Participants in a Jan. 20 panel on Title IX agreed the law has done great things for women and girls in athletics. More than 2.8 million high school girls play sports, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations.

But a current of negativism flows beneath the issue, most notably the cutting of men’s sports. How to make Title IX work was the topic of “Title IX: A Panel Discussion,” hosted by the Department of Kinesiology as part of the Martin Luther King Jr. Symposium.

Congress enacted Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 to prohibit gender discrimination in the nation’s education programs. It says: “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 educational program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.”

According to the National Association for Girls and Women in Sports, Title IX requires schools and colleges receiving federal funds to give women and girls an equal chance to play sports and to treat men and women equally when it comes to athletic scholarships and other benefits.

“Originally, Title IX had nothing to do with sports,” said Jean L. King, an Ann Arbor attorney involved in Title IX cases since 1974. “It was meant to correct problems in areas like admissions and appointments in higher education. We should not see Title IX as all about cutting men’s sports.”

Mike Burns, U-M assistant men’s gymnastics coach, has seen his sport dwindle to fewer than 20 NCAA Division I teams. “It is not all Title IX’s fault. But I want some common sense put back into the law,” Burns said. “The human being seems to be lost in all of this.”

Ann Arbor attorney Marissa W. Pollick said times have changed since she arrived at U-M in 1975. After complaining about having a restroom as a locker room and playing tennis under a part-time coach, she said she was told by the athletic director: “You girls should be happy with what you have.”

It all comes down to money, many panelists said, and how athletic departments allocate scarce funds. They said many athletic directors have cut men’s sports instead of finding ways to provide for all.

“I think we are getting to the point where common sense is out the window,” said David Shand, an attorney and adjunct lecturer in Kinesiology. “It has taken an act that has done great things and turned it on its head.”

Bill Roose, a Detroit Free Press sportswriter, said he has seen many cases of discrimination against girls’ programs at Michigan high schools. “Girls have been getting the short end of the straw every time they take the field,” Roose said. “The road to change is difficult, but it is the right thing to do.”

Ed Sikorski, an attorney who has served as general counsel for the Michigan High School Athletic Association, said the main question is, “Just how do we determine what is equitable and fair?”

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