Fair play? James Madison University's decision to eliminate 10 sports teams--mostly men's--to comply with a federal "gender equity" law is the latest chapter in the debate over the fairness of Title IX.

• Author: Penington, Bill
• Position: NATIONAL

After an especially good meet in September, Dave Rinker, the coach of James Madison University's men's and women's cross-country teams, gathered his athletes and shared the bad news. The university would be eliminating men's cross country and track, along with eight other, mostly men's sports. The reason cited by school administrators: to bring the Virginia school into compliance with Title IX, the controversial federal gender-equity law.

"Title IX was created in 1972 to prevent sex discrimination, and it was needed," said Jennifer Chapman, senior captain of JMU's women's cross-country team (which is not being cut), as she led a protest rally of 400 students on campus a few days later.

"But look what's happening now. We rode the bus home from Pennsylvania for four hours, 14 guys and 19 girls all crying together. How is that supposed to have been Title IX's intent?"

Across this placid campus in the Shenandoah Valley, the quads, walkways, and classrooms have been filled with similar questions surrounding Title IX, posed by both male and female students.

"It was a difficult thing to do, but we were out of compliance with the law," says JMU's president, Linwood Rose. "Part of our mission statement talks about a community of educated and enlightened citizens. I don't know how you create a model for citizenship if you are blatantly in violation of the law."

This year marks Title IX's 35th anniversary. Signed into law by President Richard M. Nixon, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 bars sex discrimination in schools and colleges that accept federal funding (which is virtually all schools).

Title IX has been widely credited with significantly expanding sports opportunities for women. But the law's implementation has been the subject of fierce debate. Citing examples like JMU, Title IX's detractors charge that in practice, it has been unfair to men.

TITLE IX'S IMPACT

There is little question that female participation in school athletics programs has grown since Title IX was enacted (see graph, p. 10). One in 27 girls played on a high school varsity team in 1972. Today, that figure is one in 2.5. At the intercollegiate level, female participation has gone from 30,000 to nearly 170,000.

Supporters also say that Title IX has been partly responsible for the growth in women's professional sports in recent years. The WNBA has been drawing fans for 10 years, and athletes like Serena Williams and Michelle Wie, who came of age post-Title IX, have achieved as high a profile in tennis and golf as their male counterparts.

"If it weren't for Title IX, I would not have been able to reach the level of...