Following Sonoma State University’s announcement that it would be cutting the school’s D-II athletics program to solve a $24 million budget deficit, student-athletes have filed a complaint to reverse the decision.
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Following Sonoma State University’s announcement that it would be cutting the school’s D-II athletics program to solve a $24 million budget deficit, student-athletes have filed a complaint to reverse the decision.
A grassroots organization called ‘Save Seawolves Athletics’ filed a civil rights complaint with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. The group argues that cutting the school’s athletics department would “disparately impact students from underrepresented communities.”
According to KTVU News, Save Seawolves Athletics claimed, “they were not provided due process and that the challenges they would face were not taken into consideration when the university decided to end their sports programs.”
Related: Sonoma State Eliminates Entirety of School’s D-II Athletics Program Amid Budget Deficit
The organization’s goal is for Sonoma State University to reinstate the athletics department and find other opportunities to make up the deficit. Along with the athletics department, the university announced it would cut some faculty contracts and other departments including economics, environmental sciences and art history.
Sonoma State University would save an estimated $3.7 million by discontinuing NCAA athletics.
A Save Seawolves Athletics spokesperson told KTVU News, “We believe that the decision to eliminate athletics must be reversed, and that alternatives should be explored within the broader university budget that do not negatively impact marginalized students to such an extent. The lack of transparency in the process—particularly the failure to involve key stakeholders like the Athletics Department and the Student-Athlete Council—further underscores the need for an independent investigation.”
The university told KTVU News that the complaint was currently being reviewed. When university officials first notified students and faculty of the cuts to the athletics department, interim president Emily Cutrer said, “I know this is difficult news for our campus community. I am keenly aware of its human impact, and how individuals, families, relationships, and communities are affected by such news."
