Something's Missing on Campus

Carrie Lukas writes:

Students returning to Rutgers University will find that over the summer the university cut six teams: men's heavyweight and lightweight crew, men's and women's fencing, men's swimming and men's tennis. Why did men?s athletics take the brunt of what university officials characterize as a necessary cost-cutting exercise? Title IX.

An Associated Press article explained, "Rutgers' commitment to Title IX guidelines forced it to eliminate more men's programs. The current female-to-male ratio at the university is 51 to 49 percent, [Rutgers athletic director, Robert] Mulcahy said, adding that the opportunities for women in sports must be within 2 percent of that ratio to comply with Title IX. 'That means almost all the cuts have to be in men's programs.'" ...

According to the U.S. Department of Education, nearly half of high school senior boys reported participating in an athletic team compared to one in three girls. But twice as many girls contributed to their school?s newspaper or yearbook. Nineteen percent of girls compared to 12 percent of boys participated in an academic club. Thirteen percent of girls compared to 8 percent of boys took part in student council. Nearly one third of senior girls participated in a play or musical performance compared to just two percent of boys.

So why aren't they eliminating school newspapers and yearbook, if they really believe in such a peculiar notion of equality.