Brown University appeals recent Title IX ruling

Brown University has appealed a federal judge's ruling that its athletic department violates Title IX. Last month, Raymond Pettine, a U.S. District Court judge in Rhode Island, found Brown in violation because, according to the complainants, women make up 38 percent of athletes but 51 percent of the student body. In its appeal, Brown is asking the First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals either to throw out the judge's ruling or order a new trial, the Associated Press reported. Mark Nikel, director of Brown University's News Bureau, said that the figures Pettine used do not represent the teams' numbers for the majority of the season. At the beginning of the season, men's teams, such as basketball, field more players than the women's teams. But, as the year progresses and students are cut or leave the team, the numbers come to more closely resemble the student body. During the trial, several Brown coaches for men's and women's teams estimated the number of athletes on their squads. Using the coaches' approximations, Nikel said, 42 percent of Brown's athletes are female. Under Title IX -- which became a federal law in 1972 -- gender discrimination is prohibited at institutions receiving government funds. Athletic departments must have a "substantially proportionate" ratio of female to male athletes. Departments must also meet the interests and abilities of male and female students. The law allows institutions a 7 percent discrepancy between the number of female athletes and the number of women in the student body, Nikel said. He said he believes this discrepancy exists because at many institutions, fewer women want to join teams. He said that while Brown could accommodate at least 30 more female athletes, there are not enough women trying to fill the spots. In the past few years, women's teams and coaches at universities nationwide have sued their schools for violating Title IX. Complaints have ranged from inadequate facilities and coaching to a shortage of women's teams. The University has also been involved in such disputes. Last year, the Women's Law Project joined with the Office of Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education to file an official complaint against the University. Their suit accused the University of widespread gender bias in the athletic program.

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