PRESS RELEASE
Rebecca Stewart: 513-479-3335
Email: info@saveservices.org
On Title IX Anniversary, SAVE Deplores Widespread Discrimination of Male Students
WASHINGTON / June 24, 2021 – June 23 marked the 49th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, which was enacted in 1972 to combat sex discrimination in schools. Regrettably, SAVE highlights an epidemic of discriminatory practices against college students who are male — a problem that appears to have worsened in recent years.
Sex-discriminatory practices have been documented at universities and colleges across the nation, including at a number of elite institutions. A recent article, for example, reported that Stanford University supports 33 programs that openly discriminate against males (1).
The sex bias is confirmed by judicial decisions, male-excluding scholarships, and female-only campus programs, which are summarized below.
Judicial Decisions
On June 15, the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled on a case involving a former student at the University of Denver. The decision revealed a pattern of pervasive unfairness to men: “John highlights that the University failed to formally investigate any of the 21 sexual-misconduct complaints brought by men from 2016 to 2018…. In sum, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to John, we are satisfied that a reasonable jury could find that John’s sex was a motivating factor in the University’s decision to expel him.” (2)
Other appellate court rulings of prejudicial campus practices against men are: Does 1-2 v. Regents of the Univ. of Minnesota, Schwake v. Arizona Bd. of Regents, Doe v. Oberlin College, Doe v. University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, Doe v. University of Mississippi, and Doe v. Columbia University. Nineteen trial court decisions have confirmed anti-male bias, as well (3).
Male-Excluding Scholarships
Title IX’s implementing regulation, 34 CFR 106, prohibits schools from offering scholarships that, “On the basis of sex, provide different amounts or types of such assistance, limit eligibility for such assistance which is of any particular type or source, apply different criteria, or otherwise discriminate.” University responsiveness to federal investigations of alleged Title IX violations has ranged from cooperative to resistant.
On April 22, 2020, for example, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) opened a Title IX investigation against the University of Idaho for offering 14 scholarships that were restricted to or stated a preference for female students. On June 22, 2021, the OCR concluded its investigation after the university altered its criteria for scholarship awards in order to comply with Title IX requirements.
In contrast, institutions such as Tulane University apparently have not acted in good faith. On June 18, 2018, a complaint was filed with OCR alleging Tulane was treating men unfairly by “discriminating in the provision of financial assistance of the basis of sex.” As a result, the university signed a voluntary resolution agreement promising it would cease the illegal actions by September 6, 2019. (4) Unfortunately, a 2020 follow-up review revealed the university was offering 10 female-specific scholarships, but only three scholarships for male students. In response, the OCR opened a new investigation of the recalcitrant university.
The Office for Civil Rights currently has 140 open investigations of universities for scholarships that exclude male students (5).
Female-Only Programs
A number of universities have established a variety of programs that cater exclusively to females. University of Michigan professor Mark Perry has filed hundreds of Title IX complaints against schools that sponsor leadership institutes, fellowships, summer programs, and other initiatives that openly discriminate against men (6).
Former Department of Education official Adam Kissel has documented the irony of Joe Biden’s alma mater, the University of Delaware, a school that “pervasively discriminates in favor of women and against men.” Most of the violations lie with its Lerner College’s Women’s Leadership Initiative, Kissel notes (7).
The Office for Civil Rights currently has 98 open investigations of universities for programs that exclude male students (8). This number is likely to increase as the OCR processes newly filed Title IX complaints.
Praise for Cardona’s Recent Statement
SAVE applauds Secretary Miguel Cardona’s recent affirmation that Title IX is “the strongest tool we have to protect every student’s right to equal access to educational opportunities free from sex discrimination.” (9) And universities that discriminate against men have become a focus of numerous media accounts (10).
Currently, males constitute only 43% of all undergraduate students (11). If universities were to institute sex-specific programs, their efforts logically should be focused on helping men.
Citations:
- https://www.thecollegefix.com/nearly-three-dozen-stanford-programs-discriminate-against-males-complaint-alleges/
- https://www.saveservices.org/2021/06/case-summary-doe-v-university-of-denver/
- https://www.saveservices.org/2021/06/27-judicial-decisions-have-documented-the-problem-of-campus-sex-bias/
- https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/investigations/more/06182230-b.pdf
- https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/investigations/open-investigations/tix.html In the Type of Discrimination box, select “Title IX – Single Sex Scholarships”. As of May 28, 2021.
- https://www.aei.org/carpe-diem/the-year-in-review-an-update-on-my-efforts-to-challenge-title-ix-violations-in-higher-education-and-advance-civil-rights-for-all/
- https://thefederalist.com/2021/02/18/bidens-alma-mater-bans-men-from-posts-and-scholarships-just-for-being-men/
- https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/investigations/open-investigations/tix.html In the Type of Discrimination box, select “Title IX – Single Sex Campus Programs”. As of May 28, 2021).
- https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/secretary-cardona-title-ix-strongest-tool-protecting-educational-opportunities-free-sex-discrimination
- https://www.saveservices.org/equity/
- https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=98