Civil Rights Law’s Profound Impact on Women is Far Reaching

WASHINGTON, D.C. – During a hearing today on the forty-year anniversary of Title IX, the groundbreaking law that ensured equal educational opportunities for women, Senator Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), Ranking Member on the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee, said although there has been remarkable progress, America must not rest on past successes.  Enzi said Title IX is one of the most important civil rights laws passed in Washington and is an example of what Congress can do when it works together to do what is right.

“America’s economy is at a crossroads and we need to graduate more engineers, scientists and mathematicians if we are to continue to be the world’s technological leader.  This is where I see the greatest possibilities for young women,” said Senator Enzi.  “Right now, women continue to receive far fewer jobs in the mathematics and science-related fields.  We need to do more to achieve progress in that area.”

Senator Enzi noted that statistics show Title IX has made a profound impact on the lives of young women over the past forty years and has ensured that women and girls have the same opportunities to succeed that men have enjoyed for decades.  In fact, according to the Department of Education, women today earn nearly sixty percent of bachelors degrees and more than half of all doctoral degrees.   

“Despite this progress, we cannot afford to be complacent,” Senator Enzi said.  “There are many women who are now leaders and role models, encouraging other young women to live up to their potential.  And these women represent exactly what Congress set out to achieve when it passed this groundbreaking law.  However, we must encourage even greater achievements from future generations of women.”

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