​

 

Title IX:  A Student's Right to Know

 

WHAT IS TITLE IX?

"No person in the U.S. shall on the basis of sex be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving federal financial aid."

Title IX (20 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq.) is a federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs and activates, including academic, educational, extracurricular, athletics and employment.  Title Ix protects all people regardless of their gender or gender identity from sex discrimination, including sexual harassment and sexual misconduct.

 

Title IX covered acts:

• Sexual discrimination/ harassment, sexual misconduct
• sexual violence (rape, sexual assault, etc.)
• sexual exploitation
• sex/gender based stalking
• sex/gender based bullying
• sex/gender based hazing
• intimate partner violence

 

When sexual violence/sexual harassment is reported and found to have occurred, Title IX requires the District must take prompt and effective steps to:

1. End the sexual violence/sexual harassment,
2. Prevent its recurrence, and
3. Address its effects, whether or not the sexual violence/sexual harassment is the subject of a criminal investigation.

 

What is The Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)?

The Violence Against Women Act (42 U.S.C. § 13701 et seq.) is a federal law that provides funding for te investigation and prosecution of violent crimes against women, imposed automatic and mandatory restitution on the victims of those convicted, and allows civil redress in cases where prosecutors chose not to prosecute. The Act also established the Office on Violence Against Women within the Department of Justice

In 2013, the VAWA was strengthened and reauthorized with the inclusion of the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act (Campus Save). Campus Save also amended the Jeanne Clery Act and clarified that "sexual violence" includes domestic violence, dating violence and stalking which must be included in the Campus Clery reports, and also required that institutional policies address and prevent sexual violence through training and education, and certain discipline procedures.

 

Campus Save higher education institution obligations include:

1. Increased transparency about sexual assault issues on campus by expanding sexual crime reporting;
2. Identify the institution's Campus Security Authority (CSA's) personnel;
3. Create a Campus Sexual Assault Victim Bill of Rights;
4. Set standards for disciplinary proceedings; and
5. Require campus-wide prevention education programs