Should football be exempt from Title IX requirements? .
In 1972 the United States Congress passed Title IX of the Education Amendment Act. Title IX provides that "no" persons in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or authority receiving Federal financial assistance. This means that there cannot be any sexual discrimination in education programs that receive federal funding. .
In terms of athletics, Title IX requires that universities that receive federal funding have to provide equal athletic opportunities for men and women. There is a Three-Prong Test to determine whether or not schools are complying with Title IX. The three parts to it are: 1. The Proportionality Test, where the institution can show that the levels of participation opportunities for male and female students are provided in numbers proportionate to their respective enrollments, 2. Where the members of one sex have been and are under represented among athletes, but the institution can show a history and continuing practice of program expansion which is noticeably responsive to the developing interests and abilities of the members of that sex, and 3. Where the members of one sex are under represented among athletes, and the institution cannot show an ongoing practice of program expansion such as that cited above, but the institution can show that the interests and abilities of the members of that sex have been fully and effectively accommodated by the present program.
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If Title IX didn't include football then that would open up more opportunities for men's sports to succeed and get more funding. However, some people could be opposed to this because they think football shouldn't be an exception. If a men's sport is exempt from Title IX, why not a popular women's sport, like basketball, be exempt? Also, at most schools, football is spending 40-50% of all operating dollars.