Lawyers, especially the KSB lawyers school lawyers, are a strange group of people. (Have you read our bios? Strange group of people . . .) Nothing brings us more joy than exciting legal updates in the school law world. For months, we have been waiting with bated breath for the new Title IX regulations to be released. The Department of Education indicated the new regulations would be released this month, which is looking extremely doubtful. So, good news! This blog post is not a deep dive into the new Title IX regulations. Instead, this is a reminder that OCR is still engaged in compliance reviews of K-12 schools under the current Title IX regulations.
In a recent OCR compliance review involving a school district in Connecticut, OCR determined the District violated Title IX by failing to ensure adequate Title IX coordination, failing to adopt and publish grievance procedures that complied with Title IX, and failed to respond equitably to complaints. Here, the District provided OCR with its Title IX policies and procedures which included four separate grievance procedures. Each grievance procedure had a different primary contact and methodology for resolving complaints. When conducting the investigation, OCR was unable to find the “administrative regulations” referenced in the policies on the District’s website.
As part of its analysis, OCR determined the District’s Title IX grievance procedures were not compliant with the Title IX regulation. In particular, the District did not provide notice to employees and students about the Title IX grievance procedures. OCR determined the use of multiple procedures did not provide sufficient notice to complainants and also likely caused confusion if an employee or student attempted to determine which procedure to utilize. Specifically, “OCR found that the procedures in place were so intertwined that it made it difficult for covered individuals, as well as District staff, to understand relevant rights and the District’s obligations under Title IX.”
What should you add to your homework list? Review your Title IX policy. We strongly recommend having only one Title IX policy that covers both employees and students. Additionally, review your website and ensure the Title IX policy is easily accessible and that the Title IX coordinator is listed.
If your Title IX policy is not legally sufficient, we have a Title IX package available for purchase which includes a Title IX policy, all necessary forms, and a flow chart. Please reach out if your District has any questions about the current Title IX regs or the proposed regs, please feel free to contact Karen, Steve, Bobby, Coady, Jordan, Tyler, or Sara at 402-804-8000 or by sending all of us an email at ksb@ksbschoollaw.com.