The University of Pennsylvania is now on the front line of the fight between the Trump administration and progressive activists over protecting women’s sports and spaces from biological males.
President Donald Trump made good on his pledge to safeguard women’s sports Wednesday morning, putting $175 million in federal funding for the University of Pennsylvania on hold in a move against its transgender athlete policies.
The decision, first reported by Fox Business, stems from the university’s defiance of Trump’s executive order barring biological males from competing in women’s athletics.
A senior administration official called the funding freeze a “warning shot,” a sign the fight is far from over. The cut targets discretionary spending from the Departments of Defense and Health and Human Services, with UPenn now teetering on the edge of losing all federal support.
The action follows ongoing Title IX investigations into the school’s decision to allow transgender swimmer Lia Thomas, a biological male, to compete on the women’s team and use female locker rooms—allegedly exposing his male genitalia to teammates.
Polls show nearly 80 percent of American voters support banning males from women’s sports, though a majority of Delaware Valley elected Democrats oppose it.
U.S. Reps. Madeleine Dean, Mary Gay Scanlon, and Chrissy Houlahan, all Democrats, voted against the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025 when it was passed by the House earlier this year.
A Penn spokesman told DV Journal, “We are aware of media reports suggesting a suspension of $175 million in federal funding to Penn, but have not yet received any official notification or any details. It is important to note, however, that Penn has always followed NCAA and Ivy League policies regarding student participation on athletic teams. We have been in the past, and remain today, in full compliance with the regulations that apply to not only Penn, but all of our NCAA and Ivy League peer institutions.”
Jamie Walker, a Bucks County mother, was pleased by the president’s action.
“I am thrilled President Trump is keeping his promise to women in America,” said Walker. “He is protecting women’s sports and making sure females aren’t erased by extremists.”
Radnor resident Matthew Marshall, a 1988 UPenn alum and Quaker Athletics fan, said, “Leaving national politics aside, why would Penn’s leadership (or the State of Maine’s governor for that matter) forego federal funding for ideological purposes?”
“No one is suggesting the male athletes can’t compete, the Title IX legislation only ensures fairness for female competitors. As a father of a female athlete (former high school-PIAA swimmer), it only seems logical to exclude biological males from women sports. Collegiate women athletes have chosen to self-advocate for fairness under Title IX, and that is a worthy cause,” Marshall said.
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