Collegiate Times

The atmosphere, academics and successful athletic tradition of James Madison University drew Kyle Knott from Longwood University to Harrisonburg, Va., in the spring of 2005. Knott, a former Longwood Lancer cross country runner, transferred to JMU in order to join the ranks as a diver on the Dukes? Swimming and Diving team.

Now, in his junior year, Knott?s collegiate athletic future is unexpectedly unclear. In a matter of months, the men?s swimming and diving team ? along with nine other varsity programs ? will cease to exist.

?I came (to JMU) because of the tradition behind the (men?s) swimming and diving team,? he said. ?The team has a long history of success ? And now, who knows??

On the morning of Friday, Sept. 30, the James Madison Board of Visitors voted to dissolve 10 athletic programs in the name of Title IX.

?Our Board approved a plan recommended by university administration to bring JMU and its athletic program into compliance with federal law. Essentially, the plan will enable the university to meet the proportionality requirement of Title IX,? said JMU President Linwood Rose in a Friday press conference.

To meet proportionality, JMU called for the termination of men?s archery, cross country, gymnastics, indoor track, outdoor track, swimming and wrestling, as well as women?s archery, fencing and gymnastics, come July 1, 2007.

?The fact is, we had to comply with the law,? Rose said.

Title IX first appeared in 1972 without any direct mention of intercollegiate athletics. Rather, the federal statute solely prohibited sex discrimination in educational programs that received any federal financial assistance. By 1979, however, the law evolved to incorporate equality in intercollegiate athletics, and in 1996 the government added stipulations for further guidance, including a proportionality option.

In order to attain Title IX compliancy, JMU opted to adhere to the proportionality provision of the law, which requires a university?s athletic department?s male-to-female ratio to mirror the university?s student body?s male-to-female ratio. At JMU, females outnumber males, 61 percent to 39 percent.

?Any institution our size with an undergrad female population this high that supports football will have an issue with it,? said JMU Athletic Director Jim Bourne in the press conference. ?I think you could talk to any school, and they will share the same sentiment.?

Some at JMU, however, see a problem with this idea.

?If they?re trying to comply with Title IX, why are they cutting women?s sports?? asked Andrew Robarge, a redshirt junior on JMU?s wrestling team.

Knott agreed.

?They said it was for Title IX, but they went and cut three girl?s teams,? Knott said. ?That doesn?t make sense.?

Bourne defended the decision to cut the three women?s teams by claiming the athletic department was looking to the future. ?One of our goals was to have sports programs that all fell underneath the conference halo, and at the current time, one of the reasons we looked at the women?s sports is because some of those sports have been on the wane,? he said.

Still, some don?t buy the reasoning, and athletes, teams, coaches and the student governing body are taking measures to help preserve the athletic department as is.

?The main focus right now is to get the student body behind us,? Knott said. ?A lot of people are working to save as many programs as possible.?

Those searching for guidance in the JMU-Title IX debacle can possibly look toward Blacksburg for inspiration.

Almost a decade ago, Virginia Tech faced a similar situation to that plaguing the Dukes. In 1993, members of Tech?s Women?s Swimming and Diving team filed a lawsuit when the university announced the elimination of both the men?s and women?s teams. The team utilized Title IX compliancy as evidence.

For two years the case remained in court, until in 1995 the plaintiffs settled, agreeing to accept and endorse the university?s ?Non-Revenue and Women?s Sport Study Committee.? The committee surveyed the athletic department and found room for improvement.

?The percentage of female athletes and of female scholarship athletes in relation to male athletes and male scholarship at Virginia Tech constitute one of the worst comparison in Division I athletics,? the report found.

In order to attain Title IX compliance, Tech opted to add women?s programs rather than cut men?s teams. Women?s soccer was launched in the 1993?94 season, followed by women?s lacrosse in 1995 and the next year softball found a home in Blacksburg.

?We have not taken anything away from the men?s sports. We?ve not taken budget money from the men?s sports. We?ve not taken scholarship money from the men?s sports,? said Senior Associate Athletic Director Sharon McCloskey. ?The way Virginia Tech addressed (Title IX), the university administration got behind it.?

People involved in Tech?s athletic department appreciate the university?s handlings of Title IX, especially those who participate in non-revenue, Olympic sports.

?I?m not concerned about our program being dropped,? said head Swimming and Diving coach Ned Skinner. ?On the contrary, I?m astounded by Jim Weaver?s dedication to Olympic sports.?

Although Harrisonburg seems like a far-away neighbor, the implications of the program cuts may be felt in Blacksburg.

?If we don?t fight it (at JMU) ? college sports are going to be reduced in 20 years to basketball, football, soccer and maybe one other sport,? Robarge said. ?If we don?t draw the line now about how Title IX is being skewed to destroy men?s and women?s sports, we?re not going to have any sports left. It?s only going to extend.?

The foreboding feeling also resides at Tech.

?I think until Title IX either balances out and fulfills the NCAA?s depiction of Title IX, or it?s adjusted so that men?s sports are not being eliminated to satisfy Title IX compliance, it?s going to continue. And it?s troubling to see so many men?s sports dropped,? Skinner said.