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Show Q V THE THUNDERBIRD SOUTHERN UTAH STATE COLLEGE, CEDAR CITY yjt- 10 SUSC may be in violation of the legislation designed to promote equality V BY BRENT RICHEY tgA. $;. S PAGE Title IX evaluation continues sSXi J THURSDAY, OCTOBER 19, 1989 The issue of sexual equality in athletics has confronted SUSC under the auspices of Title IX. Currently under investigation for noncompliance with the federal legislation, campus administrators await the evaluation by the U.S.' Department of Lexa Larsen will be called upon to provide scoring and leadership for this years Lady Bird squad. Ladies open practice The expectation as SUSCs womens basketball practices began Monday was for better outside shooting to free up post players for better shots so more basketball games can be won. We think we can improve our shooting this year by taking some of the heat off our inside players, Clay Anderson, SUSCs womens basketball coach, said. Our 31 percent field goal shooting percentage was a last year. Well do better than that this year. One of the keys to Andersons plan is guard Debbie Whitlock, a 7 junior guard who transferred from Utah Valley Community College. Whitlock shot 62 percent on three-poifield goal attempts last year. If we can get anywhere near that kind of shooting from her this year, it will add a lot of effectiveness to our offense, said Anderson. Returning experienced players are also expected to help the Lady Birds through an impressive list of opponents. Stacey French, a 1 forward and last years leading scorer (10.5 ppg), is back for her senior year. Although she is the only regular starter returning, SUSC does have eight letterwinners scheduled back. Among the returnees, several including off guard Michelle Hendry (5-- 7 sophomore), small forward Lexa Larsen 0 junior), and center Kim Langford (6--1 senior) saw plenty of playing time. Vets Shanna Draper and Sherene Sorensen will also challenge hard for starting spots. Depth among the big players may be somewhat limited, and Anderson worries about what injuries could do in that area. Our schedule will certainly challenge our abilities, he said. Included on that schedule are four tournaments, each including brand name potential opponents. Among the teams in the season opening Real Dairy Classic in Boise, are Idaho State and Creighton. Idaho, November 24-2- 5 In the field with the Lady Birds at the AT&T University of San Francisco Classic will be Oregon State, San Jose State, and others. At the Converse Classic at Corvallis, Ore., SUSC could meet UC Irvine or Montana State. In late February, Andersons team will play in the Northern Lights Invitational at Anchorage, Ala. Among the other teams in that tournament are Georgia Tech and SMU. not-so-go- 5-- nt Education. Title IX legislation contains provisions designed to promote equality between mens and womens athletic programs in institutions across the country. Every possible area is taken into consideration: number of scholarships awarded, sports opportunities, financial aid, budget allotments, publicity and per diem expenses to name just a few. The maximum penalty for refusing to comply with the legislation is a revocation of all federal financial aid the college receives, including grants, loans and other federal monies. After a complaint from an unidentified source was submitted to the regional office of the DOE in Denver, Col., SUSC officials last week submitted data to help the departments investigation. It doesnt do us any good to speculate on who it was, said SUSC President Gerald R. Sherratt. At some time we would have gotten a complaint; this just speeds things up a little. We thought wed have three or four years to get in compliance. However, We assume the complaint was internal, said Michael Carter, assistant attorney general at SUSC in charge of coordinating the evaluation. But we have no indication of that. The DOE has a right to protect the identity of the one that complained, and at the same time, there is a right to complain, he said. Michael D. Richards, vice president for college relations, sees this as a routine check from an external agency. Were certainly prepared to respond, he said. What we did was sit down and evaluate to see how we stacked up, and we didnt very well. Our federal support would be in jeopardy; we couldnt afford as an institution to be out of compliance. DOE officials will be visiting the SUSC campus sometime in November to see first hand if inequality is present. They will look at such factors as available facilities for both male and female athletes, the amount of publicity given to both and sports opportunities for both sexes. After their visit, they will then compile a report, recommending in what areas SUSC can improve equality. Title IX was originally set up in 1972, but the specific regulations were not outlined until January of 1989. Therefore schools have attempted to interpret what the legislation meant before any set standards existed, said Richards. We were never able to equate where we stood until a year ago, said Sherratt. Weve had less than a year to respond to the guidelines. We want to make sure our women are provided for the same as the men its only fair, he said. We want to make sure our women are provided for the same as the men, said SUSC President Gerald R. Sherratt. Its only fair. Evidently due to the recent published guidelines, several institutions may be in violation of Title IX. I understand a couple of schools in this state are under similar investigations, though I dont remember which they are, said Carter. We want to achieve as high a compliance level as is feasible, he said. But theres other institutions with a lot more money who can do a lot more. The DOE is willing to acknowledge that you can only do so many things within a program, said Carter. Officials do not think SUSCs federal aid will be in jeopardy from this one instance. They feel the DOE will highlight various areas and make recommendations for compliance, which Richards said SUSC will definitely initiate. 6-- (5-1- Bird Wtch WFC STANDINGS CONFERENCE ALL GAMES The SUSC Lady Bird softballers traveled to the University of Utah Monday and closed out their fall season with over the and two wins, 3-- 3-- 2, 0 Lady Utes. Leslie Varoz and Denise Sproul each homered as Joy Petersons SUSC club finished 2 for the short fall season. 4-- Jack Bishop is still seeking his 50th win as the Bird head football coach. His record midway through his 10th year here is Portland States Pokey Allen, Bishops Saturday opponent, has mark. compiled a 49-37-- 33-12- Last Weeks Results Weber State 42, Southern Utah State 7 Portland State 33, Cal State Northridge 17 Santa Clara 21, Cal State Sacramento 16 Cal Poly SLO 19, Kearney State 13 Cal Lutheran 26, Cal State Hayward 14 2. -2 i |