[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2145 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2145
To support educational entities in fully implementing title IX and
reducing and preventing sex discrimination in all areas of education,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
June 22, 2023
Ms. Hirono (for herself, Mr. Sanders, Ms. Baldwin, Mr. Blumenthal, Ms.
Cantwell, Mrs. Feinstein, Ms. Klobuchar, Mr. Markey, Mr. Merkley, Mr.
Murphy, Mr. Schatz, Ms. Smith, Mr. Van Hollen, and Mr. Wyden)
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To support educational entities in fully implementing title IX and
reducing and preventing sex discrimination in all areas of education,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Patsy T. Mink and Louise M.
Slaughter Gender Equity in Education Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C.
1681 et seq.) and the implementing regulations of title IX
prohibit sex discrimination in federally funded education
programs and activities.
(2) Although title IX requires that schools treat students
equally with regard to athletic participation opportunities,
athletic scholarships, and the benefits and services provided
to athletic teams, female participation rates, especially for
girls of color, lag far behind male participation rates.
Nationally, for example, boys receive more than 1,000,000 more
opportunities to play high school sports than girls.
Furthermore, although girls comprise nearly 50 percent of high
school students, schools provide them with only 43 percent of
athletic opportunities, even though girls want to play in
greater numbers.
(3) A recent report from the Women's Sports Foundation
found that Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) women
still lag behind White women in collegiate sports--14 percent
compared to 30 percent, respectively. These disparities are
also prevalent at the high school level, with fewer athletic
opportunities available to students in heavily minority schools
compared to heavily White schools. In a typical heavily
minority school, there are only 25 athletic spots available for
every 100 students, compared to 58 athletic spots for every 100
students in a typical heavily White school. Further broken down
by gender, girls have 82 percent of the athletic opportunities
that boys do in a heavily White school, compared to 67 percent
for girls in a heavily minority school.
(4) Girl athletes have been found to have higher levels of
self-esteem, as well as reduced risk for cardiovascular
disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, and breast cancer, compared to
girls who do not play sports. In addition, girl athletes are
more likely to graduate from high school, score higher on
standardized tests, and have higher grades than girls who do
not play sports. Girls who play sports in high school go on to
earn 7 percent higher annual wages than those who do not play
sports, and are more likely to enter the labor force and pursue
higher-skill, previously male-dominated positions. Generally,
sports participation for women is associated with a lower
prevalence of experiencing intimate partner violence,
reinforcing that athletic access not only strengthens health,
educational, and workplace outcomes, but also personal safety.
According to a 2023 report from the Women's Sports Foundation,
girls who played sports during the first year of the COVID-19
pandemic fared significantly better than girls who did not,
reporting higher levels of self-esteem, self-efficacy, and
social support, and lower levels of loneliness and depression.
(5) Although the availability of athletic scholarships
facilitates access to higher education, many institutions of
higher education fail to award proportional athletic financial
aid to women, which can affect their long-term employment
outcomes and economic security. According to the Department of
Education's Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act data from 2019
through 2020, men received $252,000,000 more in athletic
scholarships than women.
(6) Although title IX ensures gender equity in career and
technical education, women are severely underrepresented in
fields nontraditional to their gender. According to the
National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education, women make
up more than 80 percent of workers with training or
certification in historically women-dominated occupations that
pay less than $30,000 per year, including child care, early
childhood education, home care, and cosmetology. Women
represent less than 40 percent of workers trained or certified
in high-paying and historically male-dominated fields,
including transportation, advanced manufacturing, and
construction.
(7) Although title IX promotes gender equity in the fields
of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (in this
section referred to as ``STEM'') education, women are
disproportionately lost at nearly every stage of the STEM
pipeline. A recent report by the National Center for Education
Statistics showed that women earned only 32 percent of all STEM
degrees in 2017, and nearly \1/2\ of these women were White.
Women of color earned about 12 percent of STEM degrees in that
same year. Furthermore, in STEM fields where women are
particularly underrepresented, such as computing and
engineering, women earned an even smaller percentage of
degrees, including only 19 percent of computing bachelor's
degrees, and 21 percent of engineering bachelor's degrees.
