It was a new concept when she went off to elementary school in the 1970s, but Title IX paved the way for West Chester native Lori Mazza to become a three-sport high school athlete and eventually a college athletic director.

“Title IX has opened the doors for women like me,” she said of the landmark law enacted 45 years ago in a Danbury (Conn.) News-Times report by Richard Gregory. “I wouldn’t be where I am today, as a Division III athletic director, if not for Title IX.”

Advertisement

With her parents’ blessing, Mazza played volleyball, basketball, and softball for Bishop Shanahan High School.

“From my parents, I have learned to pursue life with the attitude that anything is possible,” Mazza said.

Today, “many girls have a better quality of life and are empowered to make a positive difference in the world due to access and opportunities in athletics participation,” she said. “Because of Title IX, (they) only know a reality in which they have access to pursue their interests and goals in academics and athletics.”

And Mazza has fulfilled her own dreams, becoming Western Connecticut State University athletic director.

Read more of her story and the Title IX stories of others in the Danbury (Conn.) News-Times here.