The U.S. Department of Education is investigating Western Carolina University for allegedly violating Title IX and not complying with the Trump administration’s executive order on transgender women. The Office for Civil Rights claims the university has not ensured sex-separated facilities within federally funded institutions. Allegations include a female student being investigated for asking a male student to leave a women’s bathroom and cases of transgender female students being assigned to girls’ dormitories.
Western Carolina University stated it complied with all state and federal regulations and asserted it will adjust campus policies as necessary. Reports indicated violations related to ensuring sex-separated intimate spaces.
An investigation was opened after former student Payton McNabb filmed a male student in a women’s bathroom. McNabb noted that such policies violate individual rights and negatively impact female students seeking single-sex spaces.