Fresno City College sports honoring 50 years of Title IX

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- We are honoring 50 years of Title IX, the law that aims to provide equal opportunity for women in public institutions.

Disney, our parent company, is partnering with ESPN on this anniversary.

Fresno City College has been on the path of providing equal opportunities to females for decades.

The college started Women's Tennis and Volleyball between 1974-1975, a couple of years after Title IX passed.

The community college now offers 21 sports: nine for men and 12 for women.

"We wanna make sure that the same experience they have, the travel, the camaraderie, access to coaching and staff and to support staff and trainers is all equal at the same level." says Lorraine Smith, Athletics Dean at the college.

Fresno City's Indoor and Beach Volleyball Coach Kieran Roblee remembers her first female coach during her sophomore year of high school.

She also recalls playing her first organized basketball match in middle school in the late 70s.

"Getting in the station wagon, going across town to go play at Mountain View Elementary School in Santa Barbara... We were the prelude to the boys game and there were a lot of people there to watch us play. And it made us like, 'Wow this is great we get to do this'." says Coach Roblee.

Today, Roblee runs a successful women's volleyball program.

Her teams have earned two state championships since 2016.

Outside Hitter, Kylie Kerney feels this would not have been possible without the female pioneers who came before her.

"I can't say thank you enough because I don't know what my life would be without playing volleyball. I know they had to fight like crazy to get the opportunities we have today," Kylie says.

Kylie has been in sports from a young age. Her experience is different from the generation before her.

"We have seen a lot of growth. I am proud of the fact that our women and our teams don't know what I'm referring to, so we are doing a lot of good things now," says Coach Roblee.

Fresno City College will be offering Women's Wrestling this upcoming year.

Continuing to create opportunities for young women to showcase their talents on the court and on the field.