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Libby Sharrow co-authored a blog about Title IX’s implementation

In 1972, the US Congress passed Title IX  to address sex discrimination in educational institutions receiving federal aid. Four decades on, Elizabeth A. SharrowJames N. Druckman and Jacob E. Rothschild take a close look at current perceptions of how Title IX has been implemented, with a specific focus on its effects on college athletes. They find that not only are student athletes aware that there should be gender equity – and in fact recognize existing inequities – they are also willing to take action to promote more equitable practices by universities.

One of the most celebrated public policies in the United States is Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. This federal-level policy dramatically altered American educational institutions, most notably in the ways that it requires equitable athletic opportunities for girls and women in interscholastic and intercollegiate competition. Today, these opportunities are now available to twelve times as many women competing at the college level than existed before 1972, and one of every two American girls plays sports in high school. Many studies demonstrate that those who benefit from Title IX have higher labor force participation rates than non-athletes, are more physically active later in life, and exhibit greater independence in adulthood.  For these and other reasons, it is therefore understandable that public perception and media coverage frame Title IX’s implementation in athletics as a significant policy success.  Yet, are those who most directly benefit from policy fully satisfied with the current status of implementation? We know strikingly little about whether college athletes–across sports and around the country—continue to care about sex inequity, let alone whether they care enough to take action on the issue. Read more here (The LSE US Centre's daily blog on American Politics and Policy, 5/13/19)

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