<p> When Title IX was first signed into law in the United States in 1972, its intended purpose was to guarantee equal opportunity for women in educational settings. In collegiate athletics Title IX quickly became a battle ground. It became a battle ground over how to increase the number of female collegiate athletes without impacting men’s programs, and also a battle ground over who would have primary responsibility for the administration of women’s sports. When the male-dominated NCAA took over the administration of women’s varsity teams after a 10-year battle with the female-led AIAW, female athletic administrators were forced to relinquish their authority over long-held ideals which governed women’s sports. The AIAW and other leaders in women’s collegiate athletics didn’t go down without a fight, and many expressed grave concern for the direction of women’s athletics under the leadership of men. Now, more than 40 years after the implementation of Title IX, after dramatic increases have been realized in the number of women competing on collegiate sports teams across the US, what if those fears have been realized? Are women’s sports and female athletes better now that they have been forced to adopt the male model of collegiate competition, or would the increases in participation and the opportunities for female athletes, female coaches, and female administrators have been even more dramatic if the AIAW had survived? The principles of education, participation, and character that governed women’s athletics for nearly 100 years have been lost in a system that only sees one way of administering athletics. Women have been forced to adopt a male approach to athletics for the sake of equality, but is equal really better? Is there a path that leads to a future where women once again lead women’s athletics? I think there is, and this dissertation points the way.</p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:10076054 |
| Date | 02 April 2016 |
| Creators | Russell, Robert Scott |
| Publisher | Purdue University |
| Source Sets | ProQuest.com |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | thesis |
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