WILLIAMS CALLS FOR MORE ACCOUNTABILITY AS TITLE IX TURNS 35

 HARRISBURG, JUNE 20 – State Sen. Connie Williams called for more accountability as Title IX turns 35 this week.

 During a Capitol news conference, Williams unveiled legislation (S.B. 985) that would require public middle schools and high schools to report athletic opportunities being offered to both boys and girls.

 "Title IX has done a great job of leveling the playing field for women in many arenas – most notably in collegiate sports," Williams said. "There is more to be done, however. A couple of years ago, there was an effort to voluntarily survey middle schools and high schools in Pennsylvania to find out what athletic opportunities are being offered to boys and girls. No report was generated, because not enough schools responded. This points to the need to require reporting – which would be made available to the public – on this level.

 "This is not about telling schools what sports to offer, how to allocate their athletic program dollars, or what students must be offered positions on teams. It is about obtaining a real snapshot of what athletic opportunities are being offered to boys and girls at Pennsylvania's schools."

 Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, bars discrimination on the basis of gender in educational institutions that receive federal funds. The law applies to all aspects of education, including course offerings, counseling and counseling materials, financial assistance, student health and insurance benefits and/or other services, housing, marital and parental status of students, physical education and athletics, education programs and activities, and employment. The 35^th anniversary of the act will be celebrated across the nation on June 23^rd.

 "Athletics benefits everyone. Boys and girls should have equal access to opportunities to participate," Williams said. "According to some reports, inequity still exists."

 According to a report of the National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education, female athletes receive 1.3 million fewer athletic participation opportunities than their male counterparts at the high school and 86,305 fewer opportunities at the college level. The same report indicates that females comprise 49 percent of the high school population and only receive 41 percent of athletic participation opportunities. Over the last five years, the gap between male and female athletic participation in high school grew from 1.13 million to 1.25 million opportunities.

 "You can follow some of the disparities from middle schools and high schools through to the collegiate level, where there are fewer recruiting dollars, less athletic operating dollars and lower college scholarships offered to women," Williams said. "My bill would provide the reporting data that Pennsylvania needs to fully assess its public schools in light of Title IX. The results may show that Pennsylvania schools are ahead of the national curve when it comes to providing equal access to athletic opportunities to boys and girls, or it may point to areas where schools can do a little better. Either way, it accomplishes the goal of ensuring that all Pennsylvania boys and girls have access to athletics, which carries significant health and social benefits for everyone."