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I have worked in Higher Education for almost 6 years specifically in student support services and academic advising. My roles have consisted in a TRiO SSS Academic Support Coordinator at Frank Phillips College, a Senior Academic Advising Specialist and Program for System Admission Advisor at Tarleton State University, a STEM Support Specialist and now an Advising Associate at Amarillo College. I am currently pursuing the M.Ed. in Student Development and Leadership in Higher Education, along with the Academic Advising Certification at Angelo State University. I chose the legal topic of Title IX. With recent legislation changes and amendments, institutions across the country have been in the speedy process of redesign, and implementation to reflect the new changes, and be in compliance. My audience is intended to be informative to students, faculty and staff at Tarleton State University. Title IX protects students, faculty, staff and visitors to the campus from all forms of sex discrimination.

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I interviewed Cassie Montgomery, Director of Outreach Services, from Amarillo College. Her bio is available at : https://www.linkedin.com/in/cassie-montgomery/. Upon my interview with Cassie it was very evident that Title IX is a present legal/ethical issue important in her field of work. Her specific role is focused on recruiting students from all walks of life, and Title IX protects those students and provides them a safe environment to learn. With the recent regulation changes in Title IX that went into effect in 2020, one of these changes heavily impacted her role: the requirement that all new and incoming transfer students must attend an orientation detailing the institutions Title IX officers and reporting options. Cassie was involved in the orientation content creation for new and incoming transfer students. Another reason why Title IX is important in her work, is that students deserve to feel safe in their learning environment. She would not, in good conscience, knowingly recruit students to come to Amarillo College if there were unsafe environments or unequal opportunities based on sex and gender. Students should know their resources for reporting unwanted sexual behavior and they should have more than one option to do so. Best practices discussed include:

Training for employees should be intentional, often, and enforced.

Rights and responsibilities in regards to protections and violations under Title IX should be made clear to all new, transfer and current students. Students should see that we are committed to providing a safe and equal learning environment for everyone.

Students should have quick access to Title IX resources and information at all times.

An emerging issue that Cassie feels will be a topic of discussion is circling back to gender identity and assigned sex at birth. Many institutions, including Amarillo College, currently do not have a mechanism in place to track a students preferred name and/or gender in the student database. For an example, Amarillo College offers gymnastic courses open to the public. If a student attended a gymnastic course at the age of 5 using one name and assigned sex, that information is never fully erased from Amarillo College system even if they legally change their name and sex. Transgender students do not currently have the same protections in place for them which can alienate them from attending college at a all, or it could push them toward a small amount of schools who do intentionally factor transgender students into their Title IX criteria and response. Given that several collegiate athletic organizations have also made a stance on how transgender students can participate in sports, this is going to be an ongoing and hot topic.

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The American Association of State Colleges and Universities released an article that discusses the difficulty that higher education advocates were facing in requesting that there be a delay for the effective date of August 14th, 2020 in implementing the amended Title IX rule's. The request for a delay came as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic that has impacted our educational system tremendously in overcoming disruptions, and challenges, and by requesting for a delay, this would have allowed institutions more time to effectively and efficiently implement the Title IX regulations on their campuses.

https://www.aascu.org/AASCUAdvantage/Articles/TitleIXGoesIntoEffect/

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Colleges Had 3 Months to Overhaul Sexual-Misconduct Policies. Now They're Scrambling.

This article discusses the impact and stress placed on higher education administrators to rewrite, redesign, and implement policies under the new Title IX regulations in order for their institutions to be compliant in 3 months.

Frustration from administrators towards the Department of Education for not granting leniency and a delay in implementation.

Overwhelmed institutions are facing other challenges and uncertainties due to the COVID- 19 pandemic such as low enrollment, furloughs, remote employment and remote learning, and budget cuts.

"Campus's are scrambling to rewrite policies, make new hires, train existing staff and faculty members on the rules interpreting Title IX, and in some cases, the regulations require a complete overhaul of the way colleges investigate sexual assault and punish offenders" (Brown, 2020).

Brown, S. (2020, August 13). Colleges Had 3 Months to Overhaul Sexual-Misconduct Policies. Now They're Scrambling. The Chronical of Higher Education. https://www.chronicle.com/article/colleges-had-three-months-to-overhaul-sexual-misconduct-policies-now-theyre-scrambling

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U.S. Publishes New Regulations on Campus Sexual Assault

Final regulations were released by the U.S. Department of Education for Title IX.

All institutions that receive federal aid will be mandated to be in compliance of the new Title IX regulations by August 14, 2020.

"The regulations will be the first Title IX guidance published by the OCR to go through a formal notice-and-comment process since 1997, and unlike guidance issued by the Obama administration in 2011 and 2014, they will have the force of the law behind them" (Anderson, 2020).

New regulations will secure due process.

Colleges are required to provide live hearings and cross examination of all parties and witnesses.

"New regulations define the scope of colleges' responsibility to respond to complaints of sexual misconduct" (Anderson, 2020).

Anderson, G. ( 2020, May 7). U.S. Publishes New Regulations on Campus Sexual Assault. Inside Higher Ed. https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2020/05/07/education-department-releases-final-title-ix-regulations

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Slide 6: Tile IX f the Education Amendments of 1972

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Slide 6: Tile IX f the Education Amendments of 1972

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Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 state: " No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance." (20 U.S.C. ch 38 § 1681 et seq.)

Title IX is a federal law that serves as a powerful took for fighting campus violence.

The law was put in place to allow all students equal access to education regardless of their sex.

Requires all colleges receiving Federal funding to combat gender-based violence and harassment.

Requires all colleges to respond to survivors needs in order to ensure that all students have equal access to education.

