Posted on April 19th, 2022

Title IX was designed in part to balance the scales for girls and boys in school-based athletics.

Some day, maybe it will.

Nearly 50 years after Congress passed the sweeping law that guarantees equity in “any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance,” including high school athletics, girls are stuck in an imperfect system that continues to favor boys.

In schools across the country, boys’ teams wear nicer uniforms, play on better fields, are led by more experienced coaches, have their practices scheduled at more desirable times, play with newer equipment and dress in better-equipped locker rooms. All are potential violations of Title IX.

“We still estimate that the majority of schools are likely out of compliance with the law,” said Sarah Axelson, vice president of advocacy at the Women’s Sports Foundation.

A four-month investigation by The Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism and the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism at the University of Maryland found that:

— While Title IX has made a difference — girls’ participation in high school sports rose from 7% to 43% in the last 50 years — it is still not equal.

— The U.S. Department of Education collects minimal data about how many girls and boys are playing sports. The information that is collected and would confirm compliance with parts of the law is deeply flawed.

— The onus to report violations of Title IX is often left to teenagers and their parents, who know little about the law.

— Enforcement by the Education Department’s Office For Civil Rights is cumbersome and slow-moving. A review of 39 complaints to the civil rights office since 2008 that had both filing and resolution dates showed that it took an average of 700 days to resolve the cases. That means girls who suffered unequal treatment often graduated before they saw results.

As a result, serious questions remain about how many of the 3.4 million girls playing high school sports have experienced violations of Title IX that went unaddressed.

The centers found that violations have affected girls across the country.

Original article: https://apnews.com/article/sports-congress-maryland-school-athletics-education-91c313fb35c2d48a2bebbc51d8069bac