Superintendent outlines 11-point athletics corrective-action plan after Title IX audit and public outcry

The Scituate School Committee heard a presentation June 15 from Superintendent Dr. Rob on a draft 11-point athletics corrective action plan prompted by a recent Title IX/equity audit and sustained public concern.

Community members who helped compile the audit urged rapid, transparent action. "I read the whole audit and I was kind of confused on page 30 and 31 ... there's no available information for 25 or 26," public commenter Renee D. Roharn told the committee, calling out missing gender-specific budget breakdowns for recent fiscal years.

Why this matters: The audit found gaps between boys' and girls'programs in multiple areas; families and athletes told the committee those findings matched their lived experience and asked for not only data corrections but concrete, trackable fixes that would change how teams are funded, scheduled and supported.

What the superintendent proposed

Dr. Rob described a draft plan organized around immediate steps and longer-term changes. He said he deliberately kept an early public record of the audit intact and would not revise its findings himself; instead, he said, the district would (a) publish line-by-line clarifications where invoices exist, (b) begin immediate operational fixes, and (c) set up structures to sustain change.

The plan as presented includes: a transition to per-sport budgeting and a five-year replacement cycle for uniforms and equipment; mandatory early-season meetings between the athletic director and all head coaches to elicit explicit, localized gear and resource requests; a coaches' handbook update to clarify hiring and evaluation practices; a review of game and practice scheduling from an equity lens (not just minutes but time-of-day parity); a facilities and transportation review to ensure equivalent fields, locker rooms and buses; increased trainer coverage or contract services for overlapping events; regular "equity walks" that monitor implementation; standardized fundraising approvals and a review of booster structures; creation of an equity subcommittee to oversee implementation; and additional coach equity training.

"I'm not waiting till September ... I'm already working on it," Dr. Rob said, emphasizing steps underway this spring such as reorganizing athletic budgeting practices and improving coach communications and district-managed accounts.

Board and community response

Committee members pressed for prioritization, asking the superintendent to separate "low-hanging fruit" (immediate, high-impact steps) from items that will take months. Members asked for: (1) who will be responsible for each action, (2) clear interim and final deadlines, (3) a public timeline chart (Gantt-style) that shows progress, and (4) audited budget line items showing how past athletic spending was allocated by gender (to be published as "not specified" only where records truly do not exist).

Several members urged direct engagement with female athletes: listening sessions, office hours in July, and student focus groups to ensure the district hears the lived experience behind the report. Parents and committee members also recommended specific short-term measures such as ensuring equivalent buses for away competitions and clarifying medical/trainer schedules so girls are not left without full coverage.

What the plan does not (yet) include

The plan presented was a draft: the committee did not take a formal vote to adopt it. Several items require external approvals, budget transfers, or contracted services; the superintendent said some steps will take months and others can be implemented immediately. Where numerical detail was requested (for example, exact FY25 and FY26 breakdowns by gender), Dr. Rob said the district has invoices and will publish the reconciled figures in the corrective-action materials once staff complete the invoice-by-invoice review.

Next steps

Dr. Rob said he will publish a fuller corrective-action plan with assigned owners and timelines and will present implementation milestones to the newly proposed equity subcommittee and to the full committee on a regular cadence. Committee members asked that the initial plan identify which items will be completed within 30, 90 and 180 days, and requested that the athletic director and building principals be placed clearly in the implementation chart so the board and public can track who is accountable.

The committee directed administration to continue work over the summer, and to schedule follow-up reports and public updates in fall meetings so families can monitor progress.