OCR Addresses Restraint and Seclusion Protocols Impacting Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) in Secondary Education
Read moreOn December 7, 2022 and December 16, 2022, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced separate resolution agreements with the Davis Joint Unified School District (DJUSD), California and Southeastern Cooperative Educational Programs (SECEP), Virginia. The agreements pertain to the districts’ use of restraint and seclusion interventions…
Department of Education Tentatively Sets May Publication Date for Title IX Regulations
Read moreAccording to the regulatory agenda, the Title IX final regulations are expected this May. To maintain transparency, the Office of Information & Regulatory Affairs in the Office of Management & Budget provides public notices on these regulations. The listed date of May 00, 2023 is a placeholder. The regulations may…
OCR Announces Resolution Agreement of Racial Harassment Investigation of Ottumwa Community School District in Iowa
Read moreOttumwa, Iowa image by Barry Dale Gilfry On December 5, 2022, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announced it had resolved a complaint of racial harassment filed against Ottumwa Community School District in Iowa. OCR determined that the district violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act…
OCR Announces Resolution Agreement of Title IX Athletics Investigation of Salem-Keizer School District No. 24J in Oregon
Read moreIn November, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announced it had resolved a complaint against Salem-Keizer School District No. 24J in Oregon, filed for inequitable athletics access for girls. Current Title IX regulations require schools and institutions operating athletic programs to “provide equal athletic opportunity for members…
OCR Announces Resolution Agreement of Racial Harassment Investigation of Peoria Unified School District in Arizona
Read moreOn September 30, 2022, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announced it had resolved a complaint of racial harassment filed against Peoria Unified School District in Arizona. OCR determined that the district violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by failing to address harassment…
Pregnancy and Related Conditions: Comparing Existing Title IX Regulations with the 2022 Proposed Rules
Read moreReaders may recall that the May 2020 Title IX Final Rule does not include information about pregnancy or related conditions. The 2020 regulations covered a narrow set of conduct, specifically, sexual harassment and sexual and interpersonal violence. Title IX has long included protections for pregnant people. Below, let’s walk through…
Comment Period Is Closed: Over 240,000 Comments on the 2022 Title IX Proposed Regulations
In Proposed Title IX Rules, Title IX onRead moreThe comment period closed on September 12, 2022 for the Title IX proposed regulations. You can find up-to-date information about the number of comments and view many comments on regulations.gov. As of September 13, that page showed 235,816 total comments received and more than 57,000 viewable online. What happens now?…
Are Live Hearings Still Alive? Considering the Intersection of the Proposed Rule and Federal and State Precedent
In Proposed Title IX Rules, Title IX onRead moreOne talking point emerging from the release of the Proposed Title IX Rule is that colleges and universities are going to abandon live hearing models in sexual misconduct resolutions. However, rumors of the death of live hearings are probably off-base. Instead, we may see a return of policy experimentation, including…
Proposed Title IX Rules Have Groundbreaking Protections For LGBTQI+ People
Read moreOver the past decade, protections for LGBTQI+ students have changed frequently and dramatically with each political administration. Guidance issued during the Obama administration explicitly stated that LGBTQI+ students were protected under Title IX, but, like other Obama-era policies, these protections were never subjected to formal rulemaking. The Dear Colleague Letter…
A Closer Look at the Title IX Proposed Rules: Coordination Between Title IX and Disability/Accessibility Services
Read moreAs keen readers may have noticed, the Department of Education included many references to disability throughout its 2022 proposed Title IX regulations and in the 500+ page preamble that explains why certain changes or additions are being proposed. While some of the suggested language – like adding a definition of…
CHIPS and Science Act Includes Efforts to STEM Sexual Harassment
In Campus Climate Surveys, Title IX onRead moreRecent legislation will require that the U.S. Department of Education create a national climate survey for college and university students. This major requirement was included as a part of the Violence Against Women Act reauthorization and has largely flown under the radar. The mandate may seem straightforward; however, questions abound.…
Welcome Sarah Harebo
In Announcements, Title IX onRead moreWe are pleased to announce Sarah Harebo as our Director of Title IX and Equity Services. Sarah will oversee Grand River Solutions’ Title IX Coordinator and Equity Director services which provides direct staffing support to schools looking to enhance their Title IX and equity teams or to assist during times…