Melissa Batie-Smoose of San Jose State University (SJSU) filed a federal Civil Rights Complaint against SJSU after witnessing discriminatory actions against members of the women’s volleyball team. After speaking out on behalf of the girls on her team, the school placed Coach Batie-Smoose on indefinite leave.

San Jose State University remains at the top of news headlines due to several allegations of sex-based discrimination. A male athlete, Blaire Fleming, currently holds a roster spot and scholarship on the university’s women’s volleyball team. After Reduxx confirmed Blaire Fleming’s biological sex, Concerned Women for America (CWA) filed the first federal Civil Rights Complaint against SJSU for this willful violation of Title IX.  SJSU also faced penalties in 2021 after a U.S. Department of Justice investigation for their failure to protect female athletes from sexual harassment.

Melissa Batie-Smoose, Associate Head Coach of SJSU’s Women’s Volleyball team, affirmed discrimination allegations and more with her own complaint to the Department of Education. Quillette broke the news:

On 29 October, Batie-Smoose filed a 33-page sworn declaration with officials at SJSU, the Mountain West Conference, and the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA), exhorting these bodies to investigate (1) the overt favouritism that she believes her school has shown to Fleming, at the expense of Fleming’s 18 female teammates; and (2) the unsettling measures that SJSU officials have allegedly taken in order to suppress expressions of concern from these affected women.

Melissa Batie-Smoose joined the SJSU volleyball coaching staff in January 2023 without knowledge of the team’s male participant. The school additionally failed to inform the nine new players that they would be sharing a locker room with a male athlete. Her concern over the athlete’s unusual and unmatched athletic ability grew as she watched him play, and Head Coach Kress reportedly also shared the concerns. However, once the Athletic Department gave “strict orders,” Batie-Smoose said the coach no longer expressed concerns and mentioned comments made that “anyone opposed to Fleming’s inclusion on the women’s team should leave SJSU and seek ‘therapy.’”

Batie-Smoose witnessed several additional acts of favoritism, some of which “effectively pushed [a recruit] out of the program.” She found herself in “a private milieu, out of Kress’s earshot, in which women could candidly share their concerns.” The head coach labeled exclusion of the boy as “homophobic” and reportedly “no longer speaks to Slusser,” the co-Captain of his team who joined the lawsuit alongside Riley Gaines against the NCAA. The complaint also alleges that Fleming “conspired with an opponent to help San Jose State lose a match and attempt to injure teammate Brooke Slusser.”

After exposing the school’s discriminatory acts against women in her report, San Jose State suspended Melissa Batie-Smoose.

CO-Captain Slusser commented on X:

“My assistant coach spoke truth to protect my team. Then…they fire her. They took away the only safe space we had in the program. Because she knew that it was right to stand up for the 18 women on the team. Not one man.”

The Department of Education is responsible for ensuring SJSU comply with all Title IX obligations, including freedom from discrimination in educational opportunities. Rostering a male athlete not only denies women a fair chance of scholarship, but places all women involved at a heightened risk of injury.

Universities receiving federal funding, including San Jose State University, are not only obligated to protect female athletes under Title IX, but have a duty to respect the free speech of all, including coaching staff and team members. Additionally, SJSU and local law enforcement must take the allegations of conspiracy to intentionally injure Brooke Slusser seriously.

CWA will continue to proudly stand with the brave women, athletes, and coaches who put themselves on the line to boldly amplify Biblical truths in their arenas. We encourage you to join us in praying for Coach Batie-Smoose, Brooke Slusser, and the rest of SJSU team.