This year's NCAA Title IX Seminar promises something exciting for participants who have worked in the field for years or who are new to the issues surrounding gender equity in intercollegiate athletics.

The theme for the May 17-18 seminar at the Drake Hotel in Chicago is "Be a Solution Provider," and the event aims to help administrators develop plans to solve problems on their campuses. Administrators with solutions are seen as leaders and embraced as a valuable asset to an institution.

"We've totally revamped the entire seminar. The format is completely different than before," said Rosie Stallman, NCAA director of education outreach. "It's redone based on input from the membership on what they'd like to see, and we're very excited about it."

Before the opening session, breakouts on an orientation to Title IX and an advanced session in Title IX will be held. Betsy Alden of Alden and Associates will lead the beginning session, and Janet Judge of Verrill & Dana LLP will lead the advanced session. Both speakers have been asked back due to popular demand.

The opening session will feature a welcome by Lynda Calkins, chair of the NCAA Committee on Women's Athletics and director of athletics and dean of students at Hollins University. NCAA Senior Vice-President for Governance and Membership Bernard Franklin will discuss the theme of the seminar, "Be a Solution Provider." Franklin is the former president of Virginia Union University.

Also at the opening session, facts about Title IX will be presented by Athena Yiamouyiannis from the National Association for Girls and Women in Sport; Christine Grant, former director of women's athletics at the University of Iowa; and Denise DeHass of the NCAA research department.

New to this year's conference are breakout sessions by division. Since each division has different issues related to Title IX, the advisory team that assisted in planning the seminar felt it would be helpful to break out into groups by division, rather than topic, Stallman said. Participants will then prioritize the top issues facing their division in relation to Title IX and come up with solutions they can take back to their campus or conference.

Division meetings begin Monday afternoon and continue Tuesday morning with round-table discussions on various topics. In addition, a brown-bag lunch is set for Monday with opportunities to network with those in the field who have volunteered to serve as mentors.

Tuesday's sessions also include information on changes in reporting on the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA) forms, given by Maria DeJulio of the NCAA, and a session with Ken Marcus, the delegated authority of the assistant secretary of education for civil rights. In that position, Marcus supervises the nationwide administration of civil rights laws relating to educational institutions, including Title IX.

Stallman noted that seminar planners had been trying for several years to have a speaker from the Department of Education and this promises to be a popular session.

Judy Sweet, an NCAA senior vice-president and senior woman administrator, will deliver closing remarks on how to use information from the seminar so attendees can facilitate change on their campus or within their conference.

After the seminar, two diversity training workshops will be available to participants. They are: "Understanding Diversity and Creating Community" and "Gender Issues in Intercollegiate Athletics." These sessions have never been held in conjunction with the Title IX Seminar, Stallman said, and provide an extra benefit for attendees. About 40 spots are available at each session.

The advisory team that helped plan the revamped seminar includes Darlene Bailey, Peg Bradley-Doppes, Joan Cronan, Richard Ensor, Carolyn Femovich, Nancy Lyons, Chris Monasch, Laurie Turner, Robertha Abney, Joan Pope, Eve Atkinson,, Geri Knortz, David Riggins, Kathy McNally, Nancy Bals, Sally Baum, Dan Calandro, Gale Lackey, Marybeth Lamb, Joan Maser, Dana Moore, Danny Powell, Steve Wallo and Terry Wansart.

To register for the seminar and for additional information, visit www.ncaa.org. Registration is free for NCAA institutional and conference staff members. Students pay $25 to register. The fee is $75 for federal employees, high-school employees, U.S. Olympic Committee and national governing bodies staff and volunteers, and NAIA and NJCAA institutional staff members. Registration for the general public is $150.

The first 200 seminar registrants from NCAA member institutions who also make reservations at the Drake Hotel will receive a $100 reimbursement toward their two-night lodging expense. Reimbursements will be distributed after the seminar.

The deadline to register is May 10.

For more information, contact Rosie Stallman at 317/917-6222 or e-mail at rstallman@ncaa.org.