(8) Although title IX prohibits sex discrimination in
employment in federally funded education programs, according to
the National Science Foundation, women only hold 34 percent of
all tenured and tenure-track positions and 27 percent of full
professor positions in STEM fields. Furthermore, Black and
Latina women, together, hold only 4 percent of all tenured and
tenure-track positions and barely over 2 percent of full
professor positions in STEM fields. Asian-American women hold
around 5 percent of all tenured and tenure-track positions, and
less than 3 percent of full professor positions in STEM fields.
(9) Although title IX protects against sex-based harassment
and violence, 56 percent of girls and 40 percent of boys in
grades 7 through 12 experience sexual harassment each year, and
9 percent of girls and 7 percent of boys in high school
experience physical dating violence each year. In addition,
more than 60 percent of women and men in college experience
sexual harassment each year, and 14 percent of women and 10
percent of men in college experience dating violence. Moreover,
these statistics are often higher for marginalized students,
including Black and Brown girls and women, lesbian, gay,
bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (referred to in
this section as ``LGBTQI+'') students, pregnant and parenting
students, and disabled students.
(10) According to GLSEN, 87 percent of LGBTQI+ students
have experienced harassment or assault based on a personal
characteristic, and nearly 66 percent have experienced LGBTQI+-
related verbal harassment at school based on sexual
orientation. Research has shown that LGBTQI+ students who
experience harassment at school are more likely to experience
depression and anxiety, to engage in unhealthy and antisocial
behaviors, and to have more unexcused absences from school.
(11) Although title IX prohibits discrimination on the
basis of pregnancy or parenting status, the limited
availability of accommodations, including lactation
accommodations, excused absences for pregnancy-related medical
conditions, and child care needs (including caring for a sick
child), is a leading reason that parenting mothers drop out of
high school. According to the National Women's Law Center, only
half of teenage mothers earn a high school diploma by the age
of 22, compared to 89 percent of women who do not have a child
during their teenage years, and one-third of young mothers will
never get a diploma or a GED, further limiting continuing
opportunities for education and employment.
(12) Although title IX protects against discrimination
based on stereotypes of actual or perceived sex, many people
carry implicit or unconscious biases that can unintentionally
influence attitudes, beliefs, behaviors, and decision-making
processes. Research has shown that unconscious biases can
impact classroom environments, teaching methods, student
evaluations, disciplinary practices, and career and counseling
guidance, which can lead to discrimination against students
based on race, color, national origin, and disability,
particularly for students who are pursuing nontraditional
fields.
(13) Nationally, the Feminist Majority Foundation estimates
100,000 title IX coordinators are needed to meet the needs of
schools serving children in prekindergarten through grade 12,
local educational agencies, and postsecondary institutions.
However, in 2016, the Department of Education only identified
23,000 title IX coordinators nationwide. The Feminist Majority
Foundation has found that schools serving children in
prekindergarten through grade 12 rarely have their own title IX
coordinators.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) ESEA definitions.--The terms ``elementary school'',
``institution of higher education'', ``local educational
agency'', ``school leader'', ``secondary school'', and ``State
educational agency'' have the meanings given those terms in
section 8101 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801).
(2) Department.--The term ``Department'' means the
Department of Education.
(3) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of
the Office for Gender Equity established under section 5(a).
(4) Educational entity.--The term ``educational entity''
means any of the following entities that receive Federal funds:
(A) A State educational agency.
(B) A local educational agency.
(C) An institution of higher education.
(D) An elementary school or secondary school.
(E) Another entity covered by title IX, such as a
laboratory, library, or museum that provides education
programs and activities.
(5) Evidence-based.--The term ``evidence-based'' has the
meaning given the term in clause (i) or (ii) of section
8101(21)(A) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (20 U.S.C. 7801(21)(A)).
(6) Gender identity.--The term ``gender identity'' means
the gender-related identity, appearance, mannerisms, or other
gender-related characteristics of an individual, regardless of
the individual's designated sex at birth.
(7) National gender equity infrastructure.--The term
``national gender equity infrastructure'' means the horizontal
and vertical network of title IX coordinators and title IX
allies who work to advance gender equity and eliminate
discrimination in the United States.
(8) Secretary.--The term ``Secretary'' means the Secretary
of Education.
(9) Sex.--The term ``sex'' includes--
(A) a sex stereotype;
(B) pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical
condition;
(C) sexual orientation or gender identity; and
(D) sex characteristics, including intersex traits.
