The 2005 NCAA Gender-Equity and Issues Forum, entitled "Take Action," will provide many opportunities for participants to learn more about Title IX and other gender-equity and diversity topics.

Though recent developments regarding the anti-discrimination legislation are not specifically on the agenda, participants will have the chance to ask questions of several noted experts during question-and-answer periods and round-table discussions.

The April 24-26 event at the JW Marriott in New Orleans will offer interactive and application-oriented programming and opportunities to hear from dozens of experts in the field of gender equity.

They include Donna Lopiano of the Women's Sports Foundation; Jocelyn Samuels of the National Women's Law Center; Janet Judge, a sports law attorney with Verrill & Dana, LLP; Christine Grant, faculty emeritus and former women's athletics director at the University of Iowa; and Judy Sweet, NCAA senior vice-president for championships and education services.

The forum will open with a reception on Sunday, April 24, with live entertainment and food provided. The program will begin the next morning with an educational session and question-and-answer period on the basics of Title IX and the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act.

After the opening sessions featuring Lopiano and Samuels, the NCAA education services staff will conduct a lunch-and-learn session about the relationship between gender equity and athletics health care. Later in the day, representatives from Divisions I, II and III will separate into their own sessions to discuss topics related to each classification.

The second day of the forum will begin with a breakfast and book-signing event. Welch Suggs, athletics editor of The Chronicle of Higher Education, will sign copies of his book, "A Place on the Team: The Triumph and Tragedy of Title IX." Ying Wushanley, former Council member of the North American Society for Sport History and an associate professor at Millersville University of Pennsylvania, will autograph copies of his book, "Playing Nice and Losing: The Struggle for Control of Women's Intercollegiate Athletics, 1960-2000."

Participants also will have the opportunity to order various gender-equity publications at the event, including the latest Title IX manual.

After the conclusion of the forum, 40 people will have the opportunity to participate in diversity training workshops, sessions that help student-athletes, coaches and athletics administrators learn more about the value of diversity. Registration for the forum and diversity training workshops are separate.

Forum registration is free to NCAA institutional staff members and conference administrators. Students will pay $25. Federal government employees, high-school employees and U.S. Olympic Committee and national governing body staff and volunteers will pay $75. The general public can attend for $150.

This is the first year that student-athletes who serve on the Divisions I, II and III Student-Athlete Advisory Committees will receive grants to attend the forum.

A $200 fee will be charged to anyone who registers but does not attend and does not cancel reservations by April 18. To cancel registrations, call 317/917-6312. The $200 fee will help defray forum expenses. The registration deadline also is April 18. To register, visit web1.ncaa.org/surveys/geif.html.

Questions about the forum can be directed to Rosie Stallman or Sarah Dufresne at 317/917-6222.