Bryan Sailer, the longtime women's soccer coach at Emporia State University in Kansas who was terminated in December 2023, has seen his discrimination lawsuit against the Division II school dismissed.
As reported by radio station KVOE in Emporia, Sailer spent more than 10 years leading Emporia State’s soccer program. He filed a lawsuit in December 2024 claiming retaliation for his complaints about sexual discrimination against the women’s soccer team in violation of Title IX.
He has also filed a First Amendment claim specifically against former athletics director David Spafford.
"The lawsuit focused on concerns about gender equity when it comes to the team’s playing conditions. which he said had been neglected for over a year, as well as strength and conditioning matters — adding he had mentioned his concerns on several occasions to Spafford, Senior Associate Athletic Director of Internal Relations and Senior Women’s Administrator Colleen Mischke and President Ken Hush," KVOE's Chuck Samples reported.
Last week, a stipulation of dismissal was filed in federal court, meaning both sides voluntarily agreement to end the case. Both sides will pay their own court costs, but no additional terms of the agreement, if any exist, have been released.
In June, U.S. District Court judge John Lungstrum decided to partially dismiss both Sailer’s Title IX and First Amendment complaints. On the Title IX complaint, Lungstrum said some of Sailer’s concerns “do not constitute protected activity,” so there could be no federal violations. For the First Amendment complaint, Lungstrum noted Sailer’s failure “to state a claim to relief” by not plausibly alleging he was speaking as a private citizen instead of as a university employee when he supported the team’s Title IX complaint, Samples reported.
