Womenstake

Stand Up and Serve

by Amy Rosenthal, Outreach Intern, 
National Women's Law Center 

In a recent message, President Obama has called on Americans to “stand up and serve.” The Corporation for National & Community Service is carrying the message coast to coast this summer through its “United We Serve” program which encourages people from all backgrounds to “become engaged in issues such as education, health care, energy independence, economic renewal, and other issues.” 

Become involved by creating your own project, finding a volunteer opportunity, and recruiting other volunteers.  To learn more, check out the Corporation for National & Community Service website.

The National Women's Law Center believes strongly in standing up and supporting others.  United We Serve is providing an exciting opportunity for doing so.

D.C. Graduation Rates Continue to Drop

by Kolbe Franklin, Program Assistant,   
National Womens Law Center 

A new study has found that on-time graduation rates for D.C. public schools have dropped below 50 percent. The study examined data from 1996 to 2006 and found that from 2005 to 2006, the city’s graduation rate fell 8.8 percentage points to 48.8 percent. The graduation rates of nearby states, Maryland and Virginia, stood at 73.5 percent and 69.2 percent respectively. With the national average also at 69.2 percent, President Obama recently allocated $50 million for dropout prevention efforts and set a goal for the United States to have the highest percentage of college graduates in the world by 2020. For information on NWLC’s dropout prevention work, check out our website.

Arkansas School Sued for Actions Against Pregnant Student

by Kolbe Franklin, Program Assistant, 
National Womens Law Center 

A student in Western Arkansas filed a suit against Trinity Christian School, claiming that she was interrogated by the principal’s office following rumors of a pregnancy and forced to undergo a pregnancy test and counseling at a pregnancy crisis center. At no point did the school or First Choice Pregnancy Center contact the student’s parents and her medical information was released to school employees. The school’s policy of interrogating and expelling pregnant students violates a number of state and federal laws, including Title IX. The lawsuit includes charges of invasion of privacy, false imprisonment, intentional infliction of emotional distress, negligence, and sex discrimination. For information on NWLC’s work regarding pregnant and parenting students, check out our website.  

Teen Parents Can Succeed

by Melanie Ross Levin, Outreach Manager, 
National Women’s Law Center 

Sorry, no typo here. Teen parents "CAN" succeed is the correct title of this post. While it is true that pregnancy and parenting responsibilities play a significant role in many girls' decisions to drop out of school, some schools have figured out a way to provide the right supports, in order to help make the path to graduation less daunting. Last week, we posted about new materials NWLC has released to help advocate on behalf of pregnant and parenting students. Last week, the Washington Post featured photographs of one of the many success stories -- a student who is making it to graduation because of the supports provided by Project Opportunity. Project Opportunity at Bryant Adult Alternative High School in Fairfax, Virginia, offers assistance to pregnant and parenting students, including a block scheduling system, transportation for students and their children and in-school child care, among other things.

Don’t Call It a Man-cession

by Rose O’Malley, Program Assistant, 
National Womens Law Center 

Here at the Center we’ve spilled a lot of ink (and bandwidth) talking about how the recession, and the subsequent recovery package, has affected women and families. According to our old friend Christina Hoff Sommers, we are being terribly sexist and we should stop.

In her new column for the Weekly Standard, Ms. Sommers accuses feminist groups of hijacking the issues of economic recovery, ignoring the needs of “burley men” to focus on our selfish agendas of…health care, education, unemployment benefits, food stamps, and child care. I mean, how dare we?

Let’s set aside for the moment the fact that Ms. Sommers decides to completely ignore some basic facts about women’s unemployment (namely that women’s rate of unemployment is rising faster than men’s, that women are less likely to be eligible for unemployment benefits, and that women are more likely to have already been in economically vulnerable positions prior to the recession because of that pesky wage gap thing). And let’s move past the fact that if the Weekly Standard had its way, there would be no recovery package, for men or women. Let’s even ignore the way she paints women’s groups as smug and manipulative; it’s a tired trick, and I have no patience for it.

