A new controversy has hit Pope High School’s athletics department after State Rep. John Carson, a Republican from Marietta, filed a federal Title IX complaint accusing the school of gender discrimination in its girls’ basketball program.
At the center of the dispute: a policy that prevents girls on the varsity and junior varsity basketball teams from playing other sports at the same time. Carson and parents say that rule unfairly targets female athletes, since boys at Pope reportedly face no such restrictions and can participate in multiple sports simultaneously.
What Carson Says
Carson said his office has been hearing from constituents for months about the policy. In April, he submitted a written complaint to the Cobb County School Board, and on Tuesday he announced he had also taken the issue to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights.
“Multi-sport female athletes have reportedly been prohibited from participating on the girls’ varsity and junior varsity basketball teams while participating in other sports simultaneously. This restriction does not apply equally to their male counterparts,” Carson said in the release. “For the sake of the school and our community, please let the girls play.”
Background
The restriction was reinstated in spring 2025 by Pope’s girls’ varsity basketball coach and administrators. Carson says the rule only applies to female basketball players and was not adopted for boys’ basketball or other sports at Pope.
By filing a Title IX complaint, Carson is arguing the school is in violation of federal law, which prohibits sex-based discrimination in education programs that receive federal funding. He is asking that the rule be reversed so girls can fully participate in basketball while still being allowed to play other sports, just as boys are.
What’s Next
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights will now decide whether to investigate Carson’s complaint. If the office finds violations, the school could be required to change its policy.
For now, Carson says his push is about fairness: “Let the girls play.”
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
