Though maintaining current system is legal under Title IX, administration is investigating alternative arrangements.
By: David Campbell
As a federal lawsuit alleging gender discrimination against female athletes at Princeton High School progresses through the legal system, district officials continue to explore possible solutions to the concerns that gave rise to the suit.
On Monday, district interim Superintendent Richard Marasco and Princeton Regional Board of Education President Anne Burns declined to comment on the suit filed last week in the U.S. District Court for New Jersey on behalf of three families whose daughters play softball and ice hockey at the high school.
But Dr. Marasco said, "From day one we took the matter seriously," and indicated the school district continues to examine ways to address concerns originally raised by Princeton Little League President James Mahon, the lead plaintiff in the federal suit.
Mr. Mahon’s two daughters, Blathnaid, 17, and Deirdre, 15, are athletes on high school teams and are named in the suit with their father. The other plaintiffs are Michael Katz and Sandy Kurinsky with their daughter, Rebecca Katz, 16, and Insu and Inkyung Yi with their daughter, Youngjin, 16.
On Friday, the school board’s facilities committee is expected to weigh the feasibility of new softball facilities at the John Witherspoon Middle School property, the school officials said. Last month, the committee examined the possibility of two new fields at the high school property but found it to be too tight a fit.
Dr. Marasco said the district is also working to have a portable scoreboard and storage facilities at the Community Park fields, Princeton Township-owned property where the girls’ varsity and junior varsity softball teams play.
"We are continuing along the path of looking at the issue and trying to accommodate in a reasonable way with the clear understanding our attorney said we were not in violation," the interim superintendent said.
In a Sept. 10 letter to the interim superintendent, attorney Paul C. Kalac indicated the district is not in violation of Title IX of the federal Educational Amendments of 1972 that bans sex discrimination in academics and athletics as the parents have alleged. However, the lawyer, who conducted the examination at the request of the board, recommended it would be "prudent" for the district to address some issues raised, while noting that any actions by the district would be discretionary and not driven by legal mandate.
Mr. Mahon said Monday that his suit centers on the "fundamental issue of fairness" for female athletes at the high school. "I want my daughters and all the girls to have the same opportunities as the boys have," he said.
The lawsuit contends the district has violated Title IX as well as the equal protection clause of the 14th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Title IX says: "No person in the U.S. shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, or denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving federal aid."
The lawsuit alleges among other things that the district provides the boys’ baseball teams with "superior" facilities on school property while the girls’ softball teams must carry their equipment a greater distance than the boys to play on public parkland, where they share fields with other community programs. Similarly, the suit contends, the boys’ facilities have amenities like a scoreboard, storage, permanent bathrooms and changing facilities, while the facilities at the park used by the girls do not.
With regard to ice hockey, the suit contends the boys’ team played about 12 home games last year while the girls’ team had only four. In addition, the boys’ team played a total of 25 games last year while the girls’ played only 16, the suit claims.
Mr. Mahon filed the suit after he withdrew a complaint he made against the district last month with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, which handles Title IX complaints. Department of Education spokesman Jim Bradshaw confirmed Monday that the investigation was closed Oct. 5 after the complaint was withdrawn. Mr. Mahon said he opted to litigate the matter in the courts at the advice of legal counsel.
The parents are represented by Tennessee-based attorney Samuel J. Schiller, who specializes in cases like the one against the district, and Professor Ray Yasser, who teaches sports law at the University of Tulsa College of Law in Oklahoma and is a national expert on Title IX.
Also representing the families are Montgomery Township-based attorneys Carol Novinson and Jill Ray. On Monday, the Montgomery lawyers said the families are not seeking monetary damages even though they have a right to.
"Under Title IX, the school district has a responsibility to ensure the boys’ and girls’ programs are provided with equal benefits, treatments and opportunities, and that’s really all the parents want," Ms. Ray noted.