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1
HOUSE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois House of
3Representatives wish to recognize the 50th anniversary of the
4passage of Title IX and celebrate its history and impact; and
 
5    WHEREAS, Title IX of the Educational Amendments of 1972,
6popularly referred to as Title IX, was passed on June 23, 1972,
7codifying protection from discrimination based on sex in
8educational programs, stating that " No person in the United
9States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from
10participation in, denied the benefits of, or be subjected to
11discrimination under any education program or activity
12receiving federal financial assistance"; and
 
13    WHEREAS, Title IX applies to schools, local and state
14educational agencies, and other institutions that receive
15federal financial assistance, including approximately 17,600
16local school districts, over 5,000 postsecondary institutions,
17charter schools, for-profit schools, libraries, and museums,
18and requires that these recipients operate their education
19programs and activities in a nondiscriminatory manner free of
20discrimination based on sex, including sexual orientation and
21gender identity; and
 
22    WHEREAS, Recipients of federal financial assistance have

 

 

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1Title IX obligations in many key areas, including recruitment,
2admissions, and counseling, financial assistance, athletics,
3sex-based harassment, sexual violence, treatment of pregnant
4and parenting students, treatment of LGBTQI+ students,
5discipline, single-sex education, and employment; and
 
6    WHEREAS, Before Title IX, women were often excluded from
7or had only limited access to higher education programs, as
8colleges and universities set quotas for the admission of
9women or prohibited them altogether, and women who were
10accepted often had the requirement of higher test scores and
11grades for their admission; and
 
12    WHEREAS, Discrimination based on sex did not cease after
13admission; often, women had less access to scholarships and
14were excluded from "male" programs, such as medicine; they
15also faced more restrictive rules than their male peers, such
16as early curfews; this resulted in a college graduation rate
17for women of eight percent, which was almost half that of men
18in 1970; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Since 1972, educational attainment rates among
20women have increased; as of 2020, the percentage of women who
21had completed at least high school increased to 95 percent,
22the percentage with an associate's degree increased to 50
23percent, the percentage with a bachelor's degree increased to

 

 

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139 percent, and the percentage with a master's or higher
2degree increased to nine percent; and
 
3    WHEREAS, Prior to Title IX, there were less than half a
4million girls participating in high school athletics, and
5collegiate sports teams and scholarships were overwhelmingly
6reserved for men's athletics; women's sports often received
7less than five percent of the overall athletics budget at
8colleges and universities, and only 15 percent of women in
9college participated in an organized or competitive sport; and
 
10    WHEREAS, The number of girls participating in high school
11sports has increased by ten times the amount prior to Title
12IX's adoption and now comprises 42 percent of high school
13athletes, and a quarter of college women now participate in a
14much wider variety of sports that receive dramatically
15increased funding; and
 
16    WHEREAS, While Title IX has made several necessary and
17welcomed advancements in the protection against sexual
18discrimination, there is still work to be done for the next
19generation of students, including addressing research that has
20discovered the difference between girls and boys sports is
21significantly greater when the student body is predominantly
22comprised of racial and ethnic minorities, the education and
23pay gap that exists between degrees dominated by men and those

 

 

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1dominated by women, and the sexual harassment and
2discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity
3that continue to plague students at all levels; therefore, be
4it
 
5    RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE ONE
6HUNDRED SECOND GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that
7we recognize the impact of this historic legislation that is
8now in its 50th year, and we recommit ourselves and the State
9of Illinois to the ideals of the Title IX legislation and will
10work to build upon its foundation to continue and expand the
11protection of equal rights.