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Title IX and Athletics

Title IX

 Title IX of the 1972 Education Act states:

"No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subject to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance." 

The Title IX regulations require schools to provide equal opportunity based on sex.  This requirement applies to schools’ athletic programs, including club, intramural, and intercollegiate teams.  Equal opportunity in college and university athletic programs is measured by:  

  1. The benefits, opportunities, and treatment given to men’s and women’s teams; 
  2. How a school is awarding athletic scholarships and financial assistance; 
  3. How a school is meeting students’ athletic interests and abilities. 

Educational programs or activities include Recreation & Athletics (R&A), UC Merced’s Athletics Department.  Title IX gives colleges and schools options for demonstrating that they provide equitable opportunities to both sexes.  UC Merced demonstrates equitable opportunities through intercollegiate level participation opportunities for male and female students in numbers substantially proportionate to their respective enrollments. 

In February 2023, the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights released new resources for students, parents, coaches, and school communities to help them assess whether their athletic programs are fulfilling Title IX's promise to women and girls. 

Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act 

The Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA) requires co-educational institutions of postsecondary education that participate in a Title IV, federal student financial assistance program, and have an intercollegiate athletic program, to prepare an annual report to the Department of Education on athletic participation, staffing, and revenues and expenses, by men's and women's teams.  

Equity in athletics data is available at Equity in Athletics Data Analysis. Hard copies of the report are also available upon request by contacting recreation@ucmerced.edu or athletics@ucmerced.edu. 

NCAA Board of Governors Policy on Campus Sexual Violence 

The NCAA Board of Governors passed the NCAA Policy on Campus Sexual Violence (NCAA policy) in August 2017 (updated in 2018 and revised in 2020 and 2021).  Beginning in the 2017 -2018 academic year, NCAA schools have attested their compliance with NCAA Policy attestation items 1-3.  The NCAA Policy stated that attestation items 4-6 required attestation beginning with the 2022 - 2023 academic year. 

In Summer 2024, OPHD and R&A partnered to develop and implement the NCAA Policy attestation items 4-6. The UC Framework for Compliance with NCAA Policy on Campus Sexual Violence, developed by the University of California, was issued in April 2022.  In August 2024, OPHD and R&A developed the UC Merced Protocol for Implementation and established a review committee for applicable matters. 

Resources