list” includes equipment and supplies, scheduling of games and practice times, travel and daily per diem allowances, access to tutoring, coaching, locker rooms, practice and competitive facilities, medical and training facilities and services, publicity, recruitment of student athletes and support services.

In the 2019-20 academic year, according to the information that SDSU submitted to the federal government under the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA), SDSU granted its 315 female varsity student-athletes over $690,000 less—and its male varsity student-athletes in athletic financial aid than they would have received if SDSU had granted such aid in proportion to the number of students of each sex participating in intercollegiate athletics. 

In November of 2020, SDSU women’s rowing was notified by the Director of Intercollegiate Athletics John David Wicker that the program was being disbanded effective immediately.

Hannah Broadland, a senior coxswain on the rowing team for SDSU at the time, could not believe what she was being told.

“I got the text that said there was a mandatory meeting in 30 minutes,” Broadland said. 

The team and their coaches were blindsided by the announcement.

“No one saw this coming…This was my life’s passion and to hear that I could no longer do what I loved, it felt like my life was cut in half,” Broadland said.

As an athlete who devoted uncountable hours of her life to rowing since she was a freshman in high school, the school’s decision was incredibly disappointing. Broadland competed with the Capital Crew in Gold River, CA for four years and finished her high school career by winning gold at Youth Nationals in the varsity 4+. 

Broadland continued her success at the collegiate level, being named to the All-American Athletic Conference (AAC) Academic Team five times (2018, 2019, 2020 & 2021) and most recently earned the honor of selection to the Under 23 U.S. Women’s National Team. 

Broadland spoke of the close knit relationship with her teammates, and the long term effects of SDSU’s decision. 

“Ultimately my experience at San Diego State is hands down negative compared to the experience that other student athletes got to have at SDSU,” Broadland said.  

SDSU publicly announced that they based the decision to cut the women’s rowing team on an imbalance of female to male athletes at the school, something which is also disallowed under Title IX. Broadland expressed that the idea that there were too many female athletes at SDSU in relation to Title IX requirements is unacceptable in 2022.

On March 26, at the San Diego Crew Classic Regatta, a group of nine alumni women from SDSU, including Broadland, raced in the Alumni 8+ category and finished second. Upon completion of their race, the athletes in the boat held up signs about Title IX and SDSU’s decision to cut their team. They also took it one step further, writing Title IX on their arms to show a symbol of solidarity for their program.

Kamryn Whitworth, a former rower from SDSU, was in the alumni boat during Crew Classic. Whitworth spoke in high praises of her experience during the regatta.  

“Crew Classic was very accommodating and helpful to the SDSU female alumni. They reached out to let us know they’d love to have us race in the alumni event even though we didn’t have an organization to register under,” Whitworth said.

To show support, the committee at the event also provided additional tools to assist the women.

“They also waived our racing fees and that was very kind of them,” Whitworth said. “Other universities questioned our boat because a few gals aren’t ‘alumni,’ but Crew Classic argued in our favor, claiming that our team was cut and they wanted to allow all of us to have a ‘redemption’ race.” 

The final showing of the rowing community coming together was at the finish line.

“They fully supported our signage at the finish line,” Whitworth said. “They gave us a chance to show that though our team was cut, we’re still a group of powerful women who love to row.”

While the ongoing lawsuit does not currently have a direct impact on USD women’s athletics, SDSU’s decision could have repercussions for many female athletes, especially the local women’s rowing community. 

By becoming a smal, interconnected family, USD, UCSD, and SDSU could have the opportunity to support the cause for change and continued progress for female athletes in intercollegiate sports.