California will hire an independent evaluator to investigate
whether women and men have the same opportunity to participate in
California school-sponsored athletics, as the national debate over
Title IX continues.
Authored by Assemblywoman Jenny Oropeza, D-Long Beach and signed
by the governor Sunday, Assembly Bill 2295 requires the state to
determine if California schools and universities are complying with
Title IX.
This federal law provides that men and women will be given the
same opportunities to participate in all school sponsored
activities, and is credited with the growth in women’s
sports.
The bill faced little objection in the assembly, where it passed
75-2.
Oropeza’s bill requires an independent evaluator to study
whether men’s and women’s programs receive equal
facilities, travel budgets and coaching salaries, among other
concerns.
Both 7th through 12th grade and state university athletic
programs will be studied by the evaluator, who has yet to be
named.
All universities are required to report data regarding their
compliance with Title IX, but Oropeza’s bill will require
universities to release more information.
“When we looked to see if Title IX was being properly
implemented, we really couldn’t tell,” said Kristal
DeKleer, Oropeza’s press secretary. “The legislature
needs some kind of accurate look at Title IX.”
The University of California is neutral on the bill, said UC
press aide Brian Rivas.
Title IX has been the subject of a renewed national debate this
year as some coaches claim it is harming smaller men’s sports
such as wrestling and gymnastics.
Meanwhile, arguments will be heard today on a lawsuit against
the Department of Education arguing the enforcement of Title IX
unfairly harms certain men’s athletic programs.
The suit, filed by the National Wrestling Coaches Association,
alleges that the current enforcement of Title IX results in a
gender quota.
“No other place in society is held to this
standard,” said Mike Moyer, executive director of the
NWCA.
One way for a school or university to comply with Title IX is to
have a similar percentage of female athletes and sports spending as
the school has female students.
The Oropeza bill cites studies indicating that inequalities
still exist in California, where 58.7 percent of interscholastic
athletes are men while a majority of students are women.
For this reason, groups such as the National Women’s Law
Center are trying to maintain Title IX as it currently exists and
work toward what they consider a more equal system.
NWLC Senior Counsel Neena Chaudhry said she is not terribly
concerned about the suit because federal appellate courts have
rejected arguments that Title IX requires quotas in the past.
This is the first time that the Department of Education has been
sued over enforcement. All prior suits have been against
universities.
With the renewed debate over Title IX, President Bush created a
15-member commission in June to study its effects.
The commission ““ comprised mainly of advocates for
women’s sports ““ is supposed to make recommendations on
how to strengthen enforcement of Title IX in January.
Chaudhry said the commission is not necessary and that changes
do not need to be made to Title IX.