U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos rescinded part of Title IX and put in place temporary guidelines Sept. 22.
In an effort to improve its response to community concerns, the University of Houston System is rebranding its personal safety system, MySafeCampus, to the Fraud and Non-Compliance Hotline.
DeVos released a new interim Q&A for schools on how to follow and investigate any sexual misconduct on a college campus. These sets of rules are temporary place holders while the new set of rules is being decided.
“This interim guidance will help schools as they work to combat sexual misconduct and will treat all students fairly,” said DeVos in a press release. “Schools must continue to confront these horrific crimes and behaviors head-on. There will be no more sweeping them under the rug. But the process also must be fair and impartial, giving everyone more confidence in its outcomes.”
The new temporary set of guidelines also states that the accused is allowed to appeal any rulings, while the accuser is denied the right to appeal. If the accused is found not guilty, the accuser may not try to revisit the case in any way. The purpose for this rule is to ensure that no one can be tried with the same charge twice, i.e. double jeopardy, much like how a standard criminal court of law operates.
Currently, there is no fixed time frame for a school to complete a Title IX investigation. Schools and universities are encouraged to handle the situation in a timely manner, given the circumstances, to provide resolutions for both the accused and accuser.
University of Houston System Chancellor Renu Khator released a statement to university students and staff Sept. 25, assuring them that anyone can report any incidents in the workplace. Confidently through this new tool to the campus police department or to the Title IX Coordinator. These include financial and auditing concerns, harassment, theft, substance abuse and unsafe conditions.
The new University of Houston System misconduct and unsafe conditions reporting system is similar to the old personal safety app and will provide greater reporting capabilities including, but not limited, to Title IX issues.
Title IX of the Education Amendment was originally enacted in Congress by U.S. Senator Birch Bayh and signed into law by Richard Nixon June 23, 1972. Title IX was originally created to give equality to men and women in academics and athletics. Over time, it evolved to help prevent sexual misconduct and violence on school campuses. Any institution that receives federal funds must ensure that no student suffers a deprivation of their access to educational opportunities on the basis of sex.
Title IX has a temporary set of guidelines in place that schools can follow while the new guidelines are still being proposed.
The new revisions to Title IX have withdrawn the Dear Colleague Letter on Sexual Violence from April 4, 2011, and Questions and Answers on Title IX Sexual Violence from April 29, 2014, that was put in place by the Obama administration.
“The recession of this guidance does not change UHCL’s commitment to fostering an environment where students, faculty and staff are able to do their best work without the barriers of limited access or discrimination,” Title IX Coordinator at UHCL Corey Benson said.
Schools have the choice of whether to stay with the current set of guidelines, which is the preponderance of the evidence standard, or switch to the new guidelines under the clear and convincing evidence standard. A case using the preponderance of evidence standard states that the evidence must be more than 50 percent likely to be true. The clear and convincing evidence standard requires a higher burden of proof with even more conclusive evidence.
“The UH System Equal Opportunity Service Office, which is the Title IX Office for the entire system, has elected to continue using preponderance as the standard,” said Dean of Students David Rachita. “This is the same standard we use for all student code of conduct violations, including academic dishonesty.”
Now that UHCL is a four-year university, and student housing will be coming to campus next year, there is the concern that a rise in incidents that pertain to Title IX might occur. Rachita believes the climate of the school will not change and that UHCL has always been vigilant in responding to any incident pertaining to these issues.
“Incident reporting always increases when more individuals are added to a campus environment and our hall,” Rachita said. “Title IX staff are trained and prepared to respond to such reports.”
Incidents that happen on campus can be reported anonymously on UHCL’s Fraud and Non-Compliance Hotline. This report will be sent to a third-party system and will keep the person informed on what is happening in the case. Incidents that pertain to sexual misconduct should also be reported to UHCL Title IX Coordinator Corey Benson.
“As Title IX Coordinator, I am available to provide support, explain policies and procedures and provide education on Title IX,” said Benson. “Students, faculty and staff should contact my office to report alleged violations of the Sexual Misconduct Policy and to learn more about reporting options, including receiving information about support services and resources that are available to those who have experienced sexual violence, harassment or discrimination.”
Anyone can report acts of misconduct using the Fraud and Non-Compliance Hotline. This tool is in place to help students, faculty and staff report confidently and appropriately.
“Every report of misconduct and noncompliance is investigated,” Khator said. “No member of our community is above the process.”