Student-athletes and coaches at Sonoma State University are preparing to take legal action against the university following its announcement that it will eliminate all NCAA Division II sports programs and cut several academic offerings for the upcoming school year.

Sonoma State University announced Wednesday that its intercollegiate athletics programs are being discontinued, several academic departments and majors are being eliminated and dozens of faculty members are being laid off to address a budget deficit of nearly $24 million.

Save Seawolves Athletics, a group that's protesting the elimination of athletics at Sonoma State University, has filed a formal civil rights complaint over the decision.

Memphis Grizzlies guard Jaylen Wells played two seasons at Sonoma State, a Division II school that gave him the start to his basketball career.

A grassroots organization seeking to save Sonoma State University’s athletics department says it has filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, calling for an investigation into the university’s decision to cut the entire department.

The complaint calls for an investigation into the proposed cuts that have “unfairly targeted a student body that is notably diverse, creating a disparate impact on students from underrepresented communities.