News
U.S. Department of Education Issues (and Re-Issues) Dear Colleague Letter on Title IX
On February 4, the U.S. Department of Education re-issued a Dear Colleague Letter to replace the letter issued on January 31, 2025. Background and Bottom Line Generally, the letter acknowledges the court decision from January 9, 2025 vacating the 2024 Title IX Final...
Biden’s Department of Education Issues A Flurry of Resolutions and Resources Before Inauguration
In what seems like a last-minute scramble to tie up loose ends, the Department of Education has published a number of materials in a very short timeframe. New documents include resources on retaliation and resolving hostile environments under Title VI. Since...
OCR Reaches Resolution of Title IX Sexual Harassment Investigation of Paterson Public School District in New Jersey
In early December, OCR announced the resolution of a Title IX complaint at Paterson Public School District in New Jersey. OCR found the District violated Title IX (as amended in 2020) by failing to offer supportive measures to students, including failing to provide...
2024 Title IX Regulations Vacated—Back to 2020 on a National Level
On January 9, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky issued an opinion and order that vacated the 2024 Title IX regulations. This means that the 2024 regulations will likely no longer apply. Recall that since the August 1 effective date of...
OCR Issues FAQ On Privacy When Filing a Complaint
In November 2024, the Department of Education issued a new document: “Frequently Asked Privacy-Related Questions About Filing a Complaint with OCR.” The title is apt, and the document attempts to address the questions commonly received by OCR concerning how the...
OCR Resolves Title VI Shared Ancestry Discrimination Investigation at Temple University in Pennsylvania
In early December the Office for Civil Rights announced that it entered into a resolution agreement with Temple University. The Department of Education’s press release was fairly positive, calling the University’s processes “robust” and finding that the University...
Stop Campus Hazing Act Will Amend the Clery Act – Full Analysis
On December 23, 2024, President Biden signed the Stop Campus Hazing Act (SCHA) into law. The legislation, which amends the Clery Act for the first time in over a decade, will require actions by most colleges and universities beginning in January 2025. Colleges and...
Digital Accessibility—Compliance Updates Required for Schools
As reported in Friday’s The Chronicle of Higher Education, public colleges nationwide will enter 2025 with a pressing mandate to make their web and mobile-app content accessible for all students. That is because by April 24, 2026, all public entities serving...
HR, Bullying or Title IX? OCR Resolution Reminds Schools to Properly Classify Cases
OCR Reaches Resolution of Title IX Sexual Harassment Investigation of Owasso Public Schools in Oklahoma In mid-November, OCR entered into a resolution agreement with Owasso Public Schools in Oklahoma after investigating a Title IX complaint. The complaint alleged that...
The Department of Education issued new documents relating to the 2024 regulations. One about Title IX Coordinators—what is the role, what are their obligations, etc. The other is a FAQ on pregnancy or related conditions, and parental, family, and marital status. We...