Trump admin pauses $175M in federal funding to UPenn over inclusion of trans athletes in women’s sports

FOX Business' Hillary Vaughn discusses President Donald Trump pausing some federal funding to the University of Pennsylvania amid Title IX investigations.

The Trump administration paused $175 million in federal funding to the University of Pennsylvania over its inclusion of transgender athletes in women’s sports, FOX Business exclusively reported on Wednesday morning. 

The Ivy League university now stands to risk losing all of its federal funding amid an investigation into potential Title IX violations. 

Riley Gaines, now a spokeswoman for the Independent Women’s Forum, famously tied Lia Thomas, left, for fifth place in the 200 Freestyle finals at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships. (Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports)

A senior administration official told FOX Business that the administration has paused $175 million in federal funding. This did not account for UPenn’s total federal funding, which the university previously reported last year was around $1 billion. 

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

The pause is not a direct result of the investigation into UPenn, which the Department of Education announced a day after the president signed the "Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports" executive order on Feb. 5.

Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor said in a statement provided by the department last month that three institutions would be investigated for suspected Title IX violations. 

In addition to UPenn, San Jose State University, which made headlines in the fall after several schools refused to play the women’s volleyball team because of a trans athlete on the roster, and the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association are also being investigated for suspected violations. 

Bl