Page 84 - Security Today, January/February 2021

“As schools shift from creating new policies to executing them, it will be useful to bring leadership teams together to review the key changes, put them into context, and discuss where Title IX coordinators will need institutional support.”
By Sarah Ford and Josh Whitlock
Title IX Updates
Key changes, context and where schools may still need help
Higher Education Regulations
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Schools around the country are now required to comply with the Department of Education’s new Title IX regulations, which are massively impactful in the critical area of how to handle reports of sexual harassment. We are working with many colleges and universities who have made heroic efforts to overhaul their policies between May and August, all while strug- gling to contend with the operational, academic and financial crises occasioned by the coronavirus pandemic.
While the number of students currently on campus varies across the country because of COVID-19, sexual harassment can occur online as well as in person, and schools undoubtedly will still receive allegations. The Education Department has signaled that it will be robust in its enforcement of the new regulations. As schools shift from creating new policies to executing them, it will be useful to
bring leadership teams together to review the key changes, put them into context, and discuss where Title IX coordinators will need insti- tutional support.
Putting the Changes in Context
For all the commotion that the new regulations are causing, it is worth remembering the key things that remain unchanged. Sexual harassment, including stalking, dating and domestic violence and sexual assault, is a violation of Title IX. The role of the Title IX coordinator is to receive reports and manage the institutional response. And schools must still provide supportive measures to students and employees who report being victimized, regardless of whether those individuals wish to pursue a formal disciplinary process against the alleged offender.
40 campuslifesecurity.com | JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2021