ABSTRACT DECISION MAKING IN INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETICS: ONE INSTITUTION’S JOURNEY TO MAINTAIN TITLE IX COMPLIANCE by John Rowland The allocation of resources and participation opportunities in intercollegiate athletics has been a debate among researchers for nearly 40 years. Title IX and traditionally male-dominated budgeting practices continue to be opposing forces that shape the financial and gender makeup of university athletic departments. In fact, the need to be Title IX compliant often dominates discussions when structural changes occur in athletic departments. This case study analyzed the decision making process of distributing resources and participation opportunities at Division I University from 1998 to 2007 based on John Rawls’ arguments about distributive justice. Division I University administrators focused on the substantiality proportionality clause of the three-part test as the only method to comply with Title IX. The Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act and other gender equity reports completed during certification play an important role in the decision making process. The analysis of the decision making process showed that Title IX was used as a political tool to deflect the controversy of program elimination. This analysis also showed that program elimination was not necessary in order to maintain Title IX compliance. Thus, the decision to eliminate sports was a violation of Rawlsian justice.

The purpose of this study was to examine the legal strategy of utilizing Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to compel change to the racial composition of head coaches at NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision institutions. To accomplish this, the researcher examined the guidelines for bringing a Title VII case, researched statutory requirements and case law precedents, and compiled and analyzed the outcomes of prior employment discrimination cases. In addition, the researcher investigated the proposition that Title VII could do for minority football coaches what Title IX did in athletics for girls and women. Investigation of Title VII procedural guidelines revealed that plaintiffs are disadvantaged when pursuing a claim. This is due in part to the fact that plaintiffs must exhaust administrative remedies prior to filing a complaint with a court. As a result, the Title VII remedy requires a protracted process. In addition, review of salient sport and non-sport cases revealed that courts are highly deferential to employers when evaluating the employers’ proffered hiring criteria. Analysis of prior Title VII case outcomes revealed a significant disparity in plaintiff and defendant success rates. During 1998-2006, plaintiffs succeeded in opposing motions for summary judgment only 1.84% of the time in U.S. District Courts. Plaintiffs were more successful if they were able to get their cases heard by a court. Plaintiffs prevailed in 37.9% of jury trials and in 26.7% of bench trials. It was also determined that Title VII is unlikely to provide results similar to Title IX. This is asserted for two main reasons. First, unlike Title IX, Title VII complaints cannot be filed directly in a court without exhausting administrative remedies. Second, because standing is not an issue in filing a Title IX complaint with the Office for Civil Rights, the investigation of an institution can commence upon the filing of a complaint by an interested party. Thus, a coach or administrator does not have to be directly involved. It was concluded that for these and other reasons, it is unlikely that Title VII litigation can affect change. Minority coach advocates should instead try less adversarial approaches.

Thesis (Ph. D., Education)--University of Idaho, May 2009. / Major professor: Sharon K. Stoll. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 93-99). Also available online (PDF file) by subscription or by purchasing the individual file.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 60-61).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Glasgow, 2003. / Ph. D. thesis submitted to the departments of Public Health and Health Policy and Management Studies, University of Glasgow, 2003. Includes bibliographical references. Print version also available.

Intercollegiate athletics at major universities provide a variety of opportunities and challenges for student-athletes who choose to participate. This qualitative project studies the quality of interactions in the sport, the social, and the academic experiences for freshman football and male soccer student-athletes and their adjustment to college. The five research questions under review were as follows: Is there a relationship between the quality of the sport experience and adjustment to college as reported by freshman football and male soccer student-athletes attending a NCAA Division I-A institution? Is there a relationship between the quality of the social experience and adjustment to college as reported by freshman football and male soccer student-athletes attending a NCAA Division I-A institution? Is there a relationship between the quality of the academic experience and adjustment to college as reported by freshman football and male soccer student-athletes attending a NCAA Division I-A institution? Are there relationships between any two of the three experiences (sport, social, and academic) that affect adjustment to college as reported by freshman football and male soccer student-athletes attending a NCAA Division I-A institution? Does the adjustment to college relate to interactions among all three experiences in any comprehensive way as reported by freshman football and male soccer student-athletes attending a NCAA Division I-A institution? The purpose of the study was to hear in the student-athletes' authentic voices their descriptions of the quality of the sport, the social and the academic endeavors and how those interactions impacted their adjustment to college. The results imply that the freshman football and male soccer student-athletes, while enduring some challenges, find ways to adjust to college as both students and as athletes. Several themes were ascertained in relation to each of the three areas under review. While the student-athletes expressed feelings indicating that their collegiate experiences were different from the experiences of students not participating in intercollegiate athletics, the majority of them revealed a high level of comfort in their college environment. They all felt attached to the university, and they all planned to return for their sophomore year.

The purpose of this study was to provide an assessment of the involvement of North Carolina’s 58 community and technical colleges in intercollegiate athletics during the academic year 2013 – 2014. This study was similar to Alexander’s 2009 study A Descriptive Study of Intercollegiate Athletics in Mississippi’s Public Community and Junior Colleges and Castaneda’s study (2004) at the University of North Texas The importance of intercollegiate athletics at rural-serving community colleges. These data could assist North Carolina community and technical college presidents, vice presidents residing over athletics, athletic directors, and other policy makers in their decision-making processes concerning intercollegiate athletics. These leaders can now readily compare their institution data from other colleges statewide. This study included the entire population of North Carolina’s 58 public community and technical colleges. Frequencies and percentages were utilized by the researcher to report the information. Data were collected to provide an overview of intercollegiate athletics at North Carolina’s public community and technical colleges. Information included location, student participation, amount of athletically related student aid, teams sponsored, athletic revenues and expenses, and staffing requirements, including salaries.

Title IX’s legislation has been in place since 1972 and has affected female participation in a positive form towards gender equity. However many institution sill have difficulty complying with the standards mandated by Title IX. Gender equity is established by meeting substantial proportionality, continued expansion, or full accommodations prongs mandated by Title IX for an institution to be in compliance. The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions of the athletic directors of the 15 public community and junior colleges in Mississippi regarding Title IX compliance and determine if their respective institutions are in compliance with the substantial proportionality (SP) prong of Title IX. The study identified the perceptions of the athletic directors regarding their institutions’ Title IX compliance, as well as the effective strategies and barriers toward meeting the requirements to comply with Title IX within their programs. In addition, the study revealed whether or not the institutions complied with the SP prong of Title IX. Athletic directors (N=15; 53% response rate) from the public community and junior colleges from Mississippi completed the Two-Year College Title IX Survey. Results revealed that overall the athletic directors perceived that their institutions were in compliance with Title IX. However, the athletic directors perceived that the listed strategies were not effective and the barriers listed were not perceived barriers to Title IX compliance. However, the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act data revealed that none of the institutions complied with the SP prong of Title IX. From a practical perspective, the study revealed that while the athletic directors perceived that their institutions met the SP prong, EADA data revealed that none of the institutions in the state met that prong. Consequently, this finding indicates that there is a need for more education regarding Title IX compliance at the institutions. This information could serve as a starting point for an in-depth institutional study on Title IX. From a theoretical perspective, the study provided information that gives leaders at the public community and junior colleges in Mississippi a unique look at diversity within their athletic departments.

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