The Gender-Equity Q&A is intended to help athletics administrators understand institutional gender-equity and Title IX-related issues. Answers for the Q&A are provided by Christine Grant, associate professor at the University of Iowa, and Janet Judge, attorney with Verrill & Dana LLP.

Q What are the implications of booster-club donations on the overall equity of budgeting?

A Booster-club donations are vital to athletics departments and when given with no strings attached do allow the athletics director to use the money in ways that comply with Title IX requirements.

In general, if the resources or facilities for one gender are not comparable to those of the other, it is perfectly legal to accept donations that will decrease or eliminate the disparity. For example, if locker rooms for women's teams are comparable to those provided for the men's teams with the exception of the women's basketball team whose locker room is below par, then the booster club may financially support the construction of a better facility for women's basketball in order to make those facilities comparable. Similarly, if the men's competitive soccer pitch is not of the same standard as competitive facilities provided for women's teams, booster contributions can be used to correct the inequity.

Problems with a booster's donation arise when the gift would either create a disparity between the men's and women's programs or would increase an existing disparity. Neither is legal. This problem occurs most often when the gift is made to benefit a specific sport. If using the donation would place the department in violation of Title IX, the institution has several options that would be legally acceptable:

• Persuade the donor to allow the donation to be used in a nondiscriminatory way to meet an important need in the department.

• Convince the donor to share the gift among the men's and women's programs in accordance with Title IX requirements.

• Persuade the institution to match the donor's gift so that comparability continues to exist among the men's and women's programs.

• Fund-raise outside the institution to match the gift.

If none of those options is viable, then unfortunately the gift should tactfully be declined. From a public relations perspective, it is important that the donor know that his or her generosity is greatly valued, that different options have been actively explored and that the prime reason for this section of the law is meant to ensure fair treatment of all student-athletes.

For additional gender-equity resources, including newly created video segments featuring Christine Grant and Janet Judge, visit www.ncaa.org/gender_equity.