A lawsuit involving a transgender athlete has led Vermont Principals' Association Executive Director Jay Nichols to agree to pay $566,000 in damages and attorneys' fees to partially settle a religious discrimination case brought by Mid Vermont Christian School.
Mid Vermont Christian and one of its families filed the lawsuit in 2023 against state education leaders after the VPA expelled the private school and its students from all state-sponsored athletic and academic activities, WCAX-TV in Burlington reported.
The expulsion stemmed from the Quechee-based school's decision to forfeit a girls' varsity basketball game during the state tournament against Long Trail School, which had a transgender player on its roster. School officials said the decision was based on their religious beliefs, according to attorneys with Alliance Defending Freedom, who are representing the school and the family.
Following the forfeit, the VPA took the unprecedented step of issuing a full ban, removing Mid Vermont Christian from all sports and activities governed by the association.
In response, the school filed suit, arguing that the association's actions amounted to religious discrimination. The complaint also contended that allowing the transgender athlete to compete created what the school described as an unsafe and unfair playing environment, noting that the player was more than 6 feet tall.
The legal battle reached a turning point in September, when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit in New York ruled that the VPA had violated its own rules and discriminated against the school. The court ordered that Mid Vermont Christian be allowed to rejoin the state's athletic association.
The $566,000 settlement represents a partial resolution of the case, covering damages and legal fees tied to the claims against the VPA and its leadership.
Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys say litigation is continuing on the remaining claims in the case, Mid Vermont Christian School v. Education Commissioner Zoie Saunders et al., as broader legal questions surrounding religious liberty and participation policies remain unresolved.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.