On August 1, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania dismissed a lawsuit brought by a cisgender female athlete against two Pennsylvania school districts and the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) over a transgender female’s participation in a high school sporting event.
Facts of the Case
Plaintiff Aislin Magalengo sued Quakertown Community School District (“Quakertown”), Colonial School District (“Colonial”), and PIAA—the governing body for high school and middle school athletics teams in Pennsylvania—because a transgender female, L.A., was allowed to race against cisgender females in the 2024-25 cross-country season, pursuant to PIAA policy.
Magalengo, a former student of Quakertown, competed in a cross-country meet against a school within Colonial, where L.A. was on the girls’ cross-country team. The lawsuit described an encounter on September 11, 2024, at a cross-country meet held at Quakertown.
During the competition, L.A. secured first place, while Magalengo finished second. On losing to L.A., Magalengo told her: “You are not a girl. You should not be racing against girls.” Magalengo’s parents complained to Quakertown school administration about L.A.’s participation in the race.
However, the PIAA had a policy at the time stating that where a student’s gender is “questioned or uncertain, the decision of the Principal as to the student’s gender will be accepted by the PIAA.” Such a determination was to be made by Colonial, and not Quakertown.
The Opinion
Quakertown, Colonial, and the PIAA defeated the claims brought by Magalengo over L.A.’s participation on the cross-country team.
In dismissing the suit, Chief Judge Wendy Beetlestone of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania stated in the August 1 opinion, Magalengo “failed to allege any facts” that the PIAA is federally funded to support her Title IX claim against it, nor did she present sufficient allegations to support her Title IX claims against the individual school districts.
Magalengo presented no sufficient allegations that Colonial had substantial control over the context in which the alleged discrimination occurred, since the cross-country race was hosted at Quakertown.
Additionally, Magalengo did not allege Quakertown “had any knowledge” about the transgender student’s participation until her parents complained to the school after she lost a race. Without that notice, Quakertown “cannot be held liable under Title IX.”
The Court dismissed the Title IX claims against the PIAA and Colonial, as well as the Title IX claim against Quakertown—”insofar as it is premised on transgender girls’ participation in athletics.”
The Court noted that Magalengo “[made] no effort” to link allegations between Quakertown allowing transgender females to use girls’ bathrooms and locker rooms to her Title IX claim. A claim based on a policy allowing students to use those facilities that align with their gender identity is “unlikely to succeed on the merits,” “insofar as it is premised on transgender girls using girls’ bathrooms and locker rooms.”
Magalengo also did not allege she shared a bathroom or locker room with a transgender female. But even so, in the 2018 Third Circuit ruling in Doe ex rel. Doe v. Boyertown Area Sch. Dist., the Court held that a school district had a compelling interest to allow transgender students to use their preferred facilities. The Court reasoned the 2018 decision declined to recognize a broader constitutional right to privacy “‘in a space that is, by definition and common usage, just not that private.’”
Here the Court held the amended complaint is additionally “devoid of any factual allegations that she was subject to purposeful discrimination,” the Court said, dismissing Magalengo her equal protection claims with prejudice.
Bottom Line For Schools
This case is part of a broader national conversation, reflecting evolving public and political perspectives on transgender students and their participation in sports. It highlights ongoing policy discussions, such as recent actions by administrations concerning transgender athletes. As the legal landscape of Title IX regulations evolves, schools should continue to carefully review and develop policies and programs in accordance with federal and state guidelines.
