Same-Sex Public Education Programs Undergo Scrutiny

The U.S. Department of Education issued two documents in May to address the issue.

The first released document reaffirmed Title IX, which states that no public program that discriminates based on gender can receive federal funding. Title IX is most often debated in relation to athletics, but it also can be applied to academics.

Title IX controversy arose over the same-sex classes at Parkwood Middle School in Monroe. In April 2000 school officials suspended its same-sex classes after the American Civil Liberties Union filed an official complaint.

The second directive said schools should be free to consider implementing same-sex public education.

Leonard Sax, executive director and founder of the National Association for Single Sex Public Education, a group that provides information on same-sex curricula, said the United States is behind the rest of the world because of entrenched traditions of schools where everyone learned together.

There are 15 public K-12 schools in the country that offer single-sex programs, up from 10 last year.

A spokesman for Rep. Cass Ballenger, R-N.C., who sits on the U.S. House Education and the Workforce Committee, said Ballenger thinks the wishes of local residents should be heeded, not those of the federal government. He said he would have defended Parkwood against the ACLU.

Since the Parkwood case, professional and legal attitudes have changed.

Before January 2001, single-sex programs were not able to compete for federal funds. Now they can vie for up to $450 million per year in specifically allocated money.

But so far only Kentucky, which introduced seven single-sex programs since January, has been willing to make changes because of ambiguities in existing regulations, Sax said.

Private single-sex colleges and universities across the country are also becoming more popular.

Meredith College, a private all-women's college in Raleigh, is ranked as the 11th best college in the South by U.S. News & World Report.

Heidi Fletcher, Meredith associate director of admissions, said because students there are not distracted by men, they are free to develop transferable skills.

James Amidon, director of public affairs and marketing at the all-male Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Ind., said he thinks the school is more competitive than other colleges because of its single-sex student body.

But Fletcher said she realizes a school with an environment like Meredith's is not right for everyone. She said quiet women who might get lost at a regular university benefit most from a single-sex education.

Amidon said he thinks Wabash attracts students who are dedicated and willing to "sacrifice socially" and "delay the rewards of life" in favor of a good education.

However, some claim that single-sex schools get better results solely because of the high caliber of applicants. A bigger question needs to be asked, Sax said: "Why do the smartest children choose single-sex schools?"

The State & National Editor can be reached at stntdesk@unc.edu.