After a national controversy where several colleges came under fire for revoking the scholarships of student athletes who become pregnant, the NCAA has met to review what it should do. The problems came to light when students at the University of Memphis and Clemson University said they felt pressured to have abortions.
At a recent meeting in Charlotte, NCAA officials appeared to agree they should focus more on educating students about their rights rather than changing official rules. Janet Kittel, the outgoing head of the NCAA’s Committee on Women's Athletics, said NCAA director Myles Brand asked the committee to discuss the issue. She told the Associated Press the meeting focused on how to do a better job of making students aware of their rights under the federal Title IX law.
The statute requires schools to treat a pregnancy the same way they would treat athletes with a temporary disability -- by allowing for time off from the athletic program without worries about losing scholarships or spots on the team.
The NCAA has no general rules on how colleges should treat pregnant athletes but it allows students to apply for an extra year of eligibility which would not count as a redshirt year but would allow girls who become pregnant to attend college an extra year and stay in school for six years and compete for four...
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