Introduction
American culture places a large emphasis on athletics; including the popular sports football, basketball, and baseball. Many children are encouraged to participate in sports from a young age by their parents. Some parents believe that participation in team athletics instills in their children discipline, teamwork, and the values of hard work and perseverance. Prior to the 1970s, masculinity was a concept ingrained into athletics, and since the 1970s has only slightly subsided. In the early 1970s it became apparent that legislation would be required to further the cause of athletic equality between men and women. In 1972, a series of Educational Amendments to the 1964 Civil Rights Act were passed. One of the most influential portions of this amendment still is Title IX. Title IX states:
“No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participating in, be denied benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal Financial assistance....”(Kuhn, 1977)
Since the passage of Title IX, there have been many more opportunities for both males and females in all aspects of athletics (Preist, 2003). While there has been a large increase in sports participants and opportunities available to young people, there have also been negative effects of the bill. Many drastic changes have occurred to our society and sports in the time since Title IX’s passage. Throughout this transition period, there have been financial, cultural, and social dynamics shifts to all levels of sports.
FINANCIAL IMPACTS
Since 1972, the United States has largely embraced this bill, and many states have extended the changes created by Title IX into recreational sports progra...
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Great inequalities in the educational system between the sexes have occurred for many years and still occur today. Efforts have been made to rectify this disparity, but the one that has made the most difference is Title IX. Passed in 1972, Title IX attempted to correct the gender discrimination in educational systems receiving public funding. The greatest correction it made was in the area of athletics, but social justice of Title IX applies to many other areas as well. Title IX has an effect on women who are not athletes in many ways, including quality of education, receptivity to education, empowerment and creation of ideals.
Title IX is a law that was made by the NCAA in 1972, that states that there can be no discrimination or exclusion of a gender through athletics or education. (Mankiller). Which means that men's sports cannot be favored over women's sports. Many people are very cognizant of this law. For example, if a school has $100,000, the school must spend the money equally between the athletics of each gender, even if there are more men's sports teams. They must get the same treatment. That may sound great, but Title IX has impacted men's athletics significantly. Although Title IX has been a valuable way to establish gender equality, the NCAA loses money, puts men out of scholarships, abolishes smaller men’s sports teams, and it should be
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Today many Athletic Directors do a good job of administering the Title IX programs and arguably almost no athlete today even knows that there was ever a time when women’s sports were not a fabric of the school and that the female athletes were supported by the student bodies as evidenced by sold out arenas for such women’s basketball programs as UConn, Tennessee, and Stanford.
Title IX was the stepping-stone for mergers and sports, but immediately after the merging took place, women were fully discriminated against. When men and women's sports combined, it opened new administrative positions for women, but what these women found were that they were constantly being pushed down to the bottom of the pile, to the least authoritative positions. Men were the head coaches, and the head of the physical education departments Men organized the teams schedule for the season and organized practice hours. Also, "male sexist attitudes ensured that male rather than female athletic directors and heads of physical education departments were almost automatically appointed to direct merged departments" (Hult p.96) This male over female preference continued right up to today. As of 1992 there are more men in administrative sports positions than women.
Title IX and the Education Amendments of 1972 were created to defend equal opportunities for women of all ages. Since its inception 44 years ago, women have seen impressive strides as well as disappointing failures. Social prejudice continues to exist limiting female participation opportunities, benefits for female athletes, coaching opportunities, and increased exposure to sexual assault and abuse. Few institutions treat female athletes equally due to the lack of enforcement by collegiate athletic departments. The enforcement of Title IX has not been a priority among far too many educational institutions leaving women open to discrimination and mistreatment.
Since the 1972 conception of Title IX of the Education Amendments, the number of women participating in intercollegiate athletics has increased five-fold, from fewer than 30,000, to more 150,000 in 2001. However, more than 400 men’s athletics teams have been dismantled since Title IX, the law forbidding sex discrimination at institutions receiving federal funds, became law. Some would say this is due, in part, to Title IX enforcement standards like proportionality. Proportionality requires that an institution’s athletic population must be of an equal ratio to its general student body. Among some of the 400-plus teams dismantled by Title IX are several former Colorado State University teams including wrestling, baseball, gymnastics, men’s swimming and diving, and men’s tennis. CSU student athletes no longer sport the opportunity of participating in these activities at the NCAA Division I level, and the days of the student body rooting for their ram teams are gone, possibly forever. Now the search is on to find a solution to the problems associated with Title IX if, indeed, a solution is ultimately necessary.
The enactment of this Title has significantly changed the playing field for athletic departments through out the nation by altering their funding systems to comply with its rules. As a result, women have benefited greatly. There have been additions of female sports as well as an increase of the number of scholarships awarded to female athletes, and also a lot more funding to provide more “equitable” facilities for them. According to the NCAA Gender Equity Studies , “from 1992 to 1997 NCAA institutions have increased the number of female athletes by 5,800. But tragically during that time these colleges also eliminated 20,900 male athletes.” (Kocher p.1) This dramatic landslide has occurred because athletic departments are under pressure to rapidly increase the proportion of female athletes by whatever means necessary. As the path toward complete “equality” gradually brightens for women in college athletics, a dark path is now becoming evident. Male athletes, in a sense, are now being discriminated against because of Title IX.
