Part II: Women in
Sports:
How Has Women’s Participation Changed?
In 1972, Education Amendments were made in the
In the
1970’s, before Title IX, female college athletes participated in sports without
scholarship
assistance, with very little monetary backing for coaches, medical assistance,
or training. They were often forced to
find their own transportation to games, and did not have official school
uniforms. Their sports seasons were also
very short. At this point in time, women
were not acknowledged for their athletic accomplishments.
After 1972, things
changed drastically for female athletes. In 1980 the number of varsity teams
for women in college campuses grew from a 1972 average of 2.5 to 6.48. By the end
of the 1980s the number had grown to about 7.2. The growth continued even in
the face of Title IX’s loss of influence over college athletics and physical
education programs for four years as a result of a 1984 United States Supreme
Court decision.
In the 1990’s and
on the amount of varsity teams has continued to grow. In 2004 the number of college teams for women
offered on campus dropped a bit from 8.34 in 2002 to 8.32. However, there were a total of 8,402 teams
available to women athletes at National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA)
schools across the country. There are
over 600 colleges currently in the NCAA.
Today, women are encouraged to participate in sports at all levels.
For a long time it
was frowned upon for women to participate in sports. In the