Department of Education releases memo on student-athlete NIL pay, Title IX compliance

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The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights released guidance on Thursday regarding name, image and likeness (NIL) pay and its compliance under federal Title IX rules.

The office put out its guidelines in a nine-page memo stating that athletic programs must offer equal opportunity regardless of sex.

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The memo stated that compensation by a school for student-athletes NIL is considered to be "athletic financial assistance" under Title IX "because athletic financial assistance includes any financial assistance and other aid provided by the school to a student-athlete that is connected to a student’s athletic participation; it is not limited to scholarships or grants."

"However, OCR has long recognized that a school has Title IX obligations when funding from private sources, including private donations and funds raised by booster clubs, creates disparities based on sex in a school’s athletic program or a program component," the memo stated. "The fact that funds are provided by a private source does not relieve a school of its responsibility to treat all of its student-athletes in a nondiscriminatory manner.

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"It is possible that NIL agreements between student-athletes and third parties will create similar disparities and therefore trigger a school’s Title IX obligations. Because these NIL agreements vary widely and continue to evolve and because the application of Title IX’s equal athletic opportunity requirements is a