Democratic Women's Caucus Statement on Release of Kaplan Report Findings on Gender Equity Issues in the NCAA

Statement

Today, Democratic Women's Caucus (DWC) Co-Chairs Congresswomen Lois Frankel (FL-21), Brenda Lawrence (MI-14), and Jackie Speier (CA-14), and Vice Chairs Congresswomen Veronica Escobar (TX-16) and Sylvia Garcia (TX-29) issued the following statement on the release of the Kaplan Hecker and Fink LLC report based on its gender equity review of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) women's and men's basketball programs.

"We were pleased that the NCAA released the Kaplan report publicly to support an open and transparent discussion of further efforts needed to address the many inequities described in its findings," said the Members. "However, as the report made clear, there is extraordinary work to be done to ensure all student athletes have equal opportunity to thrive in college sports and their careers. The report's findings indicate that the NCAA has long neglected the women's tournament, from failing to invest in, promote, and equally prioritize women's basketball alongside men's, to specifically this past year risking the health of women athletes by using different COVID-19 protocols for the men's and women's teams, among other glaring disparities. Or as Stanford Women's Basketball Coach Tara Vanderveer so eloquently summarized the disparity, "This spring, the men had lobster bisque and ribeye. [Women] had a salisbury steak and had to order out from DoorDash.' We look forward to working with the NCAA to ensure changes are made to advance gender equity in college basketball."

Some of the key findings from the NCAA External Gender Equity Review include:

The NCAA's organizational structure and culture prioritizes men's basketball, contributing to gender inequity.
The structure of the NCAA's media agreements perpetuates gender inequity.
The NCAA's revenue distribution model prioritizes and rewards investment in men's basketball.
The disparity in participation opportunities for men's and women's basketball further impacts the student-athlete experience.
In late July, the DWC sent a letter to NCAA President Dr. Mark Emmert urging the NCAA to release this report publicly and engage with Congress on the complete findings of this external review of gender equity issues. In June, the DWC hosted a virtual event to celebrate women's basketball and shed light on the drastic inequities women athletes face.