Title IX for Coaches

1
Title IX for Coaches
2
So, youve heard of

• Title IX?

3
What do you already know?
4
What do you already know?
5
Given your awareness of (or perception about)
Title IX and your school, what medal do you think
best represents your sites compliance?

• Medals Gold, Silver, Bronze, Plasticor a
  Button.
• Gold Medal Were all over it. My girls team is
  super, and they have been treated equitably for a
  long time. Im proud of the opportunities and
  experiences all the athletes have.
• Silver Medal I coach at a school with a pretty
  good program that affords girls and boys fair
  experiences. We might have some issues going on,
  but nobody is bothered, and the parents, kids and
  I are happy.
• Bronze Medal I guess were doing OK, and we have
  quite a sports tradition here. Budget drives the
  programs, so the fields and facilities my girls
  use have taken a hit recently.
• Plastic Medal As long as the boosters keep us
  going, I can cope with the rest of the program
  fairly well. Im just happy that my team still
  gets uniforms and to travel.
• A Button We did some stuff way back, but Im
  just focused on my team now.

6
As a result of this session, you will be able to

• Understand the basic rudiments of the law,
  including when, who, what, where, why and how
• Describe the schools participation opportunities
  by gender
• Define the elements of equitable treatment and
  compare and contrast them with your team and/or
  circumstances
• Develop short- and long-range strategies that
  could move my team to full compliance
• Review/save/distribute the Womens Sports
  Foundation Title IX resources

7
About the Law

• Title IX is the portion of the Education
  Amendments of 1972 that prohibits sex
  discrimination in educational institutions that
  receive any federal funds.
• In brief (only 37 words), Title IX states

8
Title IX

• No person in the United States shall, on the
  basis of sex, be excluded from participation in,
  be denied the benefits of, or be subject to
  discrimination under any educational program or
  activity receiving federal financial assistance.

9
Title IX Covers

• every aspect of federally funded education
  programs.
• Access to Higher Education
• Athletics
• Career Education
• Education for Pregnant and Parenting Students
• Employment
• Learning Environment
• Math and Science
• Sexual Harassment
• Standardized Testing
• Technology

10
Avoid Misperceptions

• As a coach
• Understand that Title IX is about raising the
  level of one program and NOT taking away from or
  tearing down another program (wrestling, as an
  example). It is NOT about who is better! Title IX
  does not force a school to drop or eliminate
  programs to meet compliance.
• Avoid supporting programs that mirror some
  collegeswith mens major sports (football and
  basketball) viewed as important and the other
  sports get what they get.

11
Avoid Misperceptions

• As a coach
• 3. Remember that females seek and deserve the
  same benefits from athletics that males do. This
  means breaking down gender stereotypes.
• 4. Use strategies to educate others when they
  create compliance barriers.
• 5. Use strategies to educate and manage booster
  clubs and parent groups about the law.
• 6. Be proactive and do the right thing for all
  student-athletes.

12
Title IX and Athletics

• 3 Conditions for Compliance
• A. Participation
• B. Athletic Financial Assistance
• C. Treatment of Students

13
Game On!

• First Half
• Halftime
• Second Half
• Closing

14
Question 1 A. Participation
Your school offers freshman, JV and varsity teams
for all boys sports, but only JV and varsity
teams for girls. Is this a violation of Title
IX?
15
A. Participation

• Title IX requires that girls have the same number
  of chances to participate in sports as boys.

16
Participation
Imagine This There was a boys golf team.
There was no team for girls.
17
What Happened?
A very interested parent used our resources and
Steps To Gender Equity guide. The parent
made a formal request to the athletic director,
including a petition signed by 30 interested
girls.
18
Success!
With the parents advocacy and the ADs
support, the plan worked! The high school created
a varsity golf team for girls and hired a coach!
19
Question 2 B. Athletic Financial
Assistance
A school spends a different amount of money on
sports for females and males. Is this a
violation of Title IX?
20
B. Athletic Financial Assistance

• There is NO funding requirement, however
• When gender differences in money exist, it may
  result in problems with overall program fairness.

21
Halftime!

• Has there ever been a time when you were not
  treated fairly in sports, because you were a
  female or male?
• Can you think of a time when others were not
  treated fairly in sports, because of their
  gender?

