| Washington -- On the first anniversary of the controversial "clarification" for establishing Title IX compliance for athletics programs at colleges and universities, the American Association of University Women (AAUW) continues to criticize the guidance as a blatant attack by the Department of Education on the landmark civil rights law banning sex discrimination in federally-funded education programs. AAUW also applauds a bipartisan group of members of the House of
Representatives, led by Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-CA), who marked the day by
introducing a resolution calling on the Department to withdraw the
clarification. The Congressional Resolution comes on the heels of a NCAA
resolution advising members not to employ the problematic clarification. "AAUW joins these members of Congress in strongly urging the Department
of Education to rescind this unnecessary and harmful clarification," said Lisa Maatz, AAUW director of public policy and government relations. "The bipartisan nature of the sponsors and their vocal leadership is reflective of the overwhelming public support Title IX continues to enjoy, and the Department should take note of that." The year-old clarification makes it easier for schools to prove compliance by relying on a less rigorous, questionable e-mail-based survey method. The change seriously jeopardizes the number of athletic opportunities that will be available to women on campus and it threatens to turn back the clock on much of the progress that has been made in increasing women's athletic participation. In 2002, the Bush administration created the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics in order to evaluate whether and how current standards governing Title IX's application to athletics should be revised. Attempts by some members of the commission to dismantle the standards were met with forceful opposition, led by AAUW and other coalition members. "Taken together, this represents a very troubling series of events that seems aimed at undermining the educational progress women have made over the last 30 years," said Maatz. "The Department's Commission was unsuccessful in wrecking the Title IX athletics policies, and Department responded with this under-the-radar attempt to dismantle the policies piece by piece." Under the new proposal, rather than performing a rigorous analysis and evaluation of women's interests and abilities in athletics, schools need only send an e-mail survey to students who are currently members of the student body to assess their interest in sports programs. "The change poses challenges to the continued progress of women in college athletic programs," said Maatz. "Despite the fact that women make up half or more of students in high schools and colleges, a recent survey shows that they still receive only about 41 percent of the sports participation opportunities." AAUW has been a leading supporter of Title IX since the law's inception in 1972, which has been credited with creating tremendous educational opportunities for women, including opportunities in athletic programs. "AAUW, with its more than 100,000 members nationwide, views Title IX as one of the cornerstone accomplishments in our fight to promote equity for women and girls. Our members have been vocal in their opposition to this guidance. They see it as another attempt to dismantle Title IX, and they will not forget this when it is time to return to the polls in the fall," Maatz concluded.
Learn more about AAUW's position on Title IX and school athletics.
### The American Association of University Women, with its nationwide
network of more than 100,000 members, 1,300 branches, and 550 college
and university partners, has been a leading advocate for equity for
women and girls since 1881. AAUW proudly celebrates its 125th
anniversary this year-a legacy of leadership. AAUW: Because Equity Is Still an Issue www.aauw.org | 
