Impact of Title IX

In my last blog, Federal Funding, I discussed various Title IX violations that occurred at  the collegiate level and the resulting “punishment.” After conducting a review of the cases, I discovered that even though some of the Title IX violations were extreme, there has never been an institution that lost their federal funding as punishment. In this blog, I will discuss the overall impact that Title IX has had on athletics since it became a law in 1972.

When Bernice Sandler helped draft Title IX in 1972 she did not give much thought to its impact on sports. In a recent interview with ESPN she said, “‘The only thought I gave to sports when the bill was passed was, 'Oh, maybe now when a school holds its field day, there will be more activities for the girls.’”1 “Forty years later, despite the important impact it's had in other areas, from math and science education to the rights of pregnant students, Title IX is best known for transforming women's athletics.”1 Before Title IX came along, “less than 32,000 women participated in intercollegiate athletics and 300,000 girls in high school athletics. Now, there are more than 200,000 women in college athletics and three millions girls who participate in interscholastic athletics.”2

Although Title IX has had an immense impact on the number of women that participate in sports, it has not made a significant impact on the number of women in leadership positions in sports. “Women hold only 33% of general manager positions within the Women’s National Basketball Association [WNBA], and outside of the U.S., women are less likely to hold leadership positions in sports.”2 Not only do men hold the majority of general manager positions within the WNBA, but they also maintain control of athletic director positions at the collegiate level as well as the high school level.2 “In order for women to have true equality in sport, the media will need to begin to recognize women for their athletic ability and not their looks or personal life.”2 It is unfortunate that the women who receive media coverage in sports are the ones that are perceived as beautiful instead of talented.

Title IX has undoubtedly expanded women’s interest and participation in sports but women are still underrepresented in participation in sports by about 10%.3 James Druckman of Northwestern University states, “sports played by female athletes are often treated secondary to sports played by men, in terms of coverage and resources.”3 As a former female athlete it is hard for me to understand why females would not get the same treatment as males. It is frustrating schools can comply with Title IX mandates by simply documenting that they are continuously surveying and reaching out to women in order to see what sports they are interested in or would like to participate in.

1Dusenbery, M., & Lee, J. (2012, June 22). Charts: The State of Women's Athletics, 40 Years After Title IX. Retrieved from

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/06/charts-womens-athletics-title-nine-ncaa

2Senne, J. A. (2016). Examination of Gender Equality and Female Participation in Sport. The Sport Journal.

http://thesportjournal.org/article/examination-of-gender-equity-and-female-participation-in-sport/

3Druckman. J. N., Gilli, M., Klar, S., & Robinson, J. (2014). Athlete Support for Title IX. The Sport Journal. http://thesportjournal.org/article/athlete-support-for-title-ix/