Title IX, Sex Discrimination, and Intercollegiate Athletics: A Legal Overview Page: 4 of 21
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Title IX, Sex Discrimination, and
Intercollegiate Athletics: A Legal Overview
I. Introduction
Enacted over three decades ago, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972
prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in federally funded education programs
or activities.1 Although the Title IX regulations bar recipients of federal financial
assistance from discriminating on the basis of sex in a wide range of educational
programs or activities, such as student admissions, scholarships, and access to
courses, the statute is perhaps best known for prohibiting sex discrimination in
intercollegiate athletics.
Indeed, the provisions regarding athletics have proved to be one of the more
controversial aspects of Title IX. At the center of the debate is a three-part test that
the Department of Education (ED) uses to determine whether institutions are
providing nondiscriminatory athletic participation opportunities for both male and
female students. Proponents of the existing regulations point to the dramatic
increases in the number of female athletes in elementary and secondary school,
college, and beyond as the ultimate indicator of the statute's success in breaking
down barriers against women in sports. In contrast, critics contend that the Title IX
regulations unfairly impose quotas on collegiate sports and force universities to cut
men's teams in order to remain in compliance.2 Critics further argue that the decline
in certain men's sports, such as wrestling, is a direct result of Title IX's emphasis on
proportionality in men's and women's college sports.
The debate over Title IX has escalated recently, partly in response to ED's
decision in 2002 to appoint a commission to study Title IX and to recommend
whether or not the athletics provisions should be revised.3 The Commission on
Opportunity in Athletics delivered its final report to the Secretary of Education in
2003.4 In response, ED issued new guidance in 2003 and 2005 that clarifies Title IX
policy and the use of the three-part test.5
20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.
2 June Kronholz, College Coaches Press Bush on Title IX, The Wall Street Journal, Aug. 27,
2002, at A4.
3 Erik Brady, Major Changes Debated for Title IX, USA Today, Dec. 18, 2002, at Al.
4 The Secretary of Education's Commission on Opportunity in Athletics, "Open to All":
Title IX at Thirty, Feb. 28, 2003, [http://www.ed.gov/pubs/titleixat30/index.html].
5 Department of Education, Further Clarification of Intercollegiate Athletics Policy
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Title IX, Sex Discrimination, and Intercollegiate Athletics: A Legal Overview, report, April 28, 2005; Washington D.C.. (https://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc806663/m1/4/: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, UNT Digital Library, https://digital.library.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.