### OFFICE OF THE ASSISTANT SECRETARY

January 31, 2007

Dear Colleague:

I am writing to inform you that the U.S. Department of  Education (Department) has amended the regulations implementing Title IX of the  Education Amendments of 1972, 20 U.S.C. 1681 etseq. (Title IX),  applicable to nonvocational single-sex classes, extracurricular activities, and  schools at the elementary and secondary education levels.  These new regulations were published in the FederalRegister on October 25, 2006, and took effect on November 24, 2006.  

The new regulations apply to local educational agencies  (LEAs) and other recipients of financial assistance from the Department that  provide nonvocational elementary and secondary education.  They provide recipients more flexibility to  offer nonvocational elementary and secondary classes, extracurricular  activities, and schools on a single-sex basis, consistent with the  nondiscrimination requirements of Title IX.   Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education  programs and activities receiving Federal financial assistance.  

The purpose of these new regulations is to provide  requirements that, if implemented by recipients, will ensure compliance with  Title IX in those situations in which recipients choose to provide  nonvocational single-sex education.   Like the former regulations, the new regulations do not require that  recipients provide single-sex education.   Single-sex education is merely an option.  Recipients of financial assistance from the Department that  choose to provide single-sex education should carefully evaluate their policies  and practices and ensure their programs meet the requirements of the  regulations.

*Summary of Title IX requirements for single-sex classes and extracurricular  activities*

The new regulations provide for a new exception to the  general prohibition against single-sex classes and extracurricular  activities.  Under the former  regulations, single-sex classes were generally prohibited in a coeducational  school with specific limited exceptions, such as for sex education classes and  contact sports in physical education classes.   The new regulations retain the specific exceptions from the former  regulations and add a new exception, which permits a recipient to provide  single-sex nonvocational classes and extracurricular activities based on the  recipient’s “important objective.”  Each  single-sex class or extracurricular activity must be based on the recipient’s  important objective.

The new regulations establish two important objectives  upon which a recipient may base a single-sex class or extracurricular  activity.  The first important objective  is to improve educational achievement of its students through a recipient’s  overall established policy to provide diverse educational opportunities.  The second important objective is to meet  the particular, identified educational needs of a recipient’s students.  Regardless of the recipient’s important  objective, the regulations require that the single-sex nature of the class or  extracurricular activity be substantially related to achieving the recipient’s  important objective.  

A recipient that chooses to provide  single-sex classes or extracurricular activities is required to implement its  important objective in an evenhanded manner with respect to male and female  students.  The regulations require that  student enrollment in any single-sex class or extracurricular activity must be  completely voluntary.  The regulations  also require that the recipient provide to all students, including the students  excluded from the single-sex class or extracurricular activity based on sex, a  substantially equal coeducational class or extracurricular activity in the same  subject or activity.  In addition to the  required substantially equal coeducational class or extracurricular activity, a  recipient, if necessary to comply with the requirement to implement its  objective in an evenhanded manner, may also be required to provide a  substantially equal single-sex class or extracurricular activity in the same  subject or activity to students of the excluded sex.  

After a recipient has established single-sex classes or  extracurricular activities under this new regulatory exception, the regulations  require recipients to conduct periodic self-evaluations of their single-sex  classes or extracurricular activities at least every two years.  Recipients are required to ensure through  their self-evaluation that there is a substantial relationship between the  single-sex nature of the class or activity and achievement of the important  objective.  Recipients also are required  to ensure that their single-sex classes or extracurricular activities are based  on genuine justifications and do not rely on overly broad generalizations about  the different talents, capacities, or preferences of either sex.

*Summary of Title IX requirements for single-sex schools*

With respect to requirements for offering single-sex  public schools, the new regulations also provide more flexibility.  The former regulations permitted an LEA to  offer a nonvocational single-sex school if it offered a corresponding school  for students of the other sex.  Under  the Department’s interpretation of the former requirements, the corresponding  school must also have been a single-sex school.  Under the new regulations, an LEA is permitted to offer a  single-sex school to students of one sex if it provides a substantially equal  school to students excluded from the single-sex school based on sex, but that  school may be either single-sex or coeducational.  The new regulations also allow a nonvocational public charter  school that is a single-school LEA under State law an exemption from the  requirement to provide a substantially equal school for students of the  excluded sex.

Enclosed for your convenience is a copy of the new  regulatory provisions.  When the final  regulations were published in the FederalRegister, the  regulatory provisions were accompanied by additional explanatory  information.  An electronic link to the FederalRegister and this supplementary information is available on the  Department’s Web site at http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/finrule/2006-4/102506a.pdf.

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in the Department enforces  the Title IX regulations, among other civil rights requirements, and provides  technical assistance to school districts and other recipients that request such  assistance in voluntarily complying with the civil rights laws enforced by  OCR.  To submit questions and requests  for technical assistance in connection with these new requirements, you may  address them to T9singlesexTA@ed.gov,  a dedicated e-mail address, which will be in operation until December 31, 2007.

I look forward to continuing our work together to ensure  equal access to education and to promote educational excellence throughout the  nation.  Thank you for your efforts on  behalf of America’s students.

Sincerely,

> Stephanie Monroe    Assistant Secretary     for Civil Rights

Enclosure    

 

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