Title IX: Women & College Athletics

"No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance." Title IX,1972, Education Amendments

No single piece of legislation has increased opportunities for women and girls in the United States any more than the Title IX legislation. Title IX was passed by the United States Congress on June 23, 1972. President Nixon signed the documents. This law prohibits discrimination against women in any program, whether it is education or athletics which receives federal money. This civil rights law is the first law which protects women from discrimination.

The importance of Title IX is well known, particularly for what the law did for women's athletics and education. However, the additional ramifications of the law are not so well known. The law also protects access to higher education, career education, employment, learning environment, math and science, sexual harassment, standardized testing, the treatment of pregnant women and parenting teens is little known.

Our institutions of learning looked very different before the passage of Title IX, in the summer of 1972. Believe it or not, many schools and universities had separate entrances for male and female students. Females were prohibited from taking such courses as auto mechanics or criminal justice. Men could not enroll in home economics courses. Surprisingly enough, most medical and law schools limited the number of women who were admitted to 15 or fewer per school. (Report Card on Gender Equity)

Another inequality was seen in the college admissions process. Women were expected to have higher scores on standardized tests and better grades than their male counter parts in order to gain admission. Inequality did not stop there. Women who lived on college campuses were not allowed to stay out past midnight. Men had no curfew. Women faculty members experienced discrimination as well. Women faculty members were excluded from faculty clubs and invited to join faculty wives' clubs instead.

The Report Card on Gender Equity states that, "after winning two gold medals in the 1964 Olympics, swimmer Donna de Varona could not obtain a college swimming scholarship. For women, they did not exist."
Following the passage of Title IX, many changes for the better took place. Beginning in 1973, the following year, 43% of female high school graduates were enrolled in college. This number increased to 63% as recently as 1994. In 1971, only 18% of young women were college graduates, compared with 26% of men. By comparison, in 1994, both 27% of men and women had earned a college degree. In 1972, only 9% of women obtained a medical degree, but by 1994 that number had increased to 38%. The percentage of women who earned a degree in law increased from 7% in 1971, to 43% in 1994.

Certainly, Title IX has had a tremendous impact on women's athletics. Today, more that 100,000 women participate in collegiate athletics. This is four times the number of participants from 1971. In high school that same year, 300,000 or 7.5% of women participated in high school athletics. By 1996, that number had increased to 2.4 million or 39%. Statistics also indicate that high school girls who participate in team sports are less inclined to drop out of school, smoke, drink or become pregnant. Title IX also protects teenage girls who become pregnant by not suspending or expelling them as a result of the pregnancy. Pregnant women are allowed to continue their educational program and activities. From 1980 to 1990, dropout rates for pregnant students declined 30%. Title IX: 25 Years of Progress reports that this protection under the law increased the chances that mothers would have the ability to support and care for their children.

Although great strides have been made to decrease discrimination for women and girls, after thirty years improvements still need to be made. These facts are reported from research conducted by the National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education. Sexual harassment still exists in public schools as 81% of the students have experienced it. Sexual segregation occurs in career education courses. Females are still enrolled in traditional female fields (90%) such as health related studies, teaching, graphic arts and office technology. In colleges and universities, only 21% of the professors are women. In athletics, for every new dollar devoted to sports in Division I and Division II schools, male sports receives $.65 and female sports receives $.35. When degrees are awarded, women receive only 20% of computer science and engineering related technology degrees. Research has shown that females receive less attention in class and less encouragement than their male counterparts. Test scores of African American, Native American and Latino females lag behind those of the White and Asian females. (Thirty Years, 3)

Despite gains, since the enactment of Title IX, today males and females are still limited in their educational choices by their gender. Boys are much more likely to be awarded national, state, and college scholarships, while girls are still severely under-represented in most scientific and technical fields. Research shows that many of the so-called "innate" differences between females and males are the result of adult interaction with infants, children, and youth. Often unconsciously, sexist attitudes and behaviors perpetuate stereotypes about what girls and boys can do, and create systems that do not equitably serve girls and boys. (Women's Equity, 5.)

What is happening in the workplace for women? Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao emphasizes, as she did at her confirmation hearing, that one of the most critical issues impacting our national economic development in the 21st Century is the skills gap in the workforce. The Secretary believes that technology is the ticket to better paying jobs for women and will narrow the skills gap. In addition, organizations such as the Women's Bureau set up programs to assist women. Many programs are designed to address financial security for working women, increase workplace flexibility with family time and address worker shortages in the interest of the welfare of women. As a part of the initiative, several areas must be addressed for women to be able to compete in the workplace. Women must obtain computer literacy. This will allow women to become more competent technologically, more competitive for jobs, and more capable of achieving economic self-sufficiency. Achieving competency in Information technology is important as well. Girls must be encouraged to take courses in math and science related fields.

Furthermore, opportunities in technology and engineering related fields must not only be made available but must be encouraged. (DOL) There is still the question of equal pay. Although Title IX is designed to provide equal access for women, as women move into the job market today, they find that discrimination is still present when it comes to pay. Pay gaps can occur in any field, affecting elementary school teachers to college professors, gas station attendants to secretaries. On average, women earn 73 cents for every dollar men make. Anti-feminists say that statistic is distorted. They claim it doesn't account for differences in education, experience, occupation, or number of hours worked. They say the gap vanishes as women enter traditionally male careers and earn more than 50 percent of today's college diplomas. But study after study and experience upon experience prove that pay inequity persists.

According to statistics released by the U.S. Census Bureau on Sept. 25, 2001, women who worked full-time all year earned just 73 percent of the wages of men who worked full-time all year. On average, working women bring home $192 a week less than men. Over a year, being born with two X chromosomes costs $9,984. "When we fight for equal pay, we are not just asking for economic justice for women," says Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT), who advocates for pay equity. "We're fighting for the families who simply cannot get by without a second paycheck each week. Nearly two-thirds of working women provide half or more of their household income, and 41 percent are the sole source of income. These families struggle to pay the rent or make mortgage payments, buy the groceries, cover the medical bills, and save for a child's education." (Lipson)Additional legislation is needed to make an impact in the discrepancy in pay. Ninety percent of women say more policy changes need to be implemented to close the wage gap. According to a 2000 poll conducted for the Center for Policy Alternatives and Lifetime Television, 92 percent of African American women, 91 percent of Latinas, 90 percent of Asian American women, and 87 percent of white women list pay equity as their top policy concern.

American Association of University Women members, in their surveys and public policy program priorities, place fairness in compensation among their policy priorities. (Lipson)In conclusion, it is clear that the passage of Title IX has brought about a significant change in the opportunities available to women, both in education and athletics. As a result, many women have had the opportunity to participate in sports and had opportunities at institutions of higher education. However, this is just the beginning of the legislation required to "level the playing field" among the genders. As documented by research and surveys, women still experience discrimination when it comes to equal pay for equal work. This is still a frontier which needs exploration. As long as women experience this sort of discrimination, their civil rights are being violated and our government should look at proactive means to remedy the injustice.