Athletes file civil rights complaint against UMSL after university cut several NCAA teams
Current and former athletes say it’s an avenue to get the programs reinstated.
ST. LOUIS, Mo. (First Alert 4) - Following the decision to eliminate its men’s and women’s track and field programs, citing “budget considerations” and a “lack of facilities,” the University of Missouri-St. Louis (UMSL) is being hit with a civil rights complaint.
Fall 2024 UMSL graduate and former track team member Jacob Warner says it’s an avenue to get the programs reinstated.
“I started thinking about everyone still on the teams, and I was frustrated for them,” Warner said. “We knew this was going to be an uphill battle.”
“From what we can tell, this is a great avenue for us to take for [UMSL] to come to the table and acknowledge their decision and how it’s going to impact us as athletes,” Warner said.
The civil rights complaint was filed Thursday with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights.
The legal standing, the athletes behind the complaint believe, is that UMSL is out of compliance with Title IX requirements, the federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other education program that receives federal funding. Title IX requires equal access to athletic opportunities between male and female students, in addition to the ratio of male to female participation in athletics matching that of the student population.
“Track and field would be an outlet for UMSL athletics to reach compliance,” Warner said, “and by shutting track and field down, it doesn’t really allow [UMSL] to reach compliance.”
A spokesperson for UMSL tells First Alert 4 that the university is “continuing to build an athletic department that mirrors its overall student population in accordance with Title IX.”
UMSL isn’t alone in these efforts. A study by Champion Women, an advocacy organization, shows nearly 93% of universities and colleges discriminate against women’s opportunities in sports.
"Our analysis shows that most intercollegiate athletic departments are not meeting any of the standards Title IX sets for schools to demonstrate equality in sports opportunities," the group said.
Successful outcomes have resulted from similar civil rights complaints nationwide, including the Florida Institute of Technology being ordered to reinstate its men’s rowing team after a Title IX complaint.
In 2021, Clemson University in South Carolina announced that it would continue sponsoring its men’s outdoor track, indoor track and cross country teams, reversing a previous decision. The university agreed to reinstate the men’s teams as one part of legal settlements with a pair of law firms that had threatened to sue the university for violating Title IX law.
First Alert 4 previously reported on UMSL’s decision to make the cuts and the frustrations from current UMSL athletes, upset their sport would be cut at the end of the 2025 season.
“I think it’s very easy for universities and istrations in general to make these decisions hastily without considering all the implications,” Warner said. “What we do every day as athletes means a lot more to us than the numbers they see on their end.”
UMSL runners and advocates are holding a protest and March at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 1, at UMSL’s quad.
A spokesperson for UMSL gave First Alert 4 this statement:
“The University of Missouri–St. Louis is continuing to build an athletic department that mirrors its overall student population in accordance with Title IX. After discontinuing its men’s and women’s track and field programs at the end of this academic year, the athletic department will continue to feature 15 teams competing in NCAA Division II athletics. Of those, eight are women’s sports teams.”
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