Controversial regulations designed to force universities and secondary schools to provide women with equal access to athletic facilities and equipment were signed Saturday by Caspar W. Weinberger '38, Secretary of Health, Education and Welfare.

The regulations--Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act of 1972--have been sent to President Ford and will go into effect next fall if he approves them. Institutions refusing to conform to the act will be in danger of losing all federal funding.

Robert B. Watson '37, director of athletics, said yesterday that the University had already complied with the act. "We've anticipated this long before we had over heard of Title IX," Watson said. "We've been way ahead of it."

Alberta Arthurs, Radcliffe dean of admissions, financial aid, and women's education said that "basically the University has taken action already."

"There is nothing in the specific regulation which would force Harvard to change direction," Arthurs said, but she added that Title IX "would reinforce some of the efforts here."

Sex-Blind Pool

The Department of Athletics merged with Radcliffe Athletics in October 1973. Under a redistribution plan. Harvard gave Radcliffe teams increased access to Harvard facilities. The Radcliffe varsity swimming team uses two lanes of the Indoor Athlete Building's Olympic-size pool, and the Radcliffe varsity basketball team is now permitted to use the IAB courts.

Susan W. Lewis, assistant dean of freshmen and author of a report entitled "Athletic Opportunities for Women at Harvard and Radcliffe," released last month, cited these changes as evidence that the University "has already taken steps toward solving the problem."