Private college and universities are not exempt from Title IX regulations.

https://www.justice.gov/crt/title-ix-education-amendments-1972

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Slide 7: Senate Bill 212- Mandatory Reporting for University Employees

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Slide 7: Senate Bill 212- Mandatory Reporting for University Employees

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Senate Bill 212 requires employees of Texas public and private higher education institutions to report sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, or stalking against a student or employee to the institution's Title IX coordinator. (S.B. 212. (2020))

The bill highlights:

Mandatory Reporting of Incidents

Provides exceptions to the mandatory reporting requirement

Failure to Report or False Reports is a Class B misdemeanor

Confidentiality- SB 212 specifically exempts information gathered as a result of a mandatory report from disclosure under the Texas Public Information Act. Id. § 51.256(a)(1).

New Administrative Reporting Requirements

Administrative Enforcement

Effective Date- SB 212 went into effect on 9/1/2019, but section 51.255(a), which created a criminal office, went into effect 1/1/2020

https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/86R/billtext/html/SB00212I.htm

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Slide 8: House Bill 1735- Institutional Prevention and Response to Sexual Misconduct

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Slide 8: House Bill 1735- Institutional Prevention and Response to Sexual Misconduct

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House Bill 1735 creates new requirements for institutional policies on sexual misconduct and authorizes a civil penalty for non-compliance. (H.B. 1735. (2020))

The bill highlights:

Expands policy on sexual misconduct

Created confidentiality protections

Requires all "peace officers" receive and complete Trauma Informed Investigation training

Collaboration with Third Parties

Disciplinary Process is continued even if a student withdraws or graduates

Enforcement- THECB can asses an administrative penalty up to $2 million again an institution for noncompliance

https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/86R/billtext/html/HB01735I.htm

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Slide 9: Policy/Process and Content of Regulations

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Slide 9: Policy/Process and Content of Regulations

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Each postsecondary educational institution, including each community college, shall adopt a policy on sexual harassments, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking applicable to each enrolled student and each employee of the institution and have the policy approved by the institutions governing body. Tex. Educ. Code § 51.282(a). (e); 19 Tex. Admin. Code. § 3.4(a), (d)(2)(c).

The policy must include:

Definition of prohibited behavior

Sanctions for violations

Protocol for reporting and responding

Interim measures to protect victims pending the institution's disciplinary process

A statement regarding the rights and responsibilities of the victim

https://texreg.sos.state.tx.us/public/readtac$ext.TacPage?sl=R&app=9&p_dir=&p_rloc=&p_tloc=&p_ploc=&pg=1&p_tac=&ti=19&pt=1&ch=3&rl=17

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Slide 10: Local Administrative Law/Policy/Rule

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Slide 10: Local Administrative Law/Policy/Rule

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Texas A&M Policy No. 08.01, Civil Rights Protections and Compliance

This policy outlines the civil rights protections provided by the system to employees, students, applicants for employment and admission, and the public, sets for procedures and responsibilities for compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

Revised 7/7/2020, and effective 8/14/2020

Provided equal opportunity to all employees, students, applicants for employment and admission, and the public

All complaints, appeals, or reports of discrimination will be appropriately reviewed and addressed

Establishes system-wide standards

Duty to respond to inappropriate employee or student conduct that does not constitute discrimination under this regulation

https://policies.tamus.edu/08-01-01.pdf

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In the American College Personnel Association (ACPA), section 4, Responsibility to Society, 4.3 states that student affairs professionals will "Not discriminate on the basis of age, culture, ethnicity, gender identity, race, class, religion, or sexual orientation (ACPA, p.5). As higher education professionals we have a duty and obligation to be in compliance of Title IX regulations at our institutions. If we feel that we are a victim, a witness, or have been confided in of a violation that goes against the protections under Title IX, we have a responsibility and must be accountable in reporting said incident. We must be committed to providing a safe educational and working environment that is free from discrimination and misconduct based on sex/gender for our students, faculty and staff.

American College Personnel Association. Statement of Ethical Principles & Standards. Retrieved April 28, 2021, from https://www.myacpa.org/sites/default/files/Ethical_Principles_Standards.pdf

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Slide 12: Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards

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Slide 12: Personal Connection to the Legal and Ethical Standards

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Title IX is a integral part of my educational journey as a woman. The law was put in place to allow all students equal access to education regardless of their sex. It was and continues to be an important and monumental first step to provide women of American something that is rightfully ours. An equal chance to attend schools or our choice. To be able to develop the skills and knowledge, and apply those skills with the knowledge to secure the jobs of our choice with equal pay for equal work. Title IX is a pivotal law that has allowed me the same access as my peers who are not of the same sex. It has ensured and decreased the equity gap for women in which it prohibits the discrimination based solely on sex in education. Institutions should continue to ensure that they are promoting a positive school culture and in compliance with Title IX regulations and policies.

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Slide 13: Bulleted List of Recommendations/Best Practices for Compliance

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Slide 13: Bulleted List of Recommendations/Best Practices for Compliance

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Stay up to date and informed on any and all federal and state changes to the law. When there is an update to the law, make sure you are updating your policies and procedure and reinforcing those changes to be in compliance.

Raise awareness of the role of Title IX Coordinators and Officers on your campus and resources available.

Provide thorough training to students, faculty and staff yearly, and be prepared to provide a proper investigation..

Educate and train student, faculty and staff on bystander intervention.

Create a positive, supportive and safe learning environment.

Teach and instill the definition of the concepts of consent and incapacitation

Utilize a variety of communication tools (email, text, websites, newsletters, etc.) to engage everyone on the institutions Title IX policies.