Title IX is Alive and Well... but Cheerleading is Not a Varsity Sport

by Ronald E. Kowalski II

Earlier this month, Connecticut U.S. District Court Judge Stefan Underhill ruled that Quinnipiac University had violated Title IX when it eliminated its women's volleyball team in favor of a women's competitive cheerleading team. Title IX is the short-hand reference for Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which prohibits discrimination based on sex in education programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance. In sum, although Quinnipiac could lawfully replace one women's varsity sport with another, it could not simply eliminate a women's varsity sport without a replacement. Judge Underhill ordered that within 60 days, the University must craft a compliance plan which calls for the continuation of the women's volleyball team for the 2010-2011 season.

This decision has received widespread media coverage because it concludes that competitive cheerleading is still too underdeveloped and disorganized to qualify as a true varsity sport. From a legal perspective, however, Judge Underhill's decision is most important because it shows that nearly thirty years after its enactment, Title IX remains a powerful tool available to promote and maintain gender equality.