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LeFlouria, E. (2022, August 18).  50 years since title IX, work remains on gender issues in sports. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. https://www.ajc.com/sports

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I have been at Odessa College for 16 years.  I have worked at the community college level for over 20 years.  During this time, I have had the opportunity to work in a variety of areas such as federal grant programs, workforce education, career and technical programs, intercollegiate athletics, and advising.  I currently serve as the Executive Director of Academic Partnerships at Odessa College.  Academic Partnerships serves Odessa College and its vast service area in three important ways: Dual Credit, extension areas, and recruitment. The staff visits campuses and communities throughout Odessa College’s vast service area.

According to the Women’s Sports Foundation, the year before Title IX was enacted, girls high school athletic participation was at about 294,015 and college women’s participation was 29,977. According to the Women’s Equity Resource Center, before Title IX, women’s college athletics received only about 2% of athletic budgets and almost no athletic scholarships. (LeFlouria, 2022 para. 7)

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Pennepacker, P. (2021) 50th Anniversary of Title IX Coming in June of 2022.  https://www.nfhs.org/articles/50th-anniversary-of-title-ix-coming-in-june-of-2022/

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June of 2022 marked the 50th anniversary of Title IX.  Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is a comprehensive law prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex in all programs or activities in all federally funded educational institutions.  Since the enactment of Title IX, there has been a dramatic increase in interscholastic and intercollegiate athletic opportunities for girls and women. (Pennepacker, 2021)  Title IX is patterned after Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.  In 1980, the Department of Education Organization Act restructured the Title IX oversight responsibilities. Title IX oversight responsibilities were assigned to the newly established Department of Education (DOE) and specifically to DOE’s Office for Civil Rights. Title IX enforcement remains with the OCR today.

According to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights webpage, Title IX applies to schools, local and state educational agencies, and other institutions that receive federal financial assistance from the Department. These recipients include approximately 17,600 local school districts, over 5,000 postsecondary institutions, and charter schools, for-profit schools, libraries, and museums.

In Texas, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) is the state agency responsible for Title IX compliance and enforcement for all public higher education institutions.  Here are some relevant statistics regarding higher education institutions in Texas. Texas has a total of 148 public and independent institutions of higher education. Public institutions: The state has 106 total public higher education institutions: 37 public four-year universities and associated academic centers (6 university systems); three public state colleges; 50 public community college districts with multiple campuses; six public technical colleges; and 10 public health-related institutions.

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Harris, K (n.d.). PUTTIN THE TEETH INTO TITLE IX. Tarrant County College Reach Magazine. https://www.tccd.edu/magazine/volume-07/issue-01/title-ix/

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The 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, upon which Title IX builds, states, in part, the following:

“No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.”

In Texas, recent legislation has focused on Title IX.  First, SB 212 went into effect September 1, 2019. SB 212 requires higher education employees to “promptly report” certain incidents of sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence and stalking to the institution’s designated Title IX coordinator or deputy Title IX coordinator. Failure to report can lead to administrative penalties, termination of employment and potential criminal penalties. The criminal penalty portion of the law went into effect January 1, 2020.

Additionally, HB 1735 was signed into law effective September 1, 2019. HB 1735 reiterates what federal law requires regarding institutional obligations for addressing instances of sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence and stalking that involve students and employees. It also provides for administrative enforcement from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) to monitor compliance with the law. If institutions aren’t in “substantial compliance,” THECB can impose financial penalties up to $2 million. (Harris, n.d.)

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Grove City College is a private, church-affiliated, co-educational institution of higher education in Grove City, a small town in northwestern Pennsylvania. Since its founding in the 19th Century, the college had refused to accept directly any forms of government assistance on grounds that compliance with the rules that accompany such assistance would compromise its independence and ability to deliver high-quality education at low cost.

