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Coaching's effect on athletes can be Title IX factor

Beth Downs, civil rights investigator in the Office for Civil Rights, described a hypothetical situation in which an institution had six full-time coaches for men's teams and three full-time coaches for women's teams. Speaking at an NCAA-sponsored seminar on Title IX earlier this year in Boston, Downs said that of the six men's coaches, only one has a secondary coaching assignment -- as an assistant coach. Of the three full-time women's coaches, two of the three have a second head coaching assignment.

The situation would not automatically cause the institution to be in violation of Title IX, Downs said.

"For this to be covered by Title IX, we would have to show that the lack of female coaches or...coaches of women's teams has an effect on the athletes," Downs said.

"I think in this situation it would be a disparity, because the (women's) coaches have other things to do so they're clearly not as available as the coaches of men's teams."

With two out of three coaches of women's teams having additional duties and only one of six coaches for men's teams having an additional assignment, the availability of coaches of women's teams would be hampered, Downs said.

"This would come out as a disparity in the coaching-availability portion of the regulation because it would end up showing that coaches of men's teams are more available than coaches of women's teams. Again, we look at the FTE (full-time equivalency) and, also if it comes out showing that women receive less coaching than men, (look) at where those holes may be in a particular program," she said.

Must men's teams and women's teams have the same amount of coaching in the same sports under Title IX? Downs said the regulation does not require that.

"We would look at the overall coaching situation. But I think it is a smart thing to do. And my question to the institution always is, why is it that you have one less for women's basketball than for men's basketball or women's soccer and men's soccer?" she said.

"But if the FTE and the overall coaching situation came out OK, you do not have to have identical coaching for identical sports, but it's a real easy way to comply."

Downs also described a hypothetical institution at which the enrollment is 40 percent women, but only 29 percent of the athletes are women. The school has six men's teams and six women's teams. Even though the school offers equal numbers of sports for men and women, there is an 18 percent disparity in athletics participation between enrolled women and participating women athletes. Downs said the school would not meet prong one of the Title IX regulation -- participation equivalent to full-time undergraduate enrollment.

The school last added a women's sport in 1985, so the institution also would not meet prong two -- a continuing history and practice of program expansion responsive to the developing abilities and interests of the underrepresented sex.

The hypothetical institution that no female sports clubs are seeking varsity status. Downs said the fact that no teams are seeking varsity status does not mean that the institution meets prong three of the regulation -- full and effective accommodation of the underrepresented sex.

"The students are not obligated to seek varsity status to show they are interested in varsity competition," she said.

"What we find most often is that schools don't have some sort of procedure for kids to follow, so how would the school know? Again, it is the institution's obligation to comply with the three-part test, and just because the students have not requested it doesn't mean the students aren't interested."

It is important for institutions to develop a process for students to express their interest in a sport. If a school is trying to comply with Title IX through prong three, OCR will look at whether the institution has made information on how to establish a varsity sport available to students.

"We do give schools sometimes time to implement that sort of procedure, as well as time to implement a new team," Downs said.

By putting procedures in place to allow students to express their interest in particular sports, an institution also creates an avenue for demonstrating that -- even with a disparity in participation/enrollment numbers -- there is no unmet interest, she said.

At another hypothetical institution, fields used for women's soccer and field hockey are in significantly worse condition than fields for football and men's soccer, even though equal attention is given to the facilities. What would be the institution's obligation regarding the condition of the women's fields?

Downs said OCR would look at why the women's teams had the fields that are in the more unsatisfactory condition.

If an institution knew the situation existed, it would be obligated to alternate the fields to make sure men and women have equivalent fields on which to play and practice, she said.

"They don't have to provide the same conditions for all athletes, but there is some obligation here to look at why these women are always on these bad fields."

When it comes to pregame or postgame meals for teams, Downs said OCR looks at the number of teams that are provided with the benefit -- not just the number of athletes. When football is one of the teams receiving the benefit, an institution likely will need to provide more women's teams than men's teams with the meals.

"It's not all men's and women's teams that need the same benefit, but at least a similar or equivalent amount," she said.

In another hypothetical situation, an institution provides a 50-page media guide for the football team and a 20-page media guide for men's and women's basketball teams. The three guides are funded from the sports information budget. Additionally, the three sports are provided with full-color posters featuring a theme photo of the team and the current game schedule. The posters are provided through in-kind support raised by the athletics department.

All other teams at the institution are given the opportunity to produce a media guide and full-color posters with funding from each sport's operating budget, or in-kind support raised by the coaching staff.

Is the institution required to provide similar types or methods of publicity for all men's and women's teams?

Downs said equal publicity should be provided to an equivalent number of men's and women's teams but not necessarily to all teams. The media guides should be similar.

"You shouldn't have a 50-page, high-gloss whatever for the football team and a little piece of paper for the women's basketball team. It doesn't work that way," she said.

Is the institution required to provide similar amounts of funding for media guides for all teams?

"No, it depends what it costs to provide that same benefit. It does not have to be equal dollars as long as the effect of whatever dollars you allocate is the same," Downs said.

If an institution's sports information director organizes pregame and half-time contests and promotions during all football and men's basketball home games with prizes solicited from local sponsors, is it required to provide similar game promotions for the women's basketball team or other women's team?

"Yes," Downs said. "The reason they are is women's sports won't progress unless they get some sort of equal promotion opportunities and equal marketing. It is one of the benefits that a team receives being varsity as part of an intercollegiate athletics program. I do think the regulation requires schools to put some resource into promoting women's sports, if they do similar types of things for the men's program."

A participant questioned whether cheerleading can be considered when trying to comply with Title IX. Downs said that cheerleading is not counted as a sport under the Title IX regulation. She said some institutions do sponsor competition in cheerleading, but cheerleading participants do not count as varsity participants.

Cheerleading, however, is considered a support service under Title IX and should be provided equally to men's and women's teams, she said.

If funds are made available to both the women's softball team and the baseball team for a spring trip but the softball coach chooses not to take the softball team on such a trip, how would OCR evaluate that situation?

Downs said OCR would question why the coach turned down the trip, saying that perhaps the coach needs an assistant coach and must use the funds to hire one. Maybe the coach must find a way to pay for some other benefit that other teams already receive. Again, it is the student that should be receiving the benefit, and OCR would look at why the coach is not using the money for that purpose.

--Compiled by Sally Huggins

Title IX Ticker is a monthly feature in The NCAA News. News and information regarding Title IX and gender-equity issues can be sent to The NCAA News, Attn.: Title IX Ticker, 6201 College Boulevard, Overland Park, Kansas 66211-2422.