NAIA becomes first national governing body to ban transgender athletes in women’s sports
As the debate surrounding transgender athletes participating in women’s sports intensifies, one national governing body has taken a firm stance.
Regarded as the small college athletics governing body, NAIA appears to be the first national body in the United States to mandate that athletes compete according to the sex they were assigning at birth.
NAIA bans transgender athletes from women’s sports
Earlier this week Iowa met South Carolina in the NCAA women’s basketball championship game and ahead of the game, the coaches of both teams - Lisa Bluder and Dawn Staley respectively - were asked for their opinion on whether transgender athletes should be allowed to play in women’s sports. Bluder declined to comment, while Staley essentially said ‘let them play.’ The latter acknowledged that she would almost certainly face critique for her stance. The positions taken by both women appear to be two sides of the triangle we see today i.e., there are those who are in favor, those who would rather not say, and those who oppose.
As things stand the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) is the third. Following a 20-0 vote on Monday, NAIA announced that athletes will only be permitted to compete in women’s sports if they were assigned the female gender at birth. The vote and decision follow on from a December survey which indicated widespread support for the move. Previously the association’s policy only extended as far as postseason competition, however, this regulation will now be applied to all NAIA competitions.
What is NAIA and what has it said?
In simple form, NAIA is a national athletic governing body that consists of 249 largely small colleges across the United States that are not part of the NCAA’s three divisions of competition. To that end, about 80% of its membership is made up of private schools. To be clear, the organization’s decision does not in any way impact NCAA competitions, however, it will undoubtedly divide opinion.
“We know there are a lot of different opinions out there,” NAIA president Jim Carr. “For us, we believed our first responsibility was to create fairness and competition in the NAIA. ...We also think it aligns with the reasons Title IX was created. You’re allowed to have separate but equal opportunities for women to compete.” At this time it is believed that NAIA stands as the first national college governing body to take this course of action where transgender athletes are concerned. Carr also indicated that there had been no knowledge to suggest that transgender athletes participated in its postseason competitions up to this point.
OK, what about NAIA’s new policy itself?
Interestingly, the policy itself doesn’t just block those who were assigned male at birth, but also those who were assigned female at birth and have begun to take masculinizing hormones as part of gender transition therapy. Carr was quick to point out that those who are no longer eligible for women’s sports could still participate in men’s competitions. “It’s important to know that the male sports are open to anyone,” he said. It is understood that the policy does not apply to team activities such as practices, exhibition games, and scrimmages.
Now, it’s important to understand two things here: The context in which this has occurred and what has come as a result of that context. Where the former is concerned, we’ve got to back to 2022 when the NCAA announced that it would allow national governing bodies in each sport to determine transgender policies. As things stand, this new policy - you can see it in full below - appears to align with that of the International Olympic Committee. “College sports are the premier stage for women’s sports in America, and the NCAA will continue to promote Title IX, make unprecedented investments in women’s sports, and ensure fair competition for all student-athletes in all NCAA championships,” the association has said.
Student-athletes may participate in NAIA competition in accordance with the following conditions:
- A. Participation by students in sports designated as male by the NAIA:
All eligible NAIA student-athletes may participate in NAIA-sponsored male sports. - B. Participation by students in sports designated as female by the NAIA:
Only NAIA student-athletes whose biological sex is female may participate in NAIA-sponsored female sports. They may participate under the following conditions:
- A student who has not begun any masculinizing hormone therapy may participate without limitation.
A student who has begun masculinizing hormone therapy may participate in:
- a. All activities that are internal to the institution (does not include external competition), including workouts, practices, and team activities. Such participation is at the discretion of the NAIA member institution where the student is enrolled; and
- b. External competition that is not a countable contest as defined by the NAIA (per NAC Policy Article XXV, Section A, Item 12). Such participation is at the discretion of the NAIA member institution where the student is enrolled.
An NAIA institution that has a student-athlete who has begun masculinizing hormone therapy must notify the NAIA national office. The national office will take the necessary steps to provide appropriate privacy protections.
This policy will be subject to review in light of any legal, scientific, or medical developments.
This is where we come to the latter i.e., what has happened as a result. According to Carr, sixty-eight schools’ CEOs (presidents, chancellors) responded to the previously mentioned December survey (roughly 27%). Fifty-eight were in favor of the policy change. Though there were in fact five absentees for Monday’s vote, the 20-0 was more than enough to ensure the policy was passed. “The task force spent nearly two years reviewing research, meeting with experts to better understand potential policy challenges, and obtaining feedback from multiple membership groups,” said Council of Presidents chair and St. Ambrose University president Amy Novak. “With this policy, the NAIA has made its best effort to allow for the inclusion of transgender athletes in any way which does not impact the competitive fairness of women’s sports. Our priority is to protect the integrity of women’s athletics and allow them equal opportunity to succeed.”