- Katie Meyer was a member of the 2019 national champion Stanford Cardinal
- She died by suicide in 2022 when she faced a disciplinary issue with the school
The family of Katie Meyer, an NCAA champion soccer player at Stanford who died by suicide in 2022, is slamming the school for failing to recognize their daughter during a “mental health awareness” game.
On Thursday, Stanford hosted the event – a 1-0 victory over visiting Miami – on the school campus in Palo Alto, California. But despite the recent memory of Meyer’s tragic death, not to mention her role in winning a national championship in 2019, the Cardinal failed to name their former goaltender, according to her parents’ attorney.
“The Meyers want to make it clear that while they are extremely disappointed in the Stanford administration and their decision not to honor Katie, they have every love, respect and support for Katie’s teammates who are now seniors and playing in the mental health field,” says the Meyers family. attorney Kim Dougherty told USA Today.
Spokespeople for the school did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for comment.
Meanwhile, in Sacramento, a Meyer-inspired bill from California has been signed by Governor Gavin Newsom.
Meyer’s parents Steve, left, and Gina, right, remain angry at Stanford University
Meyer, 22, took her own life in February 2022 after receiving a disciplinary letter
The new law requires public colleges and universities to grant students access to an advisor if they are accused of violating the student code of conduct. Schools that do not do this risk losing government funding for student financial aid.
The bill was the result of advocacy by Katie’s Save, a nonprofit founded by her parents, Steve and Gina.
Meyer’s family is currently involved in a wrongful death lawsuit against Stanford over Katie’s death. The Meyers believe the school did not provide enough support to Katie when she faced a disciplinary issue surrounding her death in 2019.
The lawsuit says Meyer spilled coffee on a Stanford football player who allegedly sexually assaulted a football teammate. It also said that on the evening of Feb. 28, 2022 — the same night she died — Meyer received a formal written notice accusing her of a “basic standard violation.”
The violation resulted in her diploma being suspended a few months before she was scheduled to graduate, USA Today reported at the time. According to multiple reports, Meyer was also reportedly awaiting word that she had been admitted to Stanford Law School at the time of her death.
Steven and Gina filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the school, claiming their daughter’s suicide was “solely in response to the shocking information she received from Stanford”
Meyer was the goaltender for national champion Stanford Cardinal in 2019
Her parents claim in the lawsuit that the message came “after hours” while Meyer was “alone in her room, without any support or resources.” The lawsuit states that Meyer responded to the email “in which she expressed how ‘shocked and distraught’ she was at being accused and threatened with expulsion from the university” and received a follow-up email scheduling a meeting three days later.
Her parents said in the lawsuit that Meyer had “an acute stress response that impulsively caused her to take her life.” The lawsuit also states that Meyer told Stanford employees in November 2021 that she had “worried for months that my clumsiness would ruin my chances of leaving Stanford on a good note.”
Stanford’s assistant vice president of external communications, Dee Mostofi, said at the time that the school “strongly disagreed” with the lawsuit’s claim that Stanford was responsible for Meyer’s death.
“The Meyer family has turned the tragedy of their daughter’s death into law that provides protection for other students,” state Assemblymember and bill backer Jacqui Irwin wrote on X.
“Our public college and university students here in California are now protected by Katie Meyer’s Law,” the Meyer family wrote online. We are so grateful to everyone for your love and support.”