(10) Sexual orientation.--The term ``sexual orientation''
means homosexuality, heterosexuality, or bisexuality.
(11) Title ix.--The term ``title IX'' means title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et seq.).
(12) Title ix ally.--The term ``title IX ally'' means an
individual who--
(A) is an employee at an educational entity (other
than a title IX coordinator), a community stakeholder,
or an equity expert; and
(B) helps to fully implement title IX.
(13) Title ix coordinator.--The term ``title IX
coordinator'' means a responsible employee, as described in
section 106.8(a) of title 34, Code of Federal Regulations, or
successor regulations, designated to coordinate efforts under
title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. 1681 et
seq.).
SEC. 4. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are to--
(1) advance gender equity in education in the United
States;
(2) support educational entities so that such entities have
the support to fully implement title IX;
(3) provide title IX coordinators and title IX allies with
training, technical assistance, and support to fully carry out
their roles and responsibilities;
(4) increase general awareness about the rights and
obligations of individuals and entities under title IX;
(5) identify, implement, and disseminate best practices for
reducing and preventing sex discrimination in all areas of
education;
(6) promote educational environments that are safe and free
of sexual and sex-based bullying, harassment, and violence;
(7) promote equity in education for students and staff who
face discrimination based on multiple and intersectional actual
or perceived characteristics, including--
(A) race;
(B) color;
(C) ethnicity;
(D) national origin;
(E) disability;
(F) religion;
(G) age; or
(H) sex; and
(8) promote activities that strengthen the national gender
equity infrastructure.
SEC. 5. ESTABLISHMENT OF AN OFFICE FOR GENDER EQUITY.
(a) In General.--The Secretary shall establish an Office for Gender
Equity. The Director of the Office for Gender Equity shall be the
Special Assistant for Gender Equity, as authorized under section
202(b)(3) of the Department of Education Organization Act (20 U.S.C.
3412(b)(3)). The Director of the Office for Gender Equity shall report
directly to the Secretary.
(b) Duties.--The Office for Gender Equity shall be responsible for
the following:
(1) Supporting educational entities in the full
implementation of title IX.
(2) Providing title IX coordinators and title IX allies
with training, technical assistance, and support to fully carry
out their roles and responsibilities.
(3) Providing grants to implement programs and activities
that are focused on reducing and preventing sex discrimination
in all areas of education.
(4) Identifying and disseminating information and evidence-
based best practices for reducing and preventing sex
discrimination in all areas of education.
(5) Maintaining an Office for Gender Equity resource center
website to disseminate information and evidence-based best
practices for achieving gender equity.
(6) Performing any other activity consistent with achieving
the purposes of this Act.
(c) Coordination.--To carry out the purposes of this Act, the
Secretary shall coordinate with other relevant Federal offices and
agencies, including--
(1) the White House Gender Policy Council;
(2) the White House Domestic Policy Council;
(3) the Office for Civil Rights of the Department of
Education;
(4) the Institute of Education Sciences;
(5) the Women's Bureau of the Department of Labor;
(6) the Office on Women's Health of the Department of
Health and Human Services;
(7) the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice;
(8) the Office on Violence Against Women of the Department
of Justice;
(9) the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention;
(10) the Office of Safe and Healthy Students of the
Department of Education; and
(11) other entities determined relevant for carrying out
the purposes of this Act.
SEC. 6. SUPPORT FOR TITLE IX COORDINATORS AND TITLE IX ALLIES.
(a) In General.--The Director shall provide coordination, training,
technical assistance, and support for title IX coordinators and title
IX allies to ensure that educational entities are able to fully
implement title IX and reduce and prevent sex discrimination in all
areas of education.
(b) Title IX Coordinator Training.--
(1) In general.--
(A) Title ix coordinator training.--Not less than
once a year, the Director shall conduct a training for
all title IX coordinators, which shall address the
different needs of elementary schools, secondary
schools, local educational agencies, and institutions
of higher education. The training may be conducted in
partnership with a national organization with relevant
expertise, and may be completed online or in person.
(B) Availability to title ix allies.--Each training
conducted under subparagraph (A) shall be made
available to title IX allies to the maximum extent
practicable.
(2) Contents of training.--The training described in
paragraph (1) shall include the following information:
(A) The role and responsibility of title IX
coordinators.
(B) Information and evidence-based best practices