School and Pregnancy: Is It an Either Or?

In a recent article, a woman by the name of Tara faced unfair discrimination while attending Sacred Heart University in Connecticut because she was pregnant. First, she was asked to stop coaching basketball, because she was considered a “distraction.” She was a coach on a basketball team at a summer camp — in what way was she a distraction?! Then her boss failed to register her as a “medical redshirt” which would have allowed her to make up the time she wasn’t playing basketball due to her pregnancy. As a result, she lost her scholarship which paid for living expenses and she eventually left school. This article made me, for the first time, stop and think about the difficulties that pregnant women have to face when trying to get an education. What happened to Tara was unfortunate. I think that it was wrong for university officials to ask her to stop coaching the team because she was a distraction and it was rude of them as well. If it had happened to me, I would have certainly asked more questions before I left. Personally, I don’t believe that a woman should have to decide between school and motherhood. I do feel that women should be given time to recover from their pregnancy before they have to return to school and not be penalized for it in any way. This article really made me think about some of the difficulties women deal with while trying to get an education and especially our rights when we are pregnant.