22
C. Treatment of Athletes

• The treatment and benefits the boys and girls
  receive must be comparable.
• Lets look at a few components of Treatment
  that are particularly relevant in your work as a
  coach

23
C. Treatment of Athletes includes
24
And typically, in higher education, add

• Scholarships
• Medical and Training Services
• Tutoring

25
C. Treatment of Athletes

• Scheduling

26
Scheduling
Imagine This A high school athletic
association scheduled six girls sports (but no
boys sports) in non-traditional seasons. This
was done, they said, to avoid sharing fields and
facilities. The consequence for the girls was
that playing out of season limited their
opportunities.
27
What Happened?

• The Supreme Court refused to hear the case,
  accepting the lower courts decision, ensuring
  that schedules must benefit all students equally.

28
Success!
Girls (and boys) play during the traditional
seasons across the country, giving everyone
access to high-level competitions, recruiting,
scouts and scholarships.
29
C. Treatment of Athletes

• Equipment

30
C. Treatment of Athletes

• Publicity

31
C. Treatment of Athletes

• Travel and Daily Allowance

32
Question 3 Coaching
The girls lacrosse coach and the boys lacrosse
coach have equal experience and duties. However,
the boys coach is paid more. Is this a
violation of Title IX?
33
C. Treatment of Athletes

• Coaching
• Employment decisions, including those regarding
  coaches, are to be made in a non-discriminatory
  manner.

34
Coaching
Imagine This A basketball coach was removed
for challenging the lack of support for his
girls team. The girls team practiced in a cold,
old gym, with sloped floors, made its own travel
arrangements and had its winning JV team
eliminated. The boys team practiced in the
new gym, had school-arranged travel and kept its
losing JV team.
35
What Happened?
In a precedent-setting case, the coach sued the
district because Title IX prohibits retaliation
against a coach who advocates for gender
equality.
36
Success!
In the courts, the coach was reinstated and
received 50,000. Also, the AD and school system
remain obligated to follow up with steps toward
compliance and Title IX training.
37
Question 4 Facilities
Thanks to fundraising by the Baseball Booster
Club, the boys baseball field has concrete
dugouts, large bleachers, an enclosed fence with
warning pads, three batting cages and an
electronic scoreboard. Also the field has new sod
and a sprinkler system. The softball field does
not have a sprinkler system, scoreboard, outfield
fence, batting cages or press box. The dugout is
old, and the paint is chipping. Is this a
violation of Title IX?
38
C. Treatment of Athletes

• Facilities
• Under Title IX, both baseball and softball
  programs are entitled to comparable facilities.

39
Facilities
Imagine This The boys baseball field had
lights, thanks to a group of volunteer
fundraisers. Without lights, many girls
softball games were canceled.
40
What Happened?

• Volunteers wanted lights for the girls field.
  Initially, the district refused.
• Volunteers used Womens Sports Foundation
  resources and pressured the school board.

41
Success!
With the ADs support, the school board agreed
to offset the added cost, without using booster
club funds, and provided new lights for the
softball team! The AD now manages a school-wide
booster club, providing fund-raising activities
that promote all school sports fairly.
42
C. Treatment of Athletes

• Support Services Booster Clubs

43
Areas of Treatment
44
Given your knowledge and understanding of Title
IX and your team, what medal do you now think
best represents your schools compliance?

• Medals Gold, Silver, Bronze, Plasticor a
  Button.
• Gold Medal Were all over it. ...
• Silver Medalwe might have some issues going...
• Bronze Medal I guess were doing OK
• Plastic Medal we can cope...
• A Button We did some stuff

45
So, how would you divide up this pie graph into
what you worked through in this session?

• Review of what I know about Title IX ___
• Explanation of new content on Title IX ___
• Clarification of deeper issues of Title IX
  ___
• Skills to deliver Title IX compliance
  ___
• 
  100

46
V is for Victory. So is IX.Visit
www.Vis4Victory.org

• IX. Get 9 colleagues to Grade Your School.
• 8. Call our hotline [phone] with
• questions.
• 7. Using only 7 sentences, e-mail us your Title
  IX stories.
• 6. E-mail 6 photos, showing fair (or unfair!)
  practices at your school.
• 5. Give 5 Title IX Media Helpers to friends and
  colleagues.
• 4. Share our video with 4 good sportspeople who
  have helped you generate Title IX compliance.
• 3. Over 3 days, Grade Your Newspaper, following
  the guidelines on our site.
• 2. Contact 2 of your elected officials and ask
  them to speak up for girls sports.
• 1. Youve already won (1!) when you support
  women and girls in sports and physical activity.

47
Ready, Set, Go!

• Womens Sports Foundation
• 800.227.3988
• Advocacy_at_WomensSportsFoundation.org