In July 1976, the Executive Branch department, now known as the Department of Education, required the college to file an assurance of compliance stating that it was following the Title IX regulations prohibiting discriminating on the basis of gender. The directive was based, in part, on the fact that 140 of the college’s approximately 2,200 students received direct grants through the federal government’s Basic Educational Opportunity Grant (BEOG) program.

The college refused to comply with this request on grounds that it did not receive federal financial assistance. As a result, the department initiated formal proceedings to terminate the students’ BEOGs. After a hearing, an administrative law judge decided that because the college received federal assistance, it was required under Title IX to file an assurance of compliance report. The college’s refusal was sufficient grounds for the department to prohibit its grants to the students.

https://www.uscourts.gov/educational-resources/educational-activities/grove-city-college-v-bell-facts-and-case-summary

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Texas Education Code - EDUC § 51.255. Failure to Report or False Report;  Offenses  

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Tales from Title IX Risk Management: Non-Linear Problem-Solving. (2021, March 3).  Retrieved from https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/tales-from-title-ix-risk-man

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·         Mandatory Title IX training for all students and employees on the content of Title IX, recognition of sexual misconduct and reporting procedures for Title IX violations.

·         Improved communication of Title IX standards and prohibitions, including direct communication to students, faculty and staff, as well as improved communication among departments that may encounter Title IX compliance issues (e.g., police, housing, athletics, etc.)

·         Clearly spelling out what kinds of interactions are appropriate between faculty and students.  Having multiple avenues for filing complaints, including formal and informal mechanisms; and distributing your harassment policy to all employees at the beginning of employment and on a periodic basis.

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·         The Professional Educator shall treat all persons with respect, dignity, and justice, discriminating against no one on any arbitrary basis such as ethnicity, creed, gender, disability, or age.

·         The Professional Educator shall by example and action encourage and defend the unfettered pursuit of truth by both colleagues* and students, supporting the free exchange of ideas, observing the highest standards of academic honesty and integrity, and seeking always an attitude of scholarly objectivity and tolerance of other viewpoints.

·         The Professional Educator shall not engage in sexual harassment of students or colleagues and shall adhere to the college’s policy on sexual conduct.

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#10 Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards

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#10 Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards

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Title IX has always been a very personal issue for me.  I have two older sisters.  They played sports through junior high and were very involved in extra-curricular activities all throughout high school.  They showed me how important participation was for the holistic development of young adults.  From the time I was five until I was twenty-one years old,  I only had one female coach.  With question, she was the best of them all. When I coached cross country at the college level, I recruited young men and women.  It was eye opening to find so many young women who had not given much thought to scholarship opportunities based on their running talent.  I was fortunate to meet many high school coaches who worked diligently to help all their athletes gain opportunities to run at the collegiate level.  Unfortunately, I also encountered coaches, almost exclusively male, who delegated their girls teams to second class status.

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Kline, M. (2018, September 27) 4 Ways to Mitigate Risk Related to Sexual Misconduct and Harassment on Campus. Retrieved from https://www.cupahr.org/blog/4-ways-

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#11 Bulleted List of Recommendations / Best Practices for Compliance

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#11 Bulleted List of Recommendations / Best Practices for Compliance

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·      Make sure the campus community knows about the designated Title IX Coordinator.  Who is the Title IX Coordinator? Do they know how to contact the coordinator?

·      Convene a Title IX team representative of all campus constituencies to review and revise policy and protocol, assess campus climate, lead education and prevention efforts, and assist the Title IX Coordinator. This team should serve as advocates and allies across campus and regularly engage with the people on campus who may be impacted the most by Title IX laws.

·      Devote  adequate staff, resources, and funding to manage cases. Investigators must be able to set aside other responsibilities to ensure that investigations are prompt and thorough.

·      Reporting should be easy.

·      Develop appropriate technology to provide centralized reporting mechanisms for victims as well as to collect and maintain reporting records

·      Provide education and training to all students on assault prevention, the basics of the campus policy, resolution process, and their options for  support.