Meetings: Opportunity in Athletics, Secretary's Commission,

[Federal Register: January 8, 2003 (Volume 68, Number 5)]

[Notices]

[Page 1051-1052]

From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

[DOCID:fr08ja03-31]

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Secretary of Education's Commission on Opportunity in Athletics; Meeting

AGENCY: Secretary of Education's Commission on Opportunity in Athletics; Department of Education.

ACTION: Notice of open meeting.

SUMMARY: This notice sets forth the schedule and proposed agenda of a forthcoming public meeting of the Secretary of Education's Commission on Opportunity in Athletics (the Commission). The meeting will take place in Washington, DC.

Individuals who will need accommodations for a disability in order to attend the meetings should notify the Commission office no later than January 22, 2003. We will attempt to meet requests after this date, but cannot guarantee availability of the requested accommodation. The meeting site is accessible to individuals with disabilities.

Notice of this meeting is required under Section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act.

DATES: January 29-30, 2003.

Location: Hilton Washington and Towers Hotel, 1919 Connecticut Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20009.

Times: January 29: 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m., 2 p.m.-5 p.m. January 30: 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

Meeting Format: This meeting will be held according to the following schedule:

1. Date: January 29, 2003, Time: 9 a.m.-12:30 p.m., 2 p.m.-5 p.m. January 30, 2003, Time: 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

   Attendees: If you would like to attend any or all of the above listed meetings, we ask that you register with the Commission office by email or fax to the address listed under ADDRESSES. Please provide us with your name contact information.

   Participants: The meeting scheduled for January 29-30, 2003 will consist of review and discussion by the Commissioners of the information from the previous public meetings in preparation for the Commission's forthcoming report to the Secretary of Education. The public is invited to observe this meeting; however there will not be opportunity for public comment.

   In addition to making reservations, individuals attending the public meetings, for security purposes, must be prepared to show photo identification in order to enter the meeting location.

   FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

1. Internet. We encourage you to send your questions through the Internet to the following address: OpportunityinAthletics@ed.gov

2. Mail. You may submit your comments to The Secretary of Education's Commission on Opportunity in Athletics, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., ROB-3 Room 3060, Washington, DC 20202. Due to delays in mail delivery caused by heightened security, please allow adequate time for the mail to be received.

3. Facsimile. You may submit comments by facsimile at (202) 260- 4560.

   View the Commission's Web site at: http://www.ed.gov/inits/commissionsboards/athletics. The Commission office number is 202-708- 7417.

   SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The nation is commemorating the 30th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, the landmark legislation prohibiting recipients of Federal funds from discriminating on the basis of sex. Since this legislation was enacted, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of women participating in athletics at the high school and college level. The Secretary of Education has determined that this anniversary provides an appropriate time to review the application of Title IX to educational institutions; efforts to provide equal opportunity in athletics to women and men. In order to do so, the Secretary established the Commission on Opportunity in Athletics. The Commission will produce a report no later than February 28, 2003, outlining its findings relative to the opportunities for men and women in athletics in order to improve the effectiveness of Title IX.

   The Commission will discuss the following priority areas:

1. Are Title IX standards for assessing equal opportunity in athletics working to promote opportunities for male and female athletes?

2. Is there adequate Title IX guidance that enables colleges and school districts to know what is expected of them and to plan for an athletic program that effectively meets the needs and interests of their students?

3. Is further guidance or are other steps needed at the junior and senior high school levels where the availability or absence of opportunities will critically affect the prospective interests and abilities of student athletes when they reach college age?

4. How should activities such as cheerleading or bowling factor into the analysis of equitable opportunities?

5. How do revenue producing and large-roster teams affect the provision of equal athletic opportunities? The Department has heard from some parties that whereas some men athletes will ``walk-on'' to intercollegiate teams--without athletic financial aid and without having been recruited--women rarely do this. Is this accurate and, if so, what are its implications for Title IX analysis?

6. In what ways do opportunities in other sports venues, such as the Olympics, professional leagues, and community recreation programs, interact with the obligations of colleges and school districts to provide equal athletic opportunity? What are the implications for Title IX?

7. Apart from Title IX enforcement, are there other efforts to promote athletic opportunities for male and female students that the Department might support, such as public-private partnerships to support the efforts of schools and colleges in this area?

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   Dated: January 6, 2003. Rod Paige, Secretary of Education.

   [FR Doc. 03-386 Filed 1-7-03; 8:45 am]

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