Progress Starts w/ Empowering Girls

There is a substantial inequity of athletic opportunities for females in high school and college sports.  Due to multiple factors, females remain largely shut out of participating in tackle / collision sports such as football, hockey AND RUGBY.  Educational institutions, their athletic departments, and even the UIL (our state’s interscholastic athletic association) have a legal obligation under Title IX to address the historical biases and lingering disparities in programming that continue the educational disadvantage for females to experience the full breadth of sports offerings afforded their male counterparts.  This is particularly acute in school districts serving economically-disadvantaged females who don't have the financial means to participate in community / select-side club sports.

The UIL has not stated a set number of schools to have a sport offered as a club or varsity program on their campus before placing it on its annual survey sent to school district superintendents for adoption as state sanctioned varsity sport.  Our goal is to start pushing for the consideration of rugby as a UIL sanctioned varsity sport as soon as we have 25+ school-based teams established.  These may be a school-based club team or district-sponsored varsity team.

The webpages under this section have been created to provide resources for anyone interested in using Title IX to expand opportunities for females to play rugby in their school district.  While a lawyer should be consulted and included in the process, much of the preliminary work will ultimately need to be done by you (the interested party).  For teams participating in our conference(s), we will help make the process less intimidating!

Even if you are not comfortable fighting for varsity status within your school or school district, your help is needed to make space for girls rugby to be established as a club sport within Texas' high schools.  

Contact TIRA for step-by-step guidance on being an advocate for you (your daughter) and fellow females!  TIRA is already assisting female students in a number of school districts get their voices heard and interests meet.  Join the movement!  Waiting only delays success.

Until the disparities are rectified, the immediate promotion of rugby (or any sport) as a new male varsity sport is less justifiable.  That, however, does not mean that boys school-based rugby club teams can not attain an elevated status on their respective campuses.  Just look at powerlifting, 7-on-7 flag football, fall baseball, lacrosse, and even boys’ volleyball.  And, looking at water polo, the most recent sport to be sanctioned by the UIL in 2019, boys teams were elevated at the same time.  So, support your sister teams to make rugby as a varsity team for all!