The NCAA recently issued a report titled “45 Years of Title IX” to illustrate the impact the law has had on female student-athletes, administrators, and coaches. (See NCAA article on the report here). Some of the findings have shown a positive impact on female participants in the NCAA. For example, the number of female student-athletes are at an all-time high; female participation in athletics is up from 30% in 1982 to 46.7% in 2016; women have outpaced men in the last five years in acquiring conference commissioner positions; and 803 women’s teams have been added since 1988.
However, the report shows some results that are not so favorable. There is still ow representation of minority women in leadership positions has remained stagnant over the last five years and women only hold about 23 percent of all NCAA head coaching, athletics director and conference commissioner positions. In addition, Division 1 athletic departments are spending twice as much on men’s sports as they do on women’s sports. Interestingly, schools without football programs (like my alma mater, Providence College) spend the same amount of money on women’s teams as they do on men’s teams, about $5 million. (See article on spending here).
How has Title IX affected NCAA men's sports? Since 1988, 303 men’s teams have been cut by their respective institutions. Some say that the policies behind Title IX are outdated and have solely become a quota system, something that courts have routinely ruled that Title IX is not allowed to create. For example, one author states why would Title IX solely target athletics, a discipline in which men’s participation outpaces women while there are other extra-curricular activities such as student newspaper, theater and other activities dominated by women. (See more of this article here).
Has Title IX achieved what it was supposed to achieve when the law was enacted? Does it actually insert a quota system that negatively affects men’s sports? Where would women’s collegiate athletics be without Title IX? After 45 years, there are still unanswered questions.
*The views expressed herein are those solely of the author.