The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Thursday announced the initiation of a Title IX investigation into Western Carolina University (WCU) following allegations of the university’s non-compliance with federal sex discrimination laws.
The investigation stems from reports that WCU has openly refused to adhere to Title IX requirements, specifically concerning the provision of sex-separated intimate spaces in institutions receiving federal funding.
Among the specific concerns are credible reports of a male student being allowed to room with a female student in a women’s dormitory and that WCU opened an investigation against a female student who asked a male student to leave a female locker room.
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“WCU’s reported contempt for federal antidiscrimination laws and indifference to, and retaliation against, girls who have spoken up about males invading their intimate spaces is simply unacceptable,” said Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor. “After fighting for years to secure Title IX protections, women must again fight hostile institutions to ensure their right to equal protection and opportunity in sports, living spaces, and intimate facilities is respected. The Trump-McMahon Department of Education will continue to deploy every lawful means to eradicate this wholly unnecessary and egregious violation of women and girls’ civil rights.”
Payton McNabb, an Independent Women’s Forum Ambassador and former Western Carolina University student, also commented on the situation.
“Western Carolina University has perpetrated a policy that is not in full compliance with Title IX. The violation has impacted not only me but many other female students at the university that deserve our rights to single-sex spaces,” said McNabb. Recounting her own experience, she added, “In addition to my experience discovering a male in the women’s restroom on campus, men who self-identify as transgender are entering other women’s intimate spaces like restrooms, dorm rooms, and locker rooms. Female college students will not sit idly by as men take over our spaces. I’m thankful to have an administration that will stand up for us.”
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According to the Education Department, WCU administrators reportedly stated the university was “not making changes based on [President Trump’s Executive Order]” and would “continue to analyze allegations of sex discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.”
The Department of Education highlighted that Title IX prohibits discrimination “on the basis of sex,” distinct from the concept of “gender identity.”
The investigation documents also reference a 2024 incident involving Payton McNabb.
McNabb, who had previously sustained an injury in a high school volleyball match involving a male opponent, reportedly faced a WCU Title IX investigation after videoing herself asking a male to leave a women’s bathroom. While WCU reportedly dropped the investigation against McNabb, they are said to maintain that their policies will not change to align with the Department of Education’s interpretation of Title IX.
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Additionally, a female student reportedly left a WCU dormitory after being assigned to share a room with a male student who identified as female.
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. The OCR investigation will examine WCU’s policies and practices to determine if they are in compliance with federal law.
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