Marty Gordon
NRVsports@mainstreetnewspapers.com
Jane Carper started teaching and coaching high school 32 years ago, during a time when sports were few and far between for young girls.
In 1966, she would start track, tennis, gymnastics and volleyball at Auburn High School with little or no funding. This past month, she turned 90 years old and took a moment to look at those early days.
“Things were definitely different in those days,” she said.
She was a strong advocate for female athletes at Auburn and often coached without compensation and drove the bus to and from games.
“I am really proud of what we accomplished over those first few years,” she said. “Games and athletics are completely different now.”
Carper played basketball in school in the late 40s and graduated from Radford University before beginning her teaching career at Bethel Elementary. She then moved to Auburn High School as a physical education instructor, which led to her coaching 6-on-6 basketball and cheer.
“It was hard to get a gym until Title IX, and not many other schools had girls’ sports at time,” she said.
During those early years, Carper and her team had to make their own uniforms, and there was the unwritten rule that no girls’ teams would cross the mountain to play.
“It was tough during those early years, but we pushed on,” she remarked.
Title IX was a landmark federal civil rights law in the United States that was enacted as part of the Education Amendments of 1972. It prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school or any other education program that receives funding from the federal government.
While it applies to various areas, it is best known for ensuring equal opportunities in college and high school sports including club, intramural and interscholastic teams.
This led to a significant increase in girls’ participation in high school sports, from an estimated 300,000 in 1972 to over 3.4 million in the past few years.
