Fifty Years of Title IX: How 37 Words Changed America
By (Author) Sherry Boschert
The New Press
The New Press
24th June 2026
United Kingdom
General
Non Fiction
Social discrimination and social justice
Discrimination in employment and harassment law
Constitution
Gender studies: women and girls
Social and cultural history
Womens health
Paperback
400
Width 152mm, Height 228mm
A "valuable, well-researched and nuanced history" (Booklist) of the groundbreaking law that transformed education, athletics, and gender equity in the United States-and the battles still being fought today
In 1972, thirty-seven words quietly entered federal law and ignited a revolution:"No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."
Title IX redefined what was possible for women and girls in America's schools-from access to classrooms and sports fields to protection from sexual harassment and assault. In Fifty Years of Title IX, a book The Washington Monthly calls "an impressive feat," award-winning journalist Sherry Boschert traces the dramatic story of how this pivotal law came to be, how it has evolved, and why it remains a powerful-and contested-force in the struggle for gender justice.
Through meticulous reporting, Boschert introduces readers to the trailblazers behind the law, including Bernice Resnick Sandler, and the generations who have demanded that its promises be fulfilled. Called "inspiring" by Publishers Weekly, Fifty Years of Title IX "puts a human face" (Library Journal) on the fight for gender equity.
As Lucy Jane Bledsoe, author of No Stopping Us Now, writes, Boschert has published "a road map for what it will take to go forward. It is a really important book."
Sherry Boschert is an award-winning journalist and the author of Plug-in Hybrids: The Cars That Will Recharge America. Among her many honors, she received a Distinguished Service Award from the Society of Professional Journalists for her efforts to promote equity within the news industry. She lives in New Hampshire.