Title IX report: district expands activities, adds esports and unified sports; board hears participation and equity concerns

District officials presented the Salt Lake City School District’s annual Title IX report to the board on Aug. 5, reporting on athletics participation, equity measures and planned program changes for 2025–26. The presentation covered survey collection, program additions, barriers to participation and steps the district will take to improve outreach and consistency.

The board heard several highlights: the district moved this year to collect interest surveys during high‑school advisory periods and received roughly twice as many student responses as in previous years, officials said. That higher response rate helped justify adding activities the board had already approved — the district added esports as an activity and approved coed drill team for the first time. Officials also said unified sports will expand and the district is hiring paid coaches for some unified programs.

Why it matters: Title IX requires equitable athletic opportunities; the report is the district’s annual accounting of participation, program offerings and resource allocation. Expansion of unified sports, esports and other activities changes where funding and coaching resources are directed and can affect participation logistics and travel costs.

Key points from presenters - Survey and participation: Emily Sutherland and Tina Hatch said survey distribution during advisory periods doubled opt‑in responses, giving the district better data to align offerings with student interest. Reported high interest in rugby, skiing and hockey — sports not currently sanctioned by UHSAA — and in esports.

- Barriers: Students reported that later start times can cause them to miss entire class blocks repeatedly, affecting academics. Officials said they will explore scheduling adaptations and seek board input if needed.

- Communications and coaching: District staff described a plan to consolidate communications on ParentSquare, require coaching agreements and offer multiple coach trainings (up from one previously) to standardize fundraising, overnight‑trip procedures, fingerprinting and background checks, and to reduce inconsistent use of other platforms such as Groupspot.

- Funding and access: The district updated fee schedules and described a West High clinic that has provided more than 450 free sports physicals to students since opening; officials said a grant currently covers middle‑school after‑school sports so the district is not charging fees this year but noted that ongoing funding would be necessary. The Salt Lake Ed Foundation is covering referee fees this year; staff said fee, grant, foundation and district funding mixes will be tracked and that charging participation fees is a possible contingency if grant funds end.

Board questions and follow up: Board members asked about ensuring freshman access to subvarsity teams, balancing soccer roster opportunities between boys and girls teams and the district’s approach if a sport lacks a coach. Staff said freshmen may try out for JV or varsity in lieu of having a dedicated freshman team and that the district will work case by case to avoid canceling teams for lack of a coach. The district committed to a multi‑channel advertising plan (ParentSquare, PA announcements, social media, school websites and bilingual postings) to ensure broad awareness of tryouts and activities.

Next steps: Staff will continue coach trainings, roll out ParentSquare as the official communications platform with coaching agreements, expand unified sports funding and monitor participation and fee data. The full Title IX report was submitted to the board and will remain available for review.