Since Title IX has enforced rules about spending for girls sports in the public school system it has led to a 400 percent increase in the rate of female participation in college sports and a more than 800 percent increase in participation at the high school level.

Sports are great for girls. They encourage healthy competition, good physical health and feeling physically, emotionally and mentally strong.

Boys are not the only athletic winners, except when it comes to some school athletic budgets.

Despite the significant gains girls and women have made since the enactment of Title IX, a significant drawback to the law's enforcement at the high school level involves the lack of data reporting. The U.S. Department of Education has not required these schools to report athletic opportunity, participation, and funding statistics to any higher authority. Colleges are required to report this data, it's time our high schools are too.

American Assocation of University Women strongly supports the High School Sports Information Collection Act (S. 518), which would require high schools to report basic information on the number of female and male students in their athletic programs and the expenditures made for their sports teams. Sadly, this bill only has five cosponsors. The Senate is currently working on adding provisions of this bill in the No Child Left Behind Act. An increase in the number of cosponsors will demonstrate support for including the provisions in NCLB.

Be a girls' athletic supporter by clicking on this link and letting congress know that you want to empower girls through sports.