Under proposed Title IX regulations from the federal government, coaches and athletic department administrators would still be barred in most cases from removing an athlete accused of sexual misconduct from a sports team while an investigation is pending.
While the U.S. Department of Education proposed rolling back several of the Title IX provisions enacted in 2020 by the Trump administration, it keeps in place the provision that preventsDisciplinary action against students until an investigation has determined they were at fault
The Title IX gender equity law requires schools to respond to allegations of sexual harassment, assault and discrimination. For the first time, the rules would make it clear that preventing someone from participating in school programs and activities consistent with their gender identity would violate Title IX.
The department said it would engage in separate rulemaking to address whether and how the department should amend the Title IX regulations to address students' eligibility to participate on a particular male or female athletics team
During a call with reporters, a senior education department official said there's no specific timetable for those proposals but noted that they are very important to address.
The Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education told reporters Thursday that protections for the Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Students were an important part of the proposed regulations.
He said that "we must seize this opportunity to better protect LGBTQ youth who face bullied and harassed, experience higher rates of anxiety, depression and suicide, and too often grow up feeling that they don't belong" You are a part of our school. You have a lot of potential. You should be given the chance to shine. The administration of Biden and Harris has your back.
Anne Lieberman, the director of policy and programs at Athlete Ally, believes that the Department of Education will do everything in its power to protect all students. I believe that the administration is aware of the damage that will be done to kids if they are not allowed to play sports with their friends.
The U.S. Department of Education solicited public comment on changing Title IX regulations in response to criticism that the department under former Secretary Betsy DeVos had eroded protections for survivors. The department listened to what stakeholders had to say about the 2020 regulations.
Some of the proposed regulations for colleges will be changed or rolled back.
Sex-based harassment is defined as discrimination based on sex. If sex-based conduct is so offensive that it effectively denies a person equal access to the recipient's education program or activity, the regulations only prohibit it.
Reports of incidents that took place off-campus in a school's Title IX jurisdiction are not included.
Permit, but not require, a live hearing in which those who report incidents and those who are accused can be cross-examined, and allow for such hearings to happen in a virtual setting. Live hearings are needed in most cases.
If the school uses the higher clear-and-convincing standard, there is more than a 50% chance the inappropriate conduct occurred.
College athletes have been accused of sexual assault more often than non-athletes according to a survey.
The rule affecting coaches' ability to remove athletes from teams applies not just to athletics but to any type of discipline, which a school must not impose unless it is determined that sex discrimination has occurred.
When an athlete is accused of sexual harassment, Cardona said coaches have an important role to play.
Cardona said that the process must be followed in order to determine if the allegations were true. There are no easy answers to that. The process of determining the outcome of the case is important for not only the student, but also for the entire school community.
While the department can offer supportive measures to students and others who report incidents and can take steps to ensure their safety while the investigation is ongoing, keeping the rule prohibitingDisciplinary action is cementing the fair process principal for the accused.
A proposal that would allow athletes who have been accused of sexual assault to keep playing and represent the school was a disappointment to a survivor advocate.
Those outside of a sports bubble don't get the discussion about violent athletes and don't care, she said. People would approach this issue differently if they understood the power of sports on our college campuses and how many decisions are made through the lens of protecting athletes and sports programs.
After 60 days, the Department of Education will make a final ruling.
The AP contributed to this report.
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