The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights on Thursday released guidance on name, image and likeness (NIL) payment and its compliance under federal Title IX rules.
The office released its guidelines in a nine-page memo stating that sports programs must offer equal opportunities regardless of sex.
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The memo stated that compensation by a school for NIL student-athletes is considered “athletic financial assistance” under Title IX “because athletic financial assistance includes any financial assistance and other assistance provided by the school to a student-athlete who related to a student’s athletic participation 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 sex-based disparities in a school’s athletic program. school or in a component of the program,” the memo states. “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 non-discriminatory manner.
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“It is possible that NIL agreements between student-athletes and third parties 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 the requirements Title IX Athletic Equal Opportunity Policy is a fact-specific investigation, this fact sheet does not provide specific guidance on the application of Title IX in the context of compensation provided for a third party’s use of a student-athlete’s NIL. , including a NIL collective”.
Miguel Cardona is the Secretary of Education in President Biden’s administration, but will leave his position once President-elect Trump takes office on January 20.
Guidance could change during the Trump administration.
