It's Your Week: Title IX brought tremendous gains, but still falls short
"I got something to show y'all."
That's how former Oregon women’s basketball player Sedona Prince started her viral TikTok comparing the men's and women's weight rooms at last year's NCAA tournaments.
Title IX, the landmark law banning sex discrimination in education, turns 50 this summer. But as Prince showed, there's still work to be done.
I'm Sallee Ann and welcome to Your Week, a newsletter exclusive to Paste BN subscribers.
For the past year, a team of reporters from our sports and investigative teams have examined how well the nation’s colleges and universities comply with Title IX.
Here's what they have to show y'all.
Title IX at 50
Title IX requires equity across a broad range of areas in academics. But it is most commonly known for its impact on sports and - more recently - on its mandate to crack down on that schools respond effectively to campus sexual misconduct.
Managing editor of investigations Emily LeCoz said our reporters trained their focus on these two areas.
"For the past 12 months, reporters have filed public records requests, gathered and analyzed data, interviewed college coaches, students and staff and reached out to experts and government officials," LeCoz said. "Their reporting revealed that, despite tremendous gains during the past five decades, many colleges and universities still fall short of Title IX and, in some cases, are actively circumventing the spirit of the law."
For every dollar schools spent on travel, equipment and recruiting for men's teams, they shelled out just 71 cents on women's teams, reporters found. And schools are rigging their roster numbers to make it look like they have more female athletes than they really do, LeCoz said.
"Although women make up nearly 60% of students on college campuses nationwide, they represent just 44% of NCAA athletes," LeCoz said. "Few schools have provided women athletic opportunities proportional to their enrollment."
Reporters will continue their coverage throughout the year with plans to examine how schools investigate campus sex crimes and the role the federal government plays in enforcing Title IX.
You can read our full Title IX series here.
Join us and The 19th News for a summit on Title IX
Paste BN is joining The 19th News for the #19thRepresents Summit: 50 Years of Title IX. This unique event will look at advances in gender equity in higher education, athletics, the workforce and beyond. Paste BN newsroom leaders will be moderating panels, and our extensive coverage of Title IX will be featured.
The hybrid experience, with in-person and virtual programming, will include aspirational keynotes, groundbreaking conversations and moving performances from leaders and influencers from law, politics, academia, sports, business and STEM.
You can register for free here.
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