Instead, we’ll concentrate on her strange assumption that by arguing for an expansion in areas other than construction and manufacturing, women’s groups have sold out men. It’s true that the Center, along many other women’s organizations, has advocated, and continues to advocate, for the expansion of social programs, but it’s not because we want to ignore or punish male workers; it’s because we believe the expansion of these programs will help alleviate the effects of the recession and get workers of all stripes back to their jobs. We’re not ignoring infrastructure, we’re just looking at it in a broader way. Child care is infrastructure; it creates jobs and allows parents the security they need to get back to work. Health care is infrastructure; preventing families, including those of construction workers, from losing health insurance coverage makes them more likely to make ends meet and less likely to fall into poverty. Education is infrastructure; without it how can we expect our workforce to compete in a global market? Recovery won’t come about by simply replacing the jobs that were lost, but by rethinking how the government can help in a variety of sectors, human infrastructure and physical infrastructure.

Weekly Round-Up

by Catherine Kruse, Outreach Intern,
National Women’s Law Center

The FDA approved the first generic form of emergency contraception last week. The generic will be available only to young women 17 and under with a prescription, as reported by the Choices Feminist Campus blog of the Feminist Majority Foundation.

Elizabeth Cox from MomsRising gave personal testimony on the failed health care insurance system, describing the difficulties faced by a woman trying to pay her health insurance costs after a divorce.

Courtney Martin from The American Prospect noted that some have termed the economic crisis a “he-session,” and argued that this terminology will not help ultimately fix gender relations problems in the workplace. 

After attending the NCAA Institute for Ethnic Minorities and Women graduation, Marta Lawrence posted at the Double-a Zone urging colleges to commit to greater diversity in hiring athletics administrators. 

Joanna Weiss from The Boston Globe reviewed a new MTV reality show, “16 and Pregnant,” which, according to the review, does a good job of portraying the difficult realities of teen pregnancy. 

Mommytwingirls blogged at Silicon Valley Moms Blog about dropping her twin girls off at a science camp almost entirely dominated by boys, reflecting the continuing underrepresentation of women in the math and science fields.

Amanda posted at Soccer Science in honor of Title IX’s 37th anniversary, featuring quotes from women athletes and women who work in sports-related careers.

Ensuring Access to Education for Pregnant and Parenting Students

by Kolbe Franklin, Program Assistant, 
National Women's Law Center 

In honor of Title IX's anniversary, the National Women’s Law Center is happy to announce the release of new materials to help advocate on behalf of pregnant and parenting students and to ensure that schools abide by Title IX's requirements. Check out what NWLC has to offer:

For educators and policymakers:

• The Rights of Pregnant and Parenting Students under Title IX
• FAQs on Title IX Protections for Pregnant and Parenting Students: A Guide for Schools
• Two Sides of the Same Coin: Teen Pregnancy Prevention and Dropout Prevention

For students and parents:

• Pregnant and Parenting Students' Rights 

Title IX: 37 Years and Counting

by Neena Chaudhry, Senior Counsel, 
National Women’s Law Center 

I am the same age as Title IX, which turns 37 this week. (Yes, I am tossing aside the old adage that a lady never reveals her age in honor of this landmark civil rights law that is all about shattering sex stereotypes.) Yet I grew up not knowing about this law that has so profoundly affected my life. In fact, I am a little embarrassed to admit that I knew very little about the law until I was lucky enough to get a job at the National Women’s Law Center many years ago, working on — what else? — Title IX.  

Title IX is perhaps best known for opening the doors to women and girls in sports, although the law prohibits sex discrimination in all facets of federally funded education programs, including admissions to many schools, career education, employment, testing and the treatment of pregnant and parenting students. Before Title IX, women were routinely denied admission into colleges solely on the basis of their sex. Girls made up only 7% of high school athletes, and athletic scholarships for women were nonexistent. High schools often prohibited boys from taking home economics and girls from taking shop or auto mechanics.  

Today, because of Title IX, girls and women make up half or more of the students in high schools and colleges, and a little over 40% of the athletes. Young women have access to athletic scholarships, which for some is the only way to afford a higher education. Girls and women now regularly pursue fields that used to be dominated by men, such as medicine and law. 

