Overview
- U.S. District Judge Todd Robinson approved the settlement Monday in San Diego, resolving a class action over alleged shortfalls in women’s athletic scholarships.
- The financial terms require SDSU to pay $300,000 to the class and $1.3 million in plaintiffs’ legal fees, with about $375 per former athlete due within 30 days.
- The agreement adds fixes on campus that include new turf for women’s lacrosse and equal access to professional photography and publicity for men’s and women’s teams.
- SDSU must hire an outside expert for a gender equity review, produce a gender equity plan, and meet Title IX compliance by the end of the 2026–27 academic year.
- The university denies violating Title IX and calls the payments non-precedential, while plaintiffs cite this as the first class-wide damages recovery for unequal athletic aid, built on claims that women received 50.64% of aid despite a 57.22% share of athletes.