Mythbuster: Do boys' sports always get more?

Leechburg is a small town with big mysteries. As rumors flow through the hallways of Leechburg Area High School, they soon turn into myths. By definition, a myth is a belief or legend accepted as history. Leechburg’s myths, however, are a bit different from the traditional, from ghosts roaming the stairways to a rifle range to a swimming pool underneath the gymnasium. After hearing these rumors over and over again, it becomes difficult to separate the facts from the fiction. Our goal as the mythbusters is to discover the truth, one rumor at a time.

Our first mission was to bust, or confirm, the myth: “Boys’ sports always get more than girls’ sports.” After repeatedly hearing complaints about “boys always getting more,” we finally decided to take matters into our own hands and discover more information about the school district’s sports budgets. After some research, we obtained the proposed sports’ budget for the 2011-2012 school year.

Sport's Expenses

Coaches' Salaries

To clarify, the boys’ sports are football, boys’ basketball and baseball. The girls’ sports are volleyball, girls’ basketball and softball. The “both” category includes golf, cheerleading (since it is offered to both genders) and other athletic expenses and awards. The same categories apply for the coaches’ salaries.

All high schools are required by law to obey Title 9 legislation. These laws state that males and females receive equality in every educational and athletic program that receives funding from the government. Although the number of sports for each gender is required to be equal, this does not necessarily mean that the money is equally split. For example, football has a larger budget because it is a sport that requires more equipment and protection, while volleyball has a smaller budget since it doesn’t require as much equipment.

The budgets above show the amount that the school provides for each sports team for equipment, travel, coaches and other necessities. Other “extra” items and equipment are paid for by the teams’ booster clubs and game revenue.

After studying the budget (and doing some calculations), it was easy to see who received a larger budget. With a difference of over $10,000 in expenses and $3,000 in coaches’ salaries, the boys receive a larger budget than the girls. Even though the basketball budget is split “equally” between the two genders (as well as the softball/baseball budget), football (a male sport), without a doubt, receives the largest budget. Believe it or not, it’s safe to say that this myth, in a way, is CONFIRMED.

Have a Leechburg myth you want busted? Contact the LBG Mythbusters at TrottyVeck2010@gmail.com

[comments]

Posted by "Kaylyn Zeff" on May 26, at 11:14 a.m.

Even though I don't play sports, I can see how some people would be upset by the boys "getting more." All the sports have boosters that raise money. It seems as if the boys have more money due to the boosters being more active. I'm not really sure how the boosters work since I don't play a sport. It's good that all the sports still get a good deal, though. Without the boosters, I'm sure the sports programs wouldn't survive long.

Posted by "Will Salem" on May 16, at 9:00 p.m.

I understand that you girls are a little upset about the boys getting more money out of the budget, but you're missing a lot. The reason the football team gets more money is in large part because of equipment. Every student-athlete is equipped with a helmet, shoulder pads, hip pads, "butt" pad, thigh pads and knee pads. Those categories total nine pieces of safety equipment on each player and that really adds up. One could say that maybe all that equipment isn't needed, but that is the standard for football players. After just the safety equipment there are also practice jerseys, home jerseys, away jerseys, practice pants, girdles and game pants. As you can see, a lot is needed for one football player. Now maybe the volleyball team should get more, but in retrospect, the football team has some more mandatory needs. The topic of earning more money from the budget because of consistent playoff seasons doesn't make sense, because high school athletics aren't professional sports. Our teams do not earn more money for the success they have. The boys basketball team did not win "x" amount of money for winning the WPIAL championship in 2007. The boys basketball team also does not get everything they want because, as shown in the pie chart, they get an equal slice of the budget pie. If one thinks success should determine the amount of money received, then what would the girls basketball team get? Nothing against them because they play in the AA platform of the WPIAL, but they have been having trouble in recent years. All-in-all, I'm glad the article came up because it is an interesting topic. I have nothing against girls teams because I love going to volleyball games and being in the Zoo. I try not to favor the boys' side too much, even though I am one.

Posted by "Anne Brady" on May 16, at 1:12 p.m.

Mythbusters is such a cool idea for a new column! I think it's all ready a hit because of the myth that was chosen to be busted -- boys sports always get more. The topic of boys always receiving more money, attention, etc., is by far the biggest myth (or truth) in Leechburg High School. It is interesting to find out that this myth is actually a truth! The research definitely backs up the idea that girls' sports do not receive as much as boys' sports, especially football. FINALLY, the boys can stop trying to defend themselves by saying that they don't receive more money for sports because it is now a fact! I think it is time for girls' sports to start receiving equal attention!

Posted by "Chris Claypool" on May 15, at 8:45 p.m.

I have always heard that boy's sports do get a larger amount of money spent on them. I also have always believed this to be true as there is a lot of equipment need for football. There are also a lot of football coaches that the school pays. After reading this article my thought came to be true. I think the "LBG Mythbusters" is a really cool idea. I can't wait to see more myths busted or confirmed.

Posted by "Jessica Pastva" on May 12, at 8:47 a.m.

Steph and Mindy, I am so glad that you guys wrote this article. I do not think it is fair that the boys sports always get more than the girls sports. If you think about it, girls sports are stronger than the boys sports at Leechburg. The softball team never gets any new equipment even though we have been to the playoffs 25 consecutive times. We ordered a new bat this year because all the bats we have will be outlawed next year. The school told us we could not get the bat because it was "too expensive." Yet the boys basketball team gets whatever they want, whenever they want. There is something wrong with that picture.

Posted by "Kiersten Horrell" on May 12, at 8:21 a.m.

This was a clever idea for an article. The idea that boys sports get more than girls has been an issue in Leechburg for as long as I can remember. It seems to me that the myth is true for the most part. I don't understand, though, why the volleyball team and boys and girls baseball and softball teams receive virtually no money compared to football and basketball teams. I am looking forward to seeing other myths you two can bust.

Posted by "Kenzie Young" on May 11, at 1:34 p.m.

I am really glad to see this column! It clears up a lot! Now we do actually see that guys sports do get more, in a sense. It is understandable but a little upsetting because girls could use more money for new cheerleading uniforms, new volleyball equipment and, most importantly, new bats for softball that we have not seen for like three years!

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