Week 11 - Fibbing the Facts

Article 11

In class we discussed the creation and effects of Title IX.  Everything from my participation in sport to the inclusion of many women's sports into the Olympics and other championships has been based on the creation of this important and historical documentation.  "Title IX was passed in 1972 to give women and girls equal opportunity in federally financed education programs, including high school and collegiate athletics. Schools are now legally required to provide roster spots to males and females in proportion to their representation in the student body. As a result, female participation in sports has increased tenfold in high schools and by six times at the college level."  In this article, UCONN coach Gene Auriemma discusses his thoughts on how schools are altering their participation numbers to stay in accordance with Title IX.

Many schools, like University of South Florida, have taken to bending the rules to stay in accordance with the mandatory legislation.  According to the New York Times, "With the addition of football in 1997, USF no longer was in compliance with Title IX. Shortly thereafter, the school reported a massive increase in the members of its women's cross country team: from 21 in 2002 to 75 in 2008. The 2009 team reportedly had 71 members, but fewer than half of those listed actually ran a race that year."  Other schools were reportedly finding loopholes in the document, including Texas A&M and Duke, who both had male practice players listed as females.  While schools, including Cornell, have listed females as practice players on men's teams to allow for more male roster spots.  "There has been praise for the role Title IX has played in the growth of women's sports, but there has also been a backlash by those who believe that men's sports have suffered. Now it appears that many schools are willing to fib on the facts -- to break the law -- in order to open up more roster spots for men."  How disappointing.