Title IX: Raising Awareness and Making Progress through Activism

 

A coalition of Michigan activists working on behalf of women and girls, including AAUW of Michigan, Michigan Gender Equity Team, and Michigan NOW, is working to strengthen Title IX compliance by raising awareness and making formal complaints to ensure Michigan’s public schools meet legal requirements.

In June 1998, Communities For Equity (CFE) filed a gender discrimination lawsuit against the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) regarding girls’ athletic programs.  On December 17, 2001, Judge Richard Enslen ruled in favor of CFE.  On April 2, 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court denied a final appeal by the MHSAA.  The MHSAA was found guilty of discrimination against female athletes based on the Equal Protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment, Title IX, and the Michigan Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.

A major issue in the CFE suit dealt with girls playing six of their sports out of season while boys played all of their sports in season.  The Court identified inequities that resulted from girls playing in non-traditional seasons, including the implication of second-class status.  After the ruling the Capital Area Activities Conference (CAAC) complied with the new MHSAA arrangement for scheduling high school girls’ teams, but they, and many other leagues, continued to schedule middle school girls’ teams out of season.   The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that scheduling only girls in non-traditional seasons is discriminatory and illegal. CAAC is now aligning their middle school schedules with high school schedules, illustrating that in-season accommodation is possible if the controlling authority over the scheduling of interscholastic sports seasons adheres to the law.

Despite the CFE ruling, many athletic leagues in Michigan indicate, through their policies and practices, that they truly do not understand their legal responsibility to provide fair and equitable experiences at all levels of participation. For example, the Capital Area Activities Conference (CAAC) demonstrated continued discriminatory policy when they scheduled girl’s varsity high school basketball games at 6:00 p.m. and boys’ varsity games at 7:30 p.m.  League officials claimed that this earlier and less prestigious time slot was the girls’ choice.  It is not clear how this decision was established, but it effectively mandated the girls’ games as warm-up games for boys’ games and sent a clear message that girls are not as important as boys.

In June 2009, the Michigan Women’s Commission filed a formal civil rights complaint against the CAAC because of potential discrimination.  A settlement was reached in the case, with CAAC agreeing to alternate the scheduling of the early and late varsity basketball games. 

In an effort to avoid legal consequences, it is imperative that school administrators, particularly superintendents, review the following items.

• School districts are responsible for appointing, training and publicly identifying a Title IX coordinator to supervise the district’s compliance with the law.  Many districts in Michigan have not made this information public, with the result that some parents and students do not know how to proceed if a problem involving sexual discrimination or harassment arises.  In fact, many people are unaware that Title IX protects against gender-based harassment in schools.
• Male and female athletic directors, coaches, and support staff need to be employed in numbers that reflect student sports participation rates.  Equal pay for coaches and other staff is crucial.  Both women and men must be represented in athletic leadership, coaching, and support staff.

When it has been properly administered and enforced, Title IX has helped girls make great strides both on and off the field.  A recent study has shown that increasing girls’ sports participation has a beneficial effect on women’s education and employment (Stevenson, 2010).  Compliance with the law is a simple matter of fairness and equal treatment. Who would have thought when Title IX was enacted in 1972 that these issues would still be raised in 2010?   The activist groups advocating for female athletes in Michigan believe young women have waited long enough.

Tom Wilson, President
Michigan Gender Equity Team (M GET)
4045-23rd Street
Wyandotte, MI  48192-6902
E-mail: tomwilson@mi-gender-equity.com

Diane Madsen, Vice President
Michigan Gender Equity Team (M GET)
2548 Northboro  N.E.
Grand Rapids, MI  49525
E-mail: madsend9@comcast.net

Renee Beeker, President
Michigan National Organization for Women (NOW)
P.O. Box 860
East Lansing, MI  48826
E-mail: ReneeBeeker@aol.com

Kathy Shaw, President
American Association of University Women (AAUW) of Michigan
935 Hillbrook Drive
Battle Creek, MI  49015
E-mail:  ksbanf@aol.com