Friday, July 23, 2010
Quinnipiac University Cheer Team (photo: QuinnipiacBobcats.com)
Quinnipiac University in Connecticut tried to get rid of women’s volleyball and replace it with competitive cheerleading. The move prompted a lawsuit from female students on the volleyball team, who successfully argued in federal court that the university violated Title IX, the federal law requiring gender equality in federally-funded educational programs, including athletics. Quinnipiac also eliminated men’s outdoor track and golf.
The plaintiffs also argued that the school violated Title IX by inflating its roster numbers for female varsity athletes and counting female cross-country runners multiple times for their required participation on indoor and outdoor track teams.
In ruling against competitive cheerleading, U.S. District Judge Stefan Underhill noted that the sport is not recognized by the NCAA and that during its season the Quinnipiac team competed in events in which at least six different scoring systems were used. He concluded that competitive cheer was not yet sufficiently developed to qualify for Title IX consideration.
The Quinnipiac women’s volleyball team will begin their season, as originally planned, on August 27 with a match against Holy Cross as part of the Boston College Classic II.
-David Wallechinsky, Noel Brinkerhoff
Cheerleading Isn't a Title IX Sport, Judge Says (by Annie Youderian, Courthouse News Service)
Stephanie Biediger et al. v. Quinnipiac University (U.S. District Court, Connecticut) (pdf)
Competitive Cheer Fans See Acceptance in Future (by katie Thomas, New York Times)
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