Citing its status as a “passionately Catholic institution” that observes “objective reality,” the Franciscan University of Steubenville has rejected recent changes to Title IX, allowing “gender identity” to be used as a basis for sex discrimination.
The prominent Catholic university based in Ohio will continue using biological sex as the basis to separate students in housing, restrooms, locker rooms, and sports teams.
Father Dave Pivonka TOR, the president of Franciscan University, sent a letter informing students that, as a religious school, the federal government’s altering of Title IX did not impact the university because it conflicted with Catholic teaching.
Franciscan University of Steubenville campus. (Photo by John Greim/LightRocket via Getty Images)
“We believe in the inherent dignity of every human person,” Pivonka wrote. “And as a passionately Catholic institution, we believe in and follow the teachings of the Catholic Church that consider ‘sex’ to refer to the objective reality of a human person as a man (male) or as a woman (female), grounded in and determined by a person’s biology.”
Father Pivonka also emphasized Franciscan’s Compendium on human sexuality, which reaffirms that sexual identity is based on a person’s biology.
“Violations of the dignity of a person will not be tolerated on this campus,” Pivonka said. “Presenting authentic Catholic teachings, which convey truth, beauty, liberty, and healing, uplift the human person in every respect. Teaching what the Church teaches is an act of charity and our duty as a Catholic university.”
The statement protects students and employees from facing discipline for not referring to a person by their “preferred pronouns.” Nor will they face discipline for voicing beliefs consistent with the university’s beliefs that biology, not identity, determines gender.
The Biden administration claims its changes to Title IX were meant to “clarify that sex discrimination includes discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.”
University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas and Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines react after finishing tied for 5th in the 200 Freestyle finals at the NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships on March 18th, 2022, at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Georgia. (Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
While religious institutions such as Franciscan University can resist such changes due to the conflict they create with their religious beliefs, Biden’s Title IX changes are sure to create far more controversy at the public institutions in the two dozen states that have banned or severely limited the ability of males to compete in women’s sports.
