Florida Atlantic Accused of Fudging Athletic Participation Data

Florida Atlantic University inflated its female athletic participation data that it submits annually to the Department of Education. This report mislead the government and the public that the institution satisfied its Title IX obligation to provide equitable athletic opportunities by distributing them proportionate to the gender breakdown of the student body, when in fact this was not the case.

According to an article published today by the Palm Beach Post:

In 2016, women represented more than half of the Boca Raton school’s enrollment but only 31 percent of its athletes. The percentage was the lowest of all 127 schools participating in [Division I].

Just one year later, FAU claimed it had erased its female participation gap. It told the U.S. Department of Education in 2017 that 51 percent of its athletes were women.

Specifically, the Post noted that FAU overcounted female track athletes, reporting a team of 98 in 2017, which was more than double the number reported in 2016. The reported number was also considerably higher than the number of the roster, 43, and in the team photo, 38.  FAU reported a total of 222 female athletic opportunities for the combined total of indoor track, outdoor track, and cross country, which if accurate would have made it the largest women's track program in all of Division I.

For its part, FAU acknowledged the inaccuracy but called it accidental, and blamed an employee who no longer works at the university.

It's been a few years since we've seen a story like this one, but today's news suggests that the practice of reporting inflated data still occurs. It also underscores that the way we find out about these problems is when the media goes digging for the truth behind the numbers.