By Carrie N. Baker
After UC Davis eliminated their equestrian team, 19 women athletes sued, alleging the university’s own records show it shortchanged female athletes by hundreds of thousands of dollars a year in athletic financial aid.
Late last month, 19 former members of UC Davis’ recently-eliminated female equestrian team filed a sex discrimination class action against the school. The students allege the school discriminated against all its female student-athletes by depriving them of equal athletic financial aid, in violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California, seeks to make UC Davis stop this discrimination and pay close to $1.4 million in compensation to students for past discrimination.
“We were devastated when UC Davis eliminated the equestrian team, which was successful and thriving,” said Anna Donovan, a UC Davis senior and award-winning former equestrian team member. “Then, we were stunned even more when the school tried to defend its decision by releasing a consultant’s report showing it was depriving women athletes annually of hundreds of thousands of dollars in equal athletic financial aid.”
The lawsuit alleges that UC Davis has not provided equal athletic financial aid to its female varsity student-athletes in proportion to their athletic participation rates, as required by Title IX. The plaintiffs allege that UC Davis deprived its female athletes of equal athletic financial aid and instead overpaid its male athletes in 2023-24 and 2024-25 as well as last year and this year.
According to complaint, UC Davis is currently giving $16,542 in athletic financial aid per student-athlete to the men, but only $14,648 in athletic financial per student-athlete to the women, resulting in the women receiving $302,536 less than they should be and men getting that much more.
The complaint argues, “unless the school is going to claw back that money from the men and pay it to the women, it would have to pay its female student-athletes an additional $729,189 for them to receive the proportional share that Title IX requires. That is for one year alone.” (emphasis added)
Because of recent cuts to women’s opportunities, next year UC Davis will give $16,542 in athletic financial aid per student-athlete to the men, but only $13,370 in athletic financial aid per student-athlete to the women. This would result in the women receiving $532,103 less than they should receive and male student-athletes getting that much more.
The plaintiffs state that UC Davis would have to pay its female student-athletes an additional $1,379,958 for them to receive the proportional share that Title IX requires.
According to the school’s Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act report, UC Davis deprived its female student-athletes of between $141,474 and $577,560 annually for academic years 2017-18 through 2024-25.
Due to UC Davis overpaying financial aid to male student-athletes, the estimated monetary damages are even higher, ranging between $294,306 and $1,168,941 for the academic years 2017-18 through 2024-25.
The plaintiffs argue:
“…this unequal financial aid treatment is inherently degrading and stigmatizing, and each of the Plaintiffs experienced the harms and injuries caused by UC Davis’s intentional decision to treat female student-athletes like second-class citizens.”
Title IX requires schools to grant athletic financial aid to male and female athletes in dollar amounts proportional to their athletic participation rates. The class-action lawsuit is based on data and reports UC Davis provided and verified as accurate to the U.S. Department of Education under the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act.
“When UC Davis cut the equestrian team, it showed what it cared about was the money. So, this case focuses on the money,” said Arthur Bryant of Arthur Bryant Law, P.C., in Oakland, Calif., lead counsel for the women. “UC Davis’ own numbers show it has been cheating its women athletes out of hundreds of thousands of dollars annually in equal athletic financial aid. That is clear and indisputable sex discrimination.”
The plaintiffs are: Avery Adamson, Sophia Blake, Addyson Brown, Mya Clader, Sabine Close, Anna Donovan, Katya Dundas, Chloe Fares, Margaret Franke, Carmen Gonzalez, Liliana Grosz, Laura Holliday, Hannah Janicki, Nicole Jimenez, Nicole Shroyer, Cavan Smith, Zadie Stack, Lola Sullivan and Mylea Trimble.
Eric Grover of Keller Grover LLP in San Francisco, co-counsel for the women, added:
“This case isn’t complicated. It’s math. Based on the numbers UC Davis provided to the federal government, the math shows UC Davis is discriminating against its female athletes in violation of Title IX. We intend to hold it accountable.”