Content warning: This article contains instances of misgendering that may be disturbing and/or triggering for some readers.
Following a Monday announcement from the Department of Education that Penn violated Title IX by allowing 2022 College graduate and transgender swimmer Lia Thomas to compete for the women’s swimming and diving team during the 2021–22 season, several of her former teammates have applauded the decision.
In its April 28 announcement, the Education Department issued three demands to the University: issuing a statement affirming compliance with Title IX, restoring accolades to “female athletes … misappropriated” by transgender athletes, and sending individual apology letters to the affected athletes. According to the statement, the Office for Civil Rights informed Penn President Larry Jameson of the demands on Monday.
If Penn does not comply with the demands, the University risks referral to the Department of Justice for “enforcement proceedings.”
Requests for comment were left with a University spokesperson, the White House, and the Department of Education.
The announcement and demands come exactly one week after Penn motioned to dismiss a lawsuit, which was filed on Feb. 4 by three former Penn swimmers alleging Title IX violations, stemming from Thomas being allowed to compete for Penn women’s swimming and diving in the 2022 Ivy League championships.
While the April 28 announcement does not mention Thomas by name, a February release announcing the investigation did.
2022 Engineering graduate and former Penn swimmer Paula Scanlan told Fox News she was “excited” by the announcement, but concerned about whether or not Penn would comply with the Department’s orders.
“I’m skeptical that my alma mater will take meaningful action,” Scanlan said. “They have had years to address this issue and apologize to the female athletes affected, yet they have chosen not to.”
2022 College graduate and former Penn swimmer Grace Estabrook told Fox that she is “grateful” for the Department of Education’s finding, and hopes to see a “bulletproof policy” implemented by the federal government to bar transgender athletes from women’s sports.
"Future generations of girls and women must be safeguarded against the hideous emotional and sexual harassment that my teammates and I endured at Penn,” Estabrook told Fox News. “The current policy which Penn and the NCAA are now trying to use to cover their tracks and put this issue behind them is inept, and it continues to leave women vulnerable.”
Estabrook joined former Penn swimmers and 2024 College graduates Margot Kaczorowski and Ellen Holmquist in filing a lawsuit against Penn, alleging Title IX violations for allowing Thomas to compete on the women’s team. Last week, Penn filed a motion to dismiss the case.
Estabrook previously told The Daily Pennsylvanian that her biggest goals in filing the suit were "to see his records taken off of women’s record boards" and "an apology from the University for the abuse that they allowed us to undergo, and for nominating him for the NCAA Woman of the Year award."
Holmquist also previously told the DP that she is looking for an apology from Executive Director of the Ivy League Robin Harris and Penn's T. Gibbs Kane, Jr. W'69 Director of Athletics and Recreation Alanna Wren for "the damage they've done" by allowing Thomas to compete.
In February, Kaczorowski also told the DP that "it's always bothered me that those records are still on the board."
While representing Penn women’s swimming and diving, Thomas collected multiple accolades on the conference and national stage — including an NCAA championship, two still-standing individual Ivy League records, three individual Ivy League titles, and three still-standing individual program records.
All of Thomas’ titles and records are at risk of being reallocated or eliminated from the record books following the Education Department’s announcement on Monday.
