Wagner College enters Title IX agreement over male fencer, apologizes to female athletes

Wagner College in Staten Island, New York, has agreed to overhaul its athletic policies and issue public apologies after a federal investigation found it violated Title IX by allowing a male student to compete on its women’s fencing team.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) launched the investigation after Stephanie Turner, a female fencer, forfeited a match by kneeling in protest of being required to compete against a male. 

The match took place at a USA Fencing event hosted by the University of Maryland, where the male athlete participated in the female category. Although he entered the match as an individual, Wagner had permitted the male student to compete on its women’s fencing team, according to the department. 

[RELATED: Male fencer off Wagner College women’s team after female opponent forfeits match]

The federal probe, led by OCR and the Title IX Special Investigations Team, concluded with a resolution that requires Wagner to take steps to bring its athletic policies in line with biological definitions of sex.

As part of the agreement, Wagner must amend its policies to recognize “male” and “female” based on biological sex and publicly affirm its compliance with Title IX, which prohibits institutions from allowing male students to participate in women’s sports or to access female-only facilities.

The college is required to remove all policies or public statements that previously allowed male athletes to compete in women’s categories, send a personalized apology letter to affected female fencers, and release a broader public apology to all female athletes impacted by its prior policy.

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The investigation also required Wagner to review whether any male athlete was awarded official records or recognitions in women’s sports. The college reported that no such awards were issued.

Lastly, the agreement bars Wagner from evading its Title IX obligations to external associations such as athletic conferences that may still permit men to compete in women’s sports. 

“Because of President Trump’s leadership, the tide is turning on our nation’s campuses,” U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon wrote in a press release. “We commend Wagner College for working with the Department to repair its harm to female athletes and ensuring future generations of women and girls have equal opportunities.” 

This case is the second major agreement under the Trump Administration’s enforcement of Title IX. A similar investigation into the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) concluded with a policy reversal and apology letters to female athletes who were forced to compete against a male. 

Campus Reform contacted Wagner College for comment. This article will be updated accordingly. 

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