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INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana (LifeSiteNews) – The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) unveiled proposed changes to its constitution last week that could push Catholic and other Christian colleges out of the association.

The National Catholic Register reported that the NCAA’s new draft constitution includes a section that would require colleges to “comply with federal and state laws and local ordinances, including respect to gender equity, diversity and inclusion.”

“That might seem harmless, to require compliance with the law. But then again, why is there a need to add such a provision, with specific reference to ‘gender equity, diversity and inclusion?’” Patrick Reilly, founder and president of The Cardinal Newman Society, wrote for the Register. “There is an agenda here that threatens religious institutions.”

The changes could force participating schools to submit to the pro-LGBT dictates of the Biden administration, for example. An executive order signed by Joe Biden on his first day in office declared that prohibitions against “sex discrimination” applied to “discrimination on the basis of gender identity or sexual orientation.”

The Biden Education Department later announced that it would enforce Title IX, which bans sex discrimination in any education institution that receives federal funding, against “discrimination” on the grounds of “gender identity” and “sexual orientation.”

“Based on the proposed new amendment to the NCAA constitution, it might be that the NCAA would exclude faithful colleges like Belmont Abbey College, the Catholic University of America and the University of Mary from participation. They could technically be in violation of existing (although clearly unconstitutional) laws,” Reilly warned.

While drafting its new constitution, NCAA ignored a proposal by Catholic colleges and the evangelical Council for Christian Colleges and Universities to add a provision that would exempt private religious institutions from having to adopt policies that conflict with their values, Reilly noted.

The NCAA’s Constitution Committee will submit final recommendations to the Board of Governors by December 15, according to Inside Higher Ed. Members are expected to vote on the changes at the 2022 NCAA conference in January.

The NCAA has notably allowed gender-confused males to compete on women’s teams after a single year of testosterone suppression since 2010, jeopardizing female athletes’ safety and careers.

Studies have repeatedly shown that gender dysphoric men massively outperform females in athletic competitions, regardless of so-called “gender transitioning.” A study published earlier this year in Sports Medicine found that 12 months of testosterone suppression only results in “very modest changes” to males’ inherent physical advantages.

The NCAA Board of Directors nevertheless doubled down on its embrace of the anti-science demands of the transgender movement earlier this year, announcing in a statement that it “firmly and unequivocally supports the opportunity for transgender student-athletes to compete in college sports.”

“When determining where championships are held, NCAA policy directs that only locations where hosts can commit to providing an environment that is safe, healthy, and free of discrimination should be selected,” the statement added. “We will continue to closely monitor these situations to determine whether NCAA championships can be conducted in ways that are welcoming and respectful of all participants.”

Ten Republican-led states have so far enacted restrictions to prohibit gender-confused males from competing on women’s sports teams, mostly in the past year. The NCAA has yet to relocate a championship game due to the policies, though it did pressure North Carolina to repeal a law that required students to use bathrooms according to their biological sex in 2016.