Student athletes should not be paid more than any other student at State University, because it implies that the focus of this university is that an extracurricular activity as a means of profit. Intercollegiate athletics is becoming the central focus of colleges and universities, the strife and the substantial sum of money are the most important factors of most university administration’s interest. Student athletes should be just as their title states, students. The normal college student is struggling to make ends meet just for attending college, so why should student athletes be exempt from that? College athletes should indeed have their scholarships cover what their talents not only athletically but also academically depict. Unfortunately, the disapproval resides when students who are making leaps academically are not being offered monetary congratulations in comparison to student athletes. If the hefty amount of revenue that colleges as a conglomerate are making is the main argument for why athletes should be paid, then what is to stop the National Clearinghouse from devising unjust standards? Eventually if these payments are to continue, coaches, organizations, and the NCAA Clearinghouse will begin to feel that “c...
It allowed women to participate in more sports, but it also cut men’s sports forcing them to stop doing what they love to do. Title IX changed sports in America completely. Adding women’s teams, and cutting men’s teams caused a lot of controversy. Nobody believed that women were capable of being good at sports nor did they even think that women were interested in playing and learning about sports. Title IX is mainly known for its effect on athletics, but it did play a role in life outside of sports. It was an attempt to end discrimination against color too, and I believe Title IX helped stop discrimination against both gender and color. I believe that Title IX was a very important act. As a female athlete, if Title IX was not created, I probably would not have the chance to do what I live for. Basketball is a huge part of my life, and without Title IX I probably wouldn't be able to play. I do believe that Title IX was not one of the best ways to allow women the opportunity to play a sport, but it worked. I also disagree with everything that Title IX critics had to say about women. There are a lot of women all around who love watching and playing sports. The critics of Title IX did not have very good arguments. They basically all said the same exact thing and studies proved them wrong every single time. Title IX showed that women do in fact like sports and they can be good at them also. I believe that the only people who had the right to criticize Title IX were male athletes and coaches. I believe that because they faced Title IX first hand by having their sports cut or on the verge of getting cut. I do think that it was bad to get rid of some male sports programs, but if that was the only way women were able to play sports then I agree with it one hundred percent. Nobody should have to deal with discrimination because of their sex, age, skin color, ethnicity, etc. If it weren’t for Title IX, people may
In 1970 only 1 in 27 girls participated in high school sports, today that ratio is 1 in 3. Sports are a very important part of the American society. Within sports, heroes are made, goals are set and dreams are lived. The media makes all these things possible by creating publicity for the rising stars of today. Within society today, the media has downplayed the role of the woman within sports.
It has taken many years for women to gain a semblance of equality in sports. Throughout history, women have been both excluded from playing sports and discriminated against in sports. Men’s sports have always dominated the college athletic field, but women were finally given a fighting chance after Title IX was passed. Title IX, among other things, requires scholarships to be equally proportioned between men and women’s sports. Although this was a huge gain for women, gender inequality still exists in sports today. An example of this persisting inequality can be seen when looking at men’s baseball and women’s softball. In college, baseball and softball are both major NCAA sports. It is widely accepted throughout today’s society that baseball is a man’s sport, and softball is a woman’s sport. Very few people question why the two sexes are separated into two different sports, or wonder why women play softball instead of baseball. Fewer people know that women have been essentially excluded from playing baseball for a long time. This paper will focus on why softball has not changed the way women’s basketball has, why women continue to play softball, the possibilities and dynamics of women playing baseball with and without men, and the most discriminating aspect of women being banned from playing professional baseball.
Over two decades have passed since the enactment of Title IX, a federal law prohibiting sex discrimination in federally funded education, including athletics. As a result of Title IX, women and girls have benefited from more athletic participation opportunities and more equitable facilities. Because of Title IX, more women have received athletic scholarships and thus opportunities for higher education that some may not have been able to afford otherwise. In addition, because of Title IX the salaries of coaches for women's teams have increased. Despite the obstacles women face in athletics, many women have led and are leading the way to gender equity.
This study examines the graduation rates of student-athletes over the general student body at different sized institutions throughout the country. Colleges around the country of all sizes regard graduation as the ending goal for each student-athlete. Graduation rates vary across divisions of athletics and tiers of academia. These variations in graduation rates raise the important question of what factors determine the graduation success of these athletes and their levels over the general student body. In this paper, I will examine the impact of multiple variables on the graduation rates of collegiate athletes and their levels compared to the general student body. Historical trends show that Title IX greatly affects the rate of graduation among student-athletes.