Gender Equity in Intercollegiate Athletics

              STATE OF ILLINOIS
BOARD OF HIGHER EDUCATION
GENDER EQUITY IN INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETICS
In 1995, the Illinois General Assembly enacted legislation -- 110 ILCS 205/9.24 --
designed to assist public institutions of higher education with attaining gender equity in
intercollegiate athletic programs. To that end, the law authorizes the issuance of gender equity
tuition waivers and requires the Board of Higher Education to report periodically to the Governor
and General Assembly on the state of gender equity in intercollegiate athletics. This is the sixth
report prepared in accordance with this statutory requirement.
The information summarized in this report is not intended, nor should it be used, to
determine the level of compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which
prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender in any educational program or activity receiving
federal financial assistance, including intercollegiate athletics. The United States Department of
Education, Office for Civil Rights, has established compliance standards and testing procedures
for compliance with Title IX and has sole authority for determining compliance with the federal
statutes. The information presented in this report should be used only to assess efforts and
accomplishments at Illinois public institutions.
Gender Equity in Intercollegiate Athletics
State statute allows public colleges and universities to issue gender equity tuition waivers
in amounts not to exceed one percent of all tuition income. These waivers are not subject to
existing waiver limitations and as such may be granted in addition to any other tuition waivers
authorized by the Board of Higher Education. Institutions that issue tuition waivers, including
gender equity waivers, do not receive direct funding from the General Assembly for the waivers;
rather, they are allowed to waive the required tuition for the student in question, representing a
loss of potential revenue to the school.
As a condition of issuing gender equity tuition waivers, institutions must have filed a plan
for achieving gender equity in intercollegiate athletics with the Board of Higher Education. The
plans must include, but are not limited to:
· intercollegiate sports opportunities available to both men and women;
· activities to be undertaken by the institution to achieve gender equity in intercollegiate
athletics;
· identification of the barriers to achieving and maintaining equitable intercollegiate
athletic opportunities for both men and women;
· progress in achieving sports equity in compliance with Title IX of the Education
Amendments of 1972; and
· the use of tuition waivers for attaining gender equity in intercollegiate sports.
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