Former U.S. Senator Birch Bayh (D-IN), who joined many of us last month in Washington to celebrate Title IX's anniversary, said at the time of its passage that it would "provide for the women of America something that is rightfully theirs — an equal chance to attend the schools of their choice, to develop the skills they want."
Prior to Title IX, some high schools routinely excluded girls from certain classes believing that boys were better able to handle the work. In 1971, only 18 percent of women completed four or more years of college. By 2006, it is projected that women will earn 55 percent of all bachelor's degrees. In the University of Maine system, women already make up 60 percent of the student body.
In addition, far more women are earning advanced degrees. In 2000, nearly 46 percent of all law degrees, and 43 percent of all medical degrees were earned by women. Women are increasingly selected for faculty positions at our nation's colleges and universities. In fact, nearly one in five colleges or universities has a woman president. In Maine, we have three women presidents: Nancy Hensel at the University of Maine at Presque Isle; Sandra Featherman at the University of New England; and Theodora Kalikow at the University of Maine at Farmington.
Over the past 30 years, women also have benefitted from increased access to school sports programs as a result of Title IX. When I attended high school, there were no competitive teams for women athletes, except gymnastics — that's hard to imagine in the world we now live in, where women play a wide variety of both high school and college sports, and where there are an increasing number of celebrity women athletes, such as soccer star, Mia Hamm, to serve as role models.
In 1971, fewer than 300,000 girls played interscholastic sports. Last year, that number was more than 2.8 million. The number of women playing sports at the college level also has increased, from fewer than 25,000 in 1971 to more than 200,000 today.
In addition to the obvious health benefits for girls from this increased participation in sports, these programs also help develop the leadership and teamwork skills that are necessary to succeeding later in life. It is no coincidence that nearly 80 percent of female managers of Fortune 500 companies played competitive sports.
As a result of Title IX, women and girls today tend to be better educated and have more opportunities than those of previous generations. While we must continue to ensure that Title IX's promise is fulfilled, we should take note of the real accomplishments in improving access for women in education programs and activities. This is something to celebrate.