Girls sports vs. Boys sports

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Just wondering about how other School districts handle things. It's November and our Football season is over, the Girls softball team is being asked to go a half mile down the road to do workouts instead of doing them in our brand new weight room. The Football team and Baseball team are both working out and they want the girls to go to the Middle School to do the same, problem is only a couple of the girls have cars, we are very young this year. I think any of our athletes should be able to use the High School weight room. DD has been working out every day since school started and I will give the Baseball players credit they will share the machines, not so with some of the others. Sorry about the rant but I'm not very happy with how things are being handled.

 

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Totally wrong IMO. No one has the right to keep anyone out of the weight room unless it was paid for by private funds and my guess is it was not.

 

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Just wondering about how other School districts handle things. It's November and our Football season is over, the Girls softball team is being asked to go a half mile down the road to do workouts instead of doing them in our brand new weight room. The Football team and Baseball team are both working out and they want the girls to go to the Middle School to do the same, problem is only a couple of the girls have cars, we are very young this year. I think any of our athletes should be able to use the High School weight room. DD has been working out every day since school started and I will give the Baseball players credit they will share the machines, not so with some of the others. Sorry about the rant but I'm not very happy with how things are being handled.

Are you the HS coach? If so, have you addressed this with the Football/Baseball coaches or your AD? If you aren't the coach, have you addressed this with the Softball coach, suggesting that he/she work on handling it? Sometimes it's as simple as bringing an issue to light. Sometimes, of course, it's not...

 

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It sukks and it's wrong but get used to it, it won't change. They will say the football team and other boys sports brings the money in and that is why they get first shot at using it.

When I went to Kent State, we had just had a season where we made it to the College World Series and were very successful.....the football team was HORRIBLE. We were only allowed to use the facilities when the football team, baseball team, l@crosse team and any other boys sport wasn't using them. Male sports trump female sports EVERY time....no matter what.

 

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Klump is right. I saw the exact same thing when Louuuuuise was in high school. Girls sports always get the step-child treatment.

 

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IMHO, this is against Title IX. I know at DD's high school, the weight room is open to all athletes that are on high school sports. There's no segregation. The issue is challenging it and willing to risk the girls. One year I brought it up to the high school coach in a question and he didn't want nothing to do with it...the next off-season, the open gyms were more set.

 

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At my High School we get equal treatment. Heck the baseball team tried to show up unannounced in the weight room last week and our strength coach kicked them out to make room for the softball team to go through our regular workout in the weight room.

 

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I am not the coach, just a dad tired of the girls sports getting shafted.

 

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Some schools get this and some don't. For schools whose on-site facilities are limited, it can definitely be problematic. One consideration is if any of the sports are "in-season". For example, if the football team is still in the playoffs, then they and basketball should get first dibs over say baseball, softball and ****** this time of year. As for strictly the girls vs. boys thing, a coach who is feeling secure in his/her job might want to drop the "Title IX" phrase on their AD's ...

 

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This definitely sounds like a Title IX violation. If a couple parents call the AD and principal about the violation, it will change immediately... Unless the school is financially secure enough to withstand having federal funding stripped from their district, which I highly doubt.

 

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I would rather have any facility all to myself than share.

 

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Typically teams block off hours in the weight room. At least at the schools I have coached at.

 

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Just wondering about how other School districts handle things. It's November and our Football season is over, the Girls softball team is being asked to go a half mile down the road to do workouts instead of doing them in our brand new weight room. The Football team and Baseball team are both working out and they want the girls to go to the Middle School to do the same, problem is only a couple of the girls have cars, we are very young this year. I think any of our athletes should be able to use the High School weight room. DD has been working out every day since school started and I will give the Baseball players credit they will share the machines, not so with some of the others. Sorry about the rant but I'm not very happy with how things are being handled.

Title IX

Read this ?The best damn coach on this campus? - The Michigan Daily the more things change the more they stay the same.

