Association News

United States Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos released on Wednesday, May 6, 2020, the final regulations regarding campus responsibilities for ruling on sexual harassment incidents at institutions of higher education under Title IX.  In an effort to affect the Department of Education, IACLEA submitted an 11-page outline of the provisions to the U.S. Federal Register on January 28, 2019, in which it highlighted areas of agreement and provided suggestions on specific provisions that caused significant concern. 

IACLEA is disappointed that its suggestions were not reflected in the final ruling of the new regulations.  As stated previously regarding the new regulations, IACLEA strongly supports due process rights.  These rights should not come at the expense of any victim.  IACLEA believes the new regulations could negatively impact reporting on possible Title IX cases and can lead to the needless re-traumatization of victims.  Furthermore, IACLEA remains opposed to any additional regulations that can adversely affect public safety on campuses and within the IACLEA community, including Title IX coordinators and compliance officers. 

Furthermore, it is equally troubling to IACLEA that the new regulations were released with an August 12, 2020 implementation date.  In recognizing the current strain that members of the campus public safety community are under due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the directive of an August 12 implementation date displays a disconnect between the higher education community, its public safety entities, and the Department of Education.  In the coming weeks, in recognition of the added stress that this will cause to its members, IACLEA’s Government Relations Committee will review the document in full and submit a formal letter to the Department of Education requesting a delay of the implementation and publication of the final ruling

IACLEA will also continue working with its higher education partners to provide its members with information and best practices on how to implement these changes. IACLEA’s full review of the proposed Title IX changes can be viewed here.

For additional information, please contact IACLEA Director of Government & External Relations Altmann Pannell at apannell@iaclea.org or (202) 618-8118.