June focus — Title IX: The next generation
Women and girls have come a long way since the 1972 enactment of Title IX, the federal civil rights law prohibiting gender discrimination in education.
Although Title IX is best known for breaking down barriers for women and girls in sports, other important protections include allowing girls to pursue math and science, requiring fair treatment for pregnant and parenting students and protecting students from bullying and sexual harassment.
Although advances have been made, work remains. Take time this month to learn about today's "Next Generation Title IX," and how you can help eliminate barriers to student success.
Title IX is a law passed in 1972 that requires gender equity for boys and girls in every educational program that receives federal funding.
How you can help
- Promote women's and girls sports — The Women's Sports Foundation advocates for equality, educates the public, conducts research and offers grants to promote sports and physical activity for girls and women, www.womenssportsfoundation.org.
- Read a report by the National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education to learn about the history of Title IX, www.ncwge.org/TitleIX40/TitleIX-print.pdf.
- Visit the National Women's Law Center for a variety of Title IX resources, including fact sheets, toolkits and reports, www.nwlc.org/our-issues/education-%2526-title-ix.
- Visit the American Association of University Women to join its action network and learn more about the importance of Title IX, www.aauw.org/title-ix/.
Title IX coordinators
Did you know that every federally funded school, school district, college and university is required to have a Title IX coordinator? If you don't know who yours is, make it a point to find out. Title IX regulations require that the name and contact information for Title IX coordinators be publicly available. If there's not a designee at your site, let your school know there should be.
The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights recently released three tools to help Title IX coordinators carry out their duties: a letter to schools reiterating the importance of Title IX coordinators; a thank you letter to coordinators reaffirming their roles; and a free resource manual offering guidance to coordinators. For information, visit www2.ed.gov/policy/rights/guid/ocr/title-ix-coordinators.html.
Title IX requires that every school must designate at least one employee who is responsible for coordinating the school's compliance.
Make Title IX a 'teachable moment'
Use these resources to highlight Title IX in your classroom: