Concordia University Irvine is committed to gender equity for our student-athletes and fiscal responsibility for the good of all of our students. We are disappointed in the decision of nine students from the affected women’s teams to pursue a class action lawsuit against the University for alleged Title IX infractions. As was announced on May 20, 2025, the difficult and necessary decision to discontinue four of our NCAA Division II athletics programs – women’s and men’s tennis and women’s and men’s swim and dive – was part of a broader department-wide and university-wide effort to align our operational expenses with our operational revenue in order to maintain the longevity of our institution. As we monitor our enrollment and team rosters, we will continue to assess the gender equity of our sports programs and make adjustments as needed.
The combined rosters for the four discontinued teams (two women’s teams and two men’s teams) included 37 women and 35 men in the 2024-25 season and the proportional balance of women’s and men’s athletic participation has not changed. With the discontinuation of these teams, Concordia still sponsors two more women’s teams than men’s teams. Over the past decade, we have added three new women’s teams compared to one new men’s team.
In the months since these programs were closed, the University has made every effort to support all of our impacted student-athletes. For those who wish to continue at Concordia, the students will still retain their full scholarship amounts. For those who wish to transfer, we have offered individualized advising guidance.
After careful review of our financial resources, facility capacity, and overall program sustainability, our leadership concluded that reinstating the women’s tennis and swim and dive programs would create an unbalanced commitment that cannot be supported within our current budget and strategic priorities. We will continue to monitor enrollment and team rosters in order to assess gender equity and implement modifications, including expanding opportunities as needed. We believe this measured approach best serves our students and our mission to develop “wise, honorable, and cultivated citizens” through academic and athletic excellence.
Media inquiries, requests, and questions should be directed to communications@cui.edu.