Bilsky aids in Title IX discussions

The recent arrival of Athletic Director Steve Bilsky has increased the chances of a negotiated settlement for the Title IX athletics gender-equity complaint filed earlier this summer by the Women's Law Project against the University. Title IX of the 1972 U.S. Education Amendments states in part that "No person shall, on the basis of sex...be denied the benefits of, be treated differently from another person or otherwise be discriminated against in any interscholastic, intercollegiate, club or intramural athletics." Bilsky, with the help of University Counsel Shelley Green and the Civil Rights Office at the U.S. Department of Education, is trying his best to prevent a full-blown investigation. Since his arrival on July 1, Bilsky has authorized the gathering of material and information relevant to the complaint in addition to conducting several tours of Penn's athletic facilities, ranging from the locker rooms to the athletic fields themselves. Further, the University committed $500,000 to gender equity issues over the next two years as a result of inequities that were uncovered in the athletic department's own independent gender-equity report last year. The Women's Law Project, a feminist legal advocacy organization, does not feel that the University's report, or the money, is sufficient. "Although we haven't seen the full report, it was not an adequate study," said Carol Tracy, an attorney with the Women's Law Project. "It was lacking in specifics -- there were no concrete measures to improve access to facilities or opportunities to share resources." But the Office of Civil Rights still feels the University is being cooperative enough so that a resolution may be reached without a federal lawsuit as soon as September. "Right now, we're backing off a little bit," said women's crew coach Carol Bower, one of the complainants. "It's a way to keep things moving and give Bilsky a chance." Bilsky is hoping to take advantage of that chance. "We can feel comfortable that we are committed to gender equity as an athletic department," Bilsky said. "We committed to it both verbally and with action?[and] the University coming forward with that money on its own is a strong signal. "There may be the need for more money in the future," he added. "We'll see." It also remains to be seen how the Office of Civil Rights will handle the case. The agency has numerous ways to resolve such disputes, depending on the individual facts and circumstances of each case. In this instance, what is termed an Early Complaint Resolution, where both parties become amenable to settling the case, seems to be the goal, but the Office of Civil Rights would not comment extensively. "We are trying to resolve the case in an appropriate manner," said Debbie DeSantis, an Office of Civil Rights spokeswoman. Thus far, the evidence seems inconclusive. A facilities tour this week revealed only very minor discrepancies between men's and women's facilities. Further budget, salary, equipment, training and recruiting reviews are upcoming. Although the football program's facilities far outclassed every other sport, that is to be expected because of the amount of revenue and school interest the sport generates. And although the facilities for men's and women's basketball, track, lacrosse, soccer and several other sports appeared reasonably equitable, women's tennis and volleyball -- both of which share their locker room space with other people -- were cited as examples of discrepancies, Bower said. Another concern was that the men's recreational locker room was far more spacious and comfortable that the women's -- which is located next to the pool and is therefore often damp. "To put on a pair of nylons in there would be a major feat," Bower said. She also noted the easier access to the squash facility from the men's locker room -- the women must go through the gymnastics area. In addition to equivalent facilities, the ten plaintiffs want equal pay for equal work among the seven coaches in equivalent sports. The Law Project wants women coaches to get the opportunity for merit based incentives, which are currently only available to some male coaches. "If they agree with these?principles, then it's just a question of negotiating redressment and retroactive pay," Bower said. "If not, a full investigation or a lawsuit may follow." "We're trying to resolve this in the least adversarial way," Tracy added. "We can take it to court if we have to -- we're not afraid of being adversarial -- but the athletes and coaches that we represent would rather resolve it cordially and quickly." In the mean time, more data will be examined, more facilities will be toured and more negotiating will take place.