Let Them Play Foundation, Inc.
The Case For Football: What About Title IX?

In 1972, Congress passed legislation which reads, in part, "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.”

Over the last thirty years, three so-called "prongs" of enforcement have evolved should the U.S. Office of Civil Rights (OCR) choose to file a complaint with a school. Meeting any of the three prongs will place a school in compliance:

1. "Showing that intercollegiate participation opportunities for male and female students are provided in numbers substantially proportionate to their respective enrollments;"

or

2. "Showing a history and continuing practice of program expansion in response to the interest and abilities of the “under represented” sex;"

or

3. "Demonstrating that the interests and abilities of members of the “underrepresented” sex have been fully and effectively accommodated by the school’s program." ¹

Only a small number of Division I schools even meet the strict "proportionality" standard. Yet how do so many schools continue to play football? Why has the OCR not shut down football programs at Notre Dame, Michigan, or Stanford? Answer: These schools provide "a history and continuing practice of program expansion" in adding football and new women's sports.

Over three dozen schools have added football since SCU dropped it in 1993. How could this be? Are these schools violating the law? Answer: No, because these schools are also providing "a history and continuing practice of program expansion" in adding new women's sports along with football.

Title IX is criticized for selective enforcement and political motives. It is praised for increasing opportunities for women's sports, yet "sports" is not even mentioned in the law. It is not applied, for example, to gender equity among administrators or faculty. (For example, SCU's undergraduate faculty is 65% male, while its student body is 55% female.)

It is not applied for admissions at the undergraduate or post-graduate levels. It is also not applied at the high school level. A recent study asked if Title IX were applied in high school sports, a 50/50 gender background would result in:

• 96.4% of female cheerleaders would have to be cut.
• 35.8% of girls in the choir would have to be cut.
• 32.8% of female debaters would be denied an opportunity to compete.
• 25.4% of orchestra members would be cut to balance the gender gap.¹

  ¹Source: Background and Analysis of Government Policy Governing Sports in Schools", Independent Women's Foundation

De facto, no women's sport will be cut under Title IX. But this does NOT mean that men's sports cannot be added, either. By reaching out to the Santa Clara community for support, the university can improve opportunities for both men AND women--but not by using Title IX as a reason to deflect comment on the issue.

The Let Them Play Foundation encourages its readers to learn more about what Title IX means and does not mean for Santa Clara. You are also encouraged to read about enrollment trends at SCU that show how the absence of football has led to an even more disproportionate campus for gender equity. Some useful links on Title IX are found below.

 InterMat Wrestling
 "Tilting the Playing Field: Schools, Sports, Sex and Title IX"
 White Paper: "Background and Analysis of Government Policy Governing Sports in Schools" (PDF document)
 The Mat.com
 University of Iowa: Gender Equity In Sports
 The Chronicle of Higher Education
 U.S. Dept. of Education, Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act
 Column: "Title IX's Pyrrhic Victory"

© 2008, Let Them Play Foundation, Inc., a 501(c)(3) charitable organization incorporated in the state of California. Not affiliated with Santa Clara University. Use of the words 'Santa Clara', 'Broncos', or other descriptions and accounts of Santa Clara Football are used solely within a fair use of same and is provided solely as a means of historical information and context to the public domain. All rights reserved.