The U.S. Department of Education today unveiled a new Web site featuring data on men's and women's intercollegiate athletic programs. The data from thousands of colleges and universities are posted by school at: http://ope.ed.gov/athletics.

"As a former college coach, I know the value of athletic program statistics to scholar athletes in selecting a school to attend," said U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige. "This Web site provides students with data from a number of postsecondary institutions at one easily accessible location rather than having to contact various schools individually."

Under the Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA) of 1994, co-educational institutions with intercollegiate athletic programs are required to collect statistics and distribute an annual report on their men's and women's teams, including data on athletic participation, staffing, and revenues and expenses. Under the 1998 Higher Education Amendments, the department is now required to collect the data from schools and make the information widely available. The data were collected for the first time from some 1,887 institutions in September and November 2001.

Specifically, institutions are required to report:

• the total revenues and expenses attributable to the institution's intercollegiate athletic activities;
• the revenues and expenses attributable to football, men's basketball, women's basketball, all men's sports combined except football and basketball, and all women's sports combined except basketball;
• the number of participants for each varsity team and an unduplicated head count of individuals (by gender) who participate on at least one varsity team; and
• whether a coach is assigned to a team full- or part-time, and if part-time, whether the coach is a full- or part-time employee of the institution.

The department expects to release a one-time report to Congress in the spring that provides analysis and summary data by sport and sanctioning body, including the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, the National Junior College Athletic Association, and the National Christian College Athletic Association.

The 1972 Title IX Education Amendments to the Civil Rights Act prohibit gender discrimination in schools and colleges that receive federal funding. Athletics are generally considered an integral part of an institution's education program and, therefore, are covered by the law. Today, more than 170,000 women participate in intercollegiate athletics across the country, compared with fewer than 32,000 in 1971.

Visitors to the Web site are cautioned that EADA data, while a useful consumer tool, do not determine a school's compliance with Title IX. Compliance with Title IX is a legal determination, based on a number of factors and standards set in statute and regulation, including, for example, whether the interests and abilities of male and female athletes are fully and effectively accommodated. In FY 2000, the Education Department's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) received 21 Title IX complaints that alleged discrimination in intercollegiate athletics, out of 4,897 civil rights complaints filed that year. The OCR evaluates every complaint and works with student athletes and colleges to resolve cases.

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