The Florida High School Athletic Association has placed Monarch High School on a one-year administrative probation and fined the school $16,500 for allowing a transgender girl to play on the girls' volleyball team.
According to CNN, the FHSAA sent a letter to Monarch's interim principal accusing the school of violating Florida's Fairness in Women's Sports Act, as well as an association bylaw, which prohibit "biological males" from playing on women's sports teams at public schools.
The student-athlete involved in the matter is “declared ineligible to represent any member school” through November 2024, according to the letter.
Florida governor Ron DeSantis signed the Fairness in Women's Sports Act into law back in 2021.
Related: Florida HS Principal Reassigned Over Transgender Athlete Issue
Florida education commissioner Manny Diaz Jr. wrote in a post on X, “We applaud the swift action taken by the (Florida High School Athletic Association) to ensure there are serious consequences for this illegal behavior.”
The Broward County School District last week temporarily removed Monarch's principal and other members of the staff from their positions while it investigated the matter.
A statement from the attorney representing the student’s family to CNN said, in part, “Today’s determination by the Florida High School Athletics Association does not change the fact that the law preventing transgender girls from playing sports with their peers is unconstitutionally rooted in anti-transgender bias, and the Association’s claim to ensure equal opportunities for student athletes rings hollow.”
Student-athletes in Florida are required to fill out a pre-participation physical evaluation form and complete a physical exam that is reviewed by school officials and submitted to the athletics association. The five-page form asks students to state the sex they were assigned at birth. It is unclear how the student answered the question on the form.
