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3/24/02
Turn on your TV or radio or pick up a newspaper, and if the subject matter is Title IX, the topic of discussion, the focus of frustration, is the elimination of men’s collegiate athletic programs for the sake of women’s sports.
Bowling Green State University’s announcement that the school will eliminate men’s swimming, tennis and indoor and outdoor track to move closer to compliance with the mandates of Title IX affects a lot of people.
It affects some directly - a total of 55 athletes along with the elimination of two full-time coaching positions and 16 scholarships -while a larger group of athletes - female athletes - will be judged unfairly.
Title IX’s purpose is to create the same opportunity and quality of treatment for female and male athletes.
While the law does not require reductions in opportunities for male athletes, BG’s decision to eliminate four athletic programs makes it easy to blame women’s programs for the loss of these men’s programs.
That concerns me.
According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, reducing men’s programs is not the intent of Title IX, which was passed by Congress in 1972.
Each individual school must make its own decision about how to deal with non-revenue sports.
BG made what had to be a painful decision to cut back in four sports after previously dropping men’s teams in wrestling and lacrosse.
During the 1980s, some men’s non-revenue sports programs around the country were eliminated or short-changed in order to spend more money on football and other men’s revenue-producing sports.
During that period, few schools were expanding opportunities for women to play sports.
Ironically, 81 percent of all NCAA football programs lose money.
One-third lose $1 million-plus a year.
Men’s athletics still outspends women’s athletics 2-to-1 in scholarships and 3-to-1 in expenses and recruiting.
The Women’s Sports Foundation estimates that 80 percent or more of all colleges and universities still are not in compliance with Title IX.
That’s not a good sign for athletes in non-revenue-producing sports - who run the risk of having their sport eliminated. Or females - who are branded as scapegoats for Title IX.
Perhaps the greatest injustice surrounding Title IX is that women are being blamed for its existence. Title IX is a federal law that prohibits sex discrimination by schools that receive federal money.
It’s like blaming African-Americans for racism.
As the father of a 13-year-old daughter, I’m uncomfortable when I hear how women’s sports take away from men by forcing the elimination of men’s programs. I want my daughter to have an equal opportunity to compete in athletics.
My daughter has always been an excellent student, but she came out of her shell socially a year ago when she started competing on her school’s athletic teams. She ran on the cross-country team and played basketball and volleyball.
Running cross-country helped her lose weight and got her excited about participating in extracurricular activities. Girls also benefit from playing sports. It’s good for their health and self-confidence.
I hope that other fathers feel the same way about their daughters and support their right to compete in sports.
