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Department of Education Proposes Changes to Title IX

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is under review again. Designed to provide equal and effective accommodations for both male and female athletes at colleges and universities receiving federal funding, the Department of Education has put forth a proposal which would alter the program by allowing colleges and universities to survey athletes to determine interest in sports programs. According to "guidelines" set forth by the Education Department, a student's "non-response" can be interpreted as "not interested."

SGMA disagrees with the proposed policy change which would render a passive response as a negative response. The government needs to promote increased physical activity and participation in sports as a way to reverse the trend towards obesity; the proposed guidelines will have the opposite effect. SGMA advocates a stronger position by the Department of Education to actively solicit and engage student interest in athletics.

The Department of Education suggests colleges and universities survey students to determine their level of interest in a particular sport as a way to comply with the requirements set forth in Title IX. While in theory this may appear to be reasonable, interpreting a "non-response" as "not interested" is flawed policy. At a minimum, a non-response requires a follow-up to accurately determine a student's level of interest. It is a leap of faith to decide the fate of an athletic program based on a college student's failure to respond to an on-line or mail survey. Further, the risks associated with losing student athlete participants due to possible communication failures are too substantial to ignore.

At a time when the U.S. is battling a national health crisis, where the number of overweight and obese Americans has been steadily climbing, it makes little sense to remove one of the biggest incentives for girls and young women to participate in competitive sports. The U.S. needs to encourage greater participation in sports and physical activities. Title IX has provided the incentive for two generations of girls to get active and participate in sports. Many young women who participate in sports also benefit from the leadership and teamwork skills they learn; at the greatest opportunity, sports provide many young women with an invaluable college degree and the promise to make meaningful contributions to society.

The sporting goods industry has been a leader in promoting access and opportunities for female athletes. Numerous product innovations have continually opened new doors for female athletes to be competitive across multiple sports and strive for greater individual and team performance.

In promoting a passive survey option, the government has disregarded the unanimous recommendation of the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics that any "substantive adjustments to current enforcement of Title IX should be developed through the normal federal rulemaking process."

While the recommendation is only a "guideline" and surveying the student body to determine interest in collegiate sports programs is strictly voluntary, the guidelines provide colleges and universities the means to drastically change the make-up of college athletic opportunities for women. This process is inconsistent with SGMA's goal of promoting improved health through physical activity and fitness and effectively flawed in achieving the original Title IX intent to provide "equal and effective" accommodations.