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.

Just before the start of the summer, in response to a number of inquiries from members, we promised a recap of the individual treatment areas covered by Title IX. If you recall, Title IX measures athletics compliance in three separate areas (participation, financial aid and treatment) with individual tests for each. When assessing compliance in this area, it is important to remember that although each area should be reviewed individually, it is the treatment of the men's and women's programs overall that is dispositive for compliance purposes.

Accordingly, a disparity in one area that favors one sex may be offset by a similar disparity in another area that favors the opposite sex. For the next several issues of the Gender-Equity Q&A, we will address ways to review each treatment (also known as "the laundry list"). Of course, each program will have its own unique characteristics and any review will have to be tailored to the circumstances of the program in question.

Q How do you measure equity in the area of tutoring?

A One of the first policy decisions to be made in this area is the selection of criteria by which student-athletes are eligible to receive this benefit. If all student-athletes are permitted to receive tutoring, such a policy would definitely constitute equal opportunity. Restricting it only to scholarship athletes also would be acceptable, providing the scholarship allocation to men and women is in compliance with the law. If additional restrictions are imposed, such criteria must be nondiscriminatory in nature (for example, all male and female student-athletes below a stipulated grade point average). The criteria for eligibility for tutoring should be made available to all student-athletes, as should written procedures on how to obtain the assistance of tutors.

The number of tutors available should be sufficient to meet the demand and to ensure that both genders are accommodated with no priority given to any team or teams. Sometimes compliance problems occur when specific teams (for example, revenue-producing sports) are given priority or have special arrangements made for tutoring. Regularly assigning the best qualified tutors to these teams also would create a problem.

It should be noted that when evaluating equity in tutoring, the number of male and female student-athletes availing themselves of this benefit is irrelevant, providing there is equal access to tutoring for all who are eligible and who wish to use it. This makes it unlike the other areas in "the laundry list."

As a cost-saving measure, some institutions encourage group tutoring sessions so that one tutor can assist several student-athletes simultaneously. While such a practice is acceptable, the department should make sure that one-on-one tutoring sessions are equally available to both genders when they are requested.

Care should be taken to provide to each gender tutors who are well qualified in their speciality areas and who are well trained in how to successfully assist in the learning process. To meet those criteria, some institutions require all tutors to be graduate students or teachers who have had teaching experience. From a rules compliance standpoint, the tutors also must be clear on what is legally and ethically permitted in the tutoring process.

The appointment of a tutoring coordinator can help ensure that the assignment of tutors to male and female student-athletes is fair and equitable.

In the compensation area, many institutions have instituted the same pay scale for all tutors regardless of the subject area, the number of degrees or years of experience. If, however, there is a limited pool of tutors for upper-level classes or specialty areas, a higher pay scale may become necessary to attract well-qualified candidates. In this case, the department should monitor the assignments of those people to ensure that one gender is not benefiting more than the other.

The satisfaction of male and female student-athletes in the area of tutoring can be quickly and easily measured through the annual student-athlete evaluation process to provide tangible evidence of equitable treatment.

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