Katie LeGrand
Agenda
History of Title IX
 What is Title IX?
 Athletics

 High School
 Collegiate
Relevant Case Law
 Current State

What is the law?

Constitution
 14th Amendment – Equal Protection
○ No State shall make or enforce any law which shall
abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the
United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of
life, liberty, or property, without due process of law;
nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal
protection of the laws.

Federal Law
 42 USC $ 1981 – Equal Protection

Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA)
History

1972
 Congress passed Title IX as part of the
Education Amendments
 20 USC $ 1681
○ “No person in the United States shall, on the basis
of sex, be excluded from participation in, be
denied the benefits of, or be subjected to
discrimination under any education program or
activity receiving Federal financial assistance”

1974-1975
 Education Amendment Act of 1974 prepared by
HEW
 Instructed how to implement Title IX compliance
History

1974 Amendment
 “No person shall, on the basis of sex, be
excluded from participation in, be treated
differently from another person or otherwise
be discriminated against in any
interscholastic, intercollegiate, club or
intramural athletics offered by a recipient,
and no recipient shall provide any such
athletics separately on such basis.”
History

1974 Amendment
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Selection of sports & levels of competition
Equipment & supplies
Scheduling of games & practice times
Travel & per diem allowance
Opportunity for coaching and tutoring
Coaches salaries
Locker rooms, practice & competition sites
Medical & training services
Housing & dining services
Publicity
History

1979
 OCR Policy Interpretation
 Three Prong Test
○ Whether intercollegiate level participation opportunities for
male and female students are provided in numbers
substantially proportionate to their respective enrollments
○ Where the members of one sex have been and are
underrepresented among intercollegiate athletes, whether the
institution can show a history and continuing practice of
program expansion which is demonstrably responsive to the
developing interest and abilities of the members of that sex
○ Where the members of one sex are underrepresented among
intercollegiate athletes, and the institution cannot show a
continuing practice of program expansion such as cited above,
whether it can be demonstrated that the interests and abilities
of the members of that sex have been fully and effectively
accommodated by the present program
Grove City College Vs. Bell (1984)
Question: Does Title IX apply only to
programs that receive direct federal
funding within institutions or to programs
that exist within institutions that receive
federal funds?
 At stake – the vulnerability of athletic
programs to comply with Title IX.
 Who won?

History

1984 – Grove City decision
 Enforcement ceased

1988 – Civil Rights Restoration Act
 Reiterates that Title IX should be interpreted
through an institution wide, rather then a
program specific approach
Not Just Athletics
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Equal treatment
Failure to supervise
/ Peer harassment
Sexual Harassment
/ Assault
Employment
Practices
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Effective
Accommodation
Program Elimination
Roster Management
History of Expansion
Treatment Issues
 Discrimination
 Retaliation
 Wrongful termination
Case #1
History

1992- Franklin v. Gwinnett
 Supreme Court decision

1996 – OCR – Clarification of
Intercollegiate Athletics Policy Guidance
 Must count all athletes receiving benefits
 Can choose to cap or eliminate opportunities
for the overrepresented sex
 Must be responsive to “female” interest in
sports & demonstrate responses to the
needs and interests
Cohen V. Brown University

BU dropped 4 varsity sports
 Men’s golf & water polo
 Women’s volleyball & gymnastics
The female students sued in a class
action claiming discrimination
 The Supreme Court denied the case
 On appeal, the district court found that
BU unlawfully discriminated against the
women’s teams

Not Just Athletics

1997 – OCR – Sexual Harassment
Guidance
 Quid Pro Quo
 Hostile Environment

1998 – Gebser v. Lago Vista SD
 Student can sue for monetary damages

1999 –Davis v. Monroe County BOE
 Students have a private right of action when
the harassment is very severe
History
2002 – Title IX at 30 years old
 2003 – “Further Clarification”

 Continue to use 3-prong test
 Title IX does not require cutting or reducing
teams (disfavored)
 Aggressively enforce / Work with schools
 Private donations must be included
 OCR enforcement will be uniform
National Wrestling Coaches
Association v. Dept. of Education
NWCA sought to have the department’s
Title IX enforcement framework
invalidated.
 Close link between the commissioned
study and this case
 Supreme Court denied hearing the case
 District of Columbia Circuit Court held
for the DOE

Jackson v. Birmingham BOE

Roderick Jackson filed a compliant in
court
 Fired in retaliation
 Complained about inequitable treatment of
his girls team – funding and access to
facilities and equipment

Supreme Court sides for Jackson
 Title IX does provide private right of action
 Retaliation is intentional
 Protects those who are not direct victims
History

2005 – OCR – “Additional Clarification”
 Focused on 3rd prong

2010 – OCR –
 “Dear Colleague Letter” Athletics
○ Withdrew the 2005 Clarification
 “Dear Colleague Letter” Sexual Harassment
○ Guidance for sexual harassment, bullying, and
sexual violence

2011 – OCR – “Dear Colleague Letter”
Sexual Harassment
Case #2
Jennings v. North Carolina 2007
Student at institution receiving federal
funds
 Subjected to harassment based on sex
 Sufficient to create a hostile
environment
 There is a basis for imputing liability to
the institution

Who was the coach?
Current State of Title IX

Biediger v. Quinnipiac University 2010
 Cut three sports – WVB, MGO, MTO
 Added Competitive Cheerleading
 Volleyball students sued

Outcome
 Granted Preliminary Injunction
 July 2010 – Found not in Compliance with
Title IX
 Volleyball was reinstated
40 Years of Title IX

‘10-’11 there were 444,077 athletes
 57 % were male
 Average NCAA institution has 414 S/A’s
○ 236 males
○ 178 females

Since ‘88-’89
 Net gain of 510 men’s teams
 2,703 women’s teams
“81-’82 – 74,239 women athletes
 Today – 190,953 women athletes

Questions?