ATIXA's 2024 Program Legal and 2020 OPEN Center Responses

What happens to records following the required seven-year retention period?

Is a recipient permitted to conduct teacher or faculty discipline processes in which sanctions are reviewed by a separate committee, and which can lead to tenure revocation proceedings, outside of the requirements of 34 C.F.R. §106.45, or are recipients required to combine the 6 determination regarding responsibility and sanctions aspects of a Title IX grievance process into a single process subject to the requirements of 34 C.F.R. § 106.45?

Do the requirements in the Title IX regulations apply to allegations between employees of a recipient?

Is a recipient required to notify a parent or guardian of reported sexual harassment that affects that parent or guardian’s student?

Is a recipient required to investigate a formal complaint alleging that sexual harassment occurred off campus or against a student engaged in a study abroad program, or must such complaints be dismissed?

May a recipient use the procedures outlined in 34 C.F.R. § 106.45 of the Title IX regulations even in cases where an incident of sexual harassment occurs outside of the recipient’s education program or activity and thus does not trigger the recipient’s duties under 34 C.F.R. § 106.44(a)?

Under the Title IX regulations, will the Department apply the deliberate indifference standard to a complaint regarding a recipient’s response to sexual harassment? For example, will the Department apply the deliberate indifference standard to assess a respondent’s allegations that the recipient’s grievance process was inequitable or that the supportive measures implemented by the recipient were unreasonably burdensome?

If a formal complaint alleges attempted sexual assault, would that be covered under the definition of sexual harassment in 34 C.F.R. § 106.30(a), or would a recipient need to dismiss that complaint for Title IX purposes?

How should recipients reconcile the requirements in the Title IX regulations with different requirements in guidance documents previously issued by OCR?

Do the new Title IX regulations allow universities to sanction/discipline Respondents who are employees or faculty using procedures that are different from the procedures used to sanction/discipline Respondents who are students?

In cases against Student Respondents, the Adjudicator/Hearing Officer would determine the appropriate sanction/discipline;  the Adjudicator/Hearing Officer would issue a written decision simultaneously to both parties that contains the sanction/discipline and rationale, along with notice of the parties 3 grounds for appeal.  In cases against Employee or Faculty Respondents, the Adjudicator/Hearing Officer would issue a written decision simultaneously to both parties along with notice of their 3 grounds for appeal, but no sanction would be included.

After the appeal is completed, the University would determine appropriate sanctions for the staff and faculty respondents.  The respondents would then have the right to grieve those sanctions pursuant to State law grievance rights, collective bargaining agreements or faculty grievance rights.  The complainant (student, staff or faculty) would NOT have a right to participate in any staff or faculty grievance process challenging the sanction/discipline.