But Title IX cannot retire early because its work is not done. Women and girls continue to face discrimination in athletics, from not getting enough opportunities to play or their fair share of athletic scholarship dollars to second-class treatment in areas such as facilities, scheduling, and publicity. Girls still face barriers that limit their enrollment in nontraditional career and technical education courses, which affects their opportunities to pursue high-wage careers and attain economic self-sufficiency. 

I owe a great debt of gratitude to Title IX for the opportunities I have had (to play sports, pursue higher education, and become a lawyer). I hope to be able to repay that debt by continuing to work to fulfill the promise of this great law. Happy Birthday Title IX.

Calling All Athletes

by Megan Tackney, Program Associate, 
National Women's Law Center 

Today on the 37th Anniversary of Title IX, I was excited to learn that respect for the importance female athletes can be found in even the highest of appointments. In a recent blog post on Whitehouse.gov, the Ambassador of the United Nations, Susan Rice, described how her position as point guard for her high school basketball team helped shape her personal and professional life. She shared, “I’m often reminded that in basketball as in diplomacy, you have to know when to throw elbows, and when to show finesse.” 

In an effort to continue to support women and girls in sports, Susan Rice is asking for the submission of photos of female athletes to Whitehouse.gov, many of which will be featured on their website. Please stand with Susan and the National Women’s Law Center by submitting your photos today.  

The Daughters of Title IX

by Valerie Norton, Public Policy Fellow, 
National Women's Law Center 

Growing up, I was what one would call a “tom-boy” – an active girl who wasn’t into wearing dresses and getting my nails done, but rather someone who wanted to lace up her sneakers and go out and play any and every sport. Basketball, softball, and soccer were very much a part of my life year-round for the first 21 years of my life – from community leagues and summer camps, to high school teams and summer traveling teams, to college intramural teams. Looking back, participating and excelling in sports very much influenced the woman I have become today (who does now get her nails done – finally!).

Given all that, I don’t think it is too odd that one of my more distinct childhood memories is the first time I learned of Title IX. I was in 7th grade and was attending Stanford Women’s Basketball Camp, hosted by the acclaimed Tara VanDerveer (a women’s sports pioneer in her own right) and a number of role-model worthy team players. For a break in the daily drills and court action, we were taken into a classroom and spent the next hour watching a PBS Frontline documentary (“In the Game”) on the hopes, trials, and successes of the 1989-90 Stanford women’s basketball team in their quest for a national championship. In addition to telling Stanford’s inspirational story, it described the early days of women’s basketball (played in skirts and confined to certain areas of the court; no fouling, obviously), the passage and impact of Title IX, and the continued obstacles facing women's athletics. Only then did I start to fully comprehend the contributions and efforts of those female athletes who came before me and those who worked to bring about the opportunities that had been afforded to me – that I took for granted as a “given” – and that were so influential in my personal growth. I couldn’t have imagined a world in which I was only allowed only 3 dribbles, or in which schools did not field women’s teams. At the time of the documentary’s release (1994), there had been substantial development in the interest, opportunities, funding, and media coverage of women’s basketball thanks to Title IX, but there was (and for that matter, is) still a ways to go.

There are many more positive outcomes from Title IX – I won’t go into the details of the importance and value of encouraging girls’ participation in sports or the specific gains it has given me in my own life. Much has been written about the self-confidence, leadership, teamwork skills, and work ethic that are furthered by girls’ participation in sports, not to mention the healthy lifestyle it promotes at a young age, or the fact that girls who play sports are less likely to become pregnant, drop out of school, or do drugs. Instead I will say this: as someone who grew up playing sports and learned about Title IX along the way, I see a distinct trajectory and progression in women’s sports that would not have been possible without the passage of Title IX. Girls’ participation in sports has increased dramatically over the years, and they believe (rightfully so) that they can play whatever sport they want to at the highest level, with equal accommodations and opportunities. 

The benefits Title IX has brought to girls’ athletics extend not only to those directly related to sports, but to life more generally as well. Thus, its lasting legacy lies in its fostering of the ability of girls everywhere to dream big and achieve their aspirations, in any of life’s pursuits. I should know.