HR0733 102ND GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0733 LRB102 26719 MST 37578 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of Representatives wish to recognize the 50th anniversary of the passage of Title IX and celebrate its history and impact; and

WHEREAS, Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972, popularly referred to as Title IX, was passed on June 23, 1972, codifying protection from discrimination based on sex in educational programs, stating that " No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance"; and

WHEREAS, Title IX applies to schools, local and state educational agencies, and other institutions that receive federal financial assistance, including approximately 17,600 local school districts, over 5,000 postsecondary institutions, charter schools, for-profit schools, libraries, and museums, and requires that these recipients operate their education programs and activities in a nondiscriminatory manner free of discrimination based on sex, including sexual orientation and gender identity; and

WHEREAS, Recipients of federal financial assistance have Title IX obligations in many key areas, including recruitment, admissions, and counseling, financial assistance, athletics, sex-based harassment, sexual violence, treatment of pregnant and parenting students, treatment of LGBTQI+ students, discipline, single-sex education, and employment; and

WHEREAS, Before Title IX, women were often excluded from or had only limited access to higher education programs, as colleges and universities set quotas for the admission of women or prohibited them altogether, and women who were accepted often had the requirement of higher test scores and grades for their admission; and

WHEREAS, Discrimination based on sex did not cease after admission; often, women had less access to scholarships and were excluded from "male" programs, such as medicine; they also faced more restrictive rules than their male peers, such as early curfews; this resulted in a college graduation rate for women of eight percent, which was almost half that of men in 1970; and

WHEREAS, Since 1972, educational attainment rates among women have increased; as of 2020, the percentage of women who had completed at least high school increased to 95 percent, the percentage with an associate's degree increased to 50 percent, the percentage with a bachelor's degree increased to 39 percent, and the percentage with a master's or higher degree increased to nine percent; and

WHEREAS, Prior to Title IX, there were less than half a million girls participating in high school athletics, and collegiate sports teams and scholarships were overwhelmingly reserved for men's athletics; women's sports often received less than five percent of the overall athletics budget at colleges and universities, and only 15 percent of women in college participated in an organized or competitive sport; and

WHEREAS, The number of girls participating in high school sports has increased by ten times the amount prior to Title IX's adoption and now comprises 42 percent of high school athletes, and a quarter of college women now participate in a much wider variety of sports that receive dramatically increased funding; and

WHEREAS, While Title IX has made several necessary and welcomed advancements in the protection against sexual discrimination, there is still work to be done for the next generation of students, including addressing research that has discovered the difference between girls and boys sports is significantly greater when the student body is predominantly comprised of racial and ethnic minorities, the education and pay gap that exists between degrees dominated by men and those dominated by women, and the sexual harassment and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity that continue to plague students at all levels; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we recognize the impact of this historic legislation that is now in its 50th year, and we recommit ourselves and the State of Illinois to the ideals of the Title IX legislation and will work to build upon its foundation to continue and expand the protection of equal rights.