The NCAA News - News and Features

The NCAA News -- October 25, 1999

Gender-equity report: Progress, but room for growth

BY DAVID PICKLE
STAFF WRITER

While progress continues on a number of gender-equity fronts, female sports participation and the financial resources provided for female student-athletes remain well below male levels, according to the recently released 1997-98 NCAA Gender-Equity Report.

The biannual report shows that women's athletics participation in Division I reached 40 percent for the first time, up from 37 percent in the 1995-96 study. In fact, the average number of female participants at Division I institutions grew 41.1 percent from 1991-92, climbing from an average of 112 student-athletes to 158 in 1997-98.

Though such progress is welcome and meaningful, NCAA Director of Education Outreach Jane Meyer said that it is made possible largely because the original numbers were so low. Meyer noted that the 60-40 ratio indicates that progress toward equity is extremely slow, with only a 9 percent change occurring over six years. "Women are still far from being full partners in the opportunities of intercollegiate sports," she said.

The 1997-98 report does show that in Division I, the most recent progress in female participation did not come at the expense of males. The average number of males at Division I athletics programs increased by 15 (6.6 percent) from 1995-96, while the average number of females grew by 28 (21.5 percent). That is quite different from the previous report, which showed a decline of almost 10 percent in the number of participating males compared to 1991-92.

"What the report indicates is that men's and women's sports are being added and dropped, but the net result is that women's programs are being added at a faster rate," Meyer said. "The true meaning of Title IX is to increase opportunities -- it says nothing about cutting.

"Even though we saw a drop before, what we're seeing is that institutions might be finding a better way to be moving toward compliance, and one of those ways is to increase opportunities for women."

The increase in male participation in Division I was spread evenly across the spectrum of sports. Men's basketball was essentially unchanged from 1995-96 (15.0 to 15.1) while football participation was down slightly (104.7 to 103.0).

As for women's sports, the size of the average women's rowing team moved upward, going from 48.9 in 1995-96 to 55.1 in 1997-98. Although the size of the average women's soccer team stayed about the same, sponsorship for that sport jumped sharply in a two-year period.

(Track and field/cross country participation showed a large increase for both men and women because the definition was changed to count them as a single sport for the purpose of this report.)

Expenses

Expenses continued to favor men's sports in Division I, although a significant decrease was noted in the percentage of operating expenses allocated to men's sports. In the first two reports, men's sports used 77 percent of all operating expenses. In the most recent report, that figure dropped to 67 percent.

The report clearly indicates that men's teams are provided a greater share of the operating expenditures. Some of the difference is justifiable because some men's sports require greater expense (for example, for equipment).

Operating expenses were a source of concern in the 1995-96 report, when it was noted that the average increase in men's operating expenses -- which almost doubled from the original report -- surpassed the total average operating expense for Division I women's programs.

Although the most recent report draws no firm conclusions for the large variations in operating expenses, this year's questionnaire did clarify what is meant by the term, which may account for the fluctuation to at least some degree.

Otherwise, 70 percent of recruiting expenses (down from 73) were directed to men's programs while men received 59 percent of Division I athletically related financial aid (down from 62).

Head-coaching salary proportions were unchanged, with 60 percent of that money going to coaches of men's teams (the average Division I institutional outlay for all head-coaching salaries jumped 23.5 percent in two years). The percentage of salary going to assistant coaches of men's teams declined from 76 percent to 73 percent.

Average Division I institutional revenue for men's sports jumped from $3.9 million to $5.4 million while expenses climbed from $3.4 million to $4.8 million. Women's average revenue rose from $300,000 to $778,000 while expenses went up from $1.5 million to $2.2 million.

Subdivision variations

Within Division I, some variation was noted among the subdivisions. Women's participation ranged from 38 percent in Divisions I-A and I-AA to 47 percent in non-football Division I-AAA. Money directed to athletically related financial aid favored men by 62-38 percent in Division I-A; however, in Division I-AAA, women received 52 percent of such funding.

The allocation of money for coaching salaries also was quite different between Divisions I-A and I-AAA. In I-A, 62 percent of the money paid for head coaches' salaries went to coaches of men's sports. In I-AAA, it was 55 percent. In I-A, 75 percent of the money for assistant coaches' salaries went to those coaching men's sports; in I-AAA, it was 57 percent.

The study showed that in Division I-A, the average head coaching salary for football coaches was $195,057, compared to $141,624 in the previous study. Head basketball coaches at Division I-A institutions commanded the highest average salaries for women's sports at $100,235 (the average pay for a men's head basketball coach was $164,927).

Division I-A institutions had an average of 10.3 assistant football coaches who were paid an average salary of $60,511. The highest-paid assistant coaches of women's sports in Division I-A were in basketball, where the average salary was $35,663 (the average for men's basketball assistants was $50,920).

"Institutions continue to direct a disproportionate amount of dollars toward head and assistant coaches of men's sports," Meyer said. "This clearly works to the disadvantage of young women."

Division II