 

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Gary, the entire softball team can get an amazing, effective, gut busting workout without stepping one foot in the weight room. I am not saying that the girls should not be allowed access, equal and even, but I think that the weight room has no proven benefit over plyometrics, resistance training, core development, etc. We want power and speed, and lets face it, young women are not young men, and instead of fighting the school board over this, ask for a bonafide speed, strength and agility coach to lead the girls. DD has been to HS conditioning over the past several weeks, and they have the vomit trash cans ready. Not one girl is complaining, and no one wants the weight room after their workouts.

 

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I am a 30 plus year HS coach, all it usually takes is good communication between the coaches to come up with a workable schedule to share the weight room or any training facility. If it doesn't work between coaches then climb the hierarchy ladder until you get results, shouldn't take long. As far a weights vs plyometrics, core, resistance training, etc.. they are all necessary. If you don't have free weights then yeah the core, plyo's, etc will do, but nothing will replace proper free weight strength training for measurable long lasting gains in strength and speed. And explosive strength training, squats, powercleans will do more for speed and explosive quickness than anything else. Add in the plyo's, speed ladder, planks, etc.. and now you're really cooking.

 

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It sukks and it's wrong but get used to it, it won't change. They will say the football team and other boys sports brings the money in and that is why they get first shot at using it.

When I went to Kent State, we had just had a season where we made it to the College World Series and were very successful.....the football team was HORRIBLE. We were only allowed to use the facilities when the football team, baseball team, l@crosse team and any other boys sport wasn't using them. Male sports trump female sports EVERY time....no matter what.

I agree Klump. Another issue to consider was football, as bad as they were, were probably the only money-making sport. At most colleges, almost all the sports exist because of the income from the football team games. In high school, the gate money for football is one of the few sports putting anything back into the till. I'm sure boys basketball is the only thing to rival that. At least you have a middle school to use and they are allowing you the time. Many are not so lucky. Fair? No, not fair but probably the best alternative you'll get until softball rivals football gate fees, the easiest answer to the debate that swings to their favor.

 

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Our community puts most of our girls sports on the back burner. Our "rec" program for softball always gives the girls that last thought. Not sure why it would be any different at the high school level. Who holds tryouts for your travel team in October and still hasn't told anyone who made the team well over 6 weeks later? My DD does her training (core, strength, cardio) on her own. She still has one year left before hs, but she'll continue to do things this way even next year. She has some friends that are working out with the high school team this year and even they are not shocked by the lack of bottom billing they get. That is sad. Until girls can bring in some kind of revenue, they won't get the same priority as the boys. Ever.

 

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At our school back in the day the wrestling teams use to practice on the stage. So with years of private fundraising we were able to build a wrestling room only. It has since been changed to an all sports room. So when the wrestlers want to work out in the off season its back to the stage. So basically the very second wrestling season is over with the baseball team takes it over. The softball team works out at one of the two elementary schools that are close by. They make the best of it. Meanwhile the baseball team gets the high school gym and the all sports room (wrestling room)

 

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Yes I have to laugh because if you think the girls sports get the short end you need to have a son in wrestling at a non-wrestling friendly school.

The wrestling team had to miss the first week of practice so the cheerleaders could use their mats for tryouts......are you kidding me? I mean lets not even begin to discuss why only the wrestling team gets shafted but why on earth would you allow a bunch of dirty shoes all over the mats.........are you begging to lose half a season to skin infections and such?

On top of that our AD told our coach that we can only have 2 home dual meets........it is as if he wants us to disappear.

Oh and the whole wrestling room thing. I know another school that fund raised on their own to make a new room and then the AD took the money to upgrade the weight room "for all the kids". Of course the coach then left and is kicking arse somewhere else.

My kids play the 2 sports no one cares about at their HS.....bums me out. If the school was not so good we would go somewhere else but it is an extremely good school and 95% of the students will go on to college of some sort. So that is great but the sport side stinks.

 

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The coach should be scheduling the time with the AD as it's a school and districts facility and not the Football teams room. Your taxes pay for it, go voice it to the AD, principal and board if you must. If you want to make a difference stand up for your DD. Yeah it might step on toes, but pave the way for the future girls! And bring up title ix in the discussion who cares that's what it's there for.