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**Know Your Rights****: Title IX    Prohibits Sexual Harassment**1**and Sexual Violence Where You Go to School**

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (“Title IX”), 20 U.S.C. §1681 *et    seq*., is a Federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination on    the basis of sex in education programs and activities.  All public and private    elementary and secondary schools, school districts, colleges, and universities    (hereinafter “schools”) receiving any Federal funds must comply with Title    IX.  Under Title IX, discrimination on the basis of sex can include sexual    harassment or sexual violence, such as rape, sexual assault, sexual battery,and sexual coercion. ****

Below is additional information regarding the specific requirements of Title  IX as they pertain to sexual harassment and sexual violence. 

***What are a school’s responsibilities to address sexual harassment      and sexual violence?***
      - A school has a responsibility to respond promptly and effectively.  If    a school knows or reasonably should know about sexual harassment or sexual    violence that creates a hostile environment, the school must take immediate    action to eliminate the sexual harassment or sexual violence, prevent its    recurrence, and address its effects.
      - Even if a student or his or her parent does not want to file a complaint    or does not request that the school take any action on the student’s behalf,    if a school knows or reasonably should know about possible sexual harassment    or sexual violence, it must promptly investigate to determine what occurred    and then take appropriate steps to resolve the situation.
      - A criminal investigation into allegations of sexual harassment or sexual    violence does not relieve the school of its duty under Title IX to resolve    complaints promptly and equitably.

***What        procedures must a school have in place to prevent sexual harassment and        sexual violence and resolve complaints?*******

- Every School Must Have And Distribute A Policy Against Sex Discrimination

Title IX requires that each school publish a policy that it does not discriminate    on the basis of sex in its education programs and activities.  This notice    must be widely distributed and available on an on-going basis.
The policy must state that inquiries concerning Title IX may be referred    to the school’s Title IX coordinator or to OCR.

- Every School Must Have A Title IX Coordinator 

Every school must designate at least one employee who is responsible      for coordinating the school’s compliance with Title IX.  This person is      sometimes referred to as the Title IX coordinator.  Schools must notify      all students and employees of the name or title and contact information      of the Title IX coordinator. 
The coordinator’s responsibilities include overseeing all complaints  	  of sex discrimination and identifying and addressing any patterns or systemic      problems that arise during the review of such complaints.

- Every School Must Have And Make Known Procedures For Students To      File Complaints Of Sex Discrimination. 
Title IX requires schools to adopt and publish grievance procedures for      students to file complaints of sex discrimination, including complaints      of sexual harassment or sexual violence.  Schools can use general disciplinary      procedures to address complaints of sex discrimination.  But all procedures      must provide for prompt and equitable resolution of sex discrimination      complaints.

Every complainant has the right to present his or her case.  This includes      the right to adequate, reliable, and impartial investigation of complaints,      the right to have an equal opportunity to present witnesses and other evidence,      and the right to the same appeal processes, for both parties.  

Every complainant has the right to be notified of the t
i
me      frame within which: (a) the school will conduct a full investigation of      the complaint; (b) the parties will be notified of the outcome of the complaint;      and (c) the parties may file an appeal, if applicable. 

Every complainant has the right for the complaint to be decided using      a preponderance of the evidence standard (
i.e
., it is more likely      than not that sexual harassment or violence occurred).

Every complainant has the right to be notified, in writing, of the outcome      of the complaint.  Even though federal privacy laws limit disclosure of      certain information in disciplinary proceedings:    
- Schools must disclose to the complainant information about the sanction        imposed on the perpetrator  when the sanction directly relates to        the harassed student.   This includes an order that the harasser        stay away from the harassed student, or that the harasser is prohibited        from attending school for a period of time, or transferred to other classes        or another residence hall. 
- Additionally, the Clery Act (20 U.S.C. §1092(f)), which only applies        to postsecondary institutions, requires that both parties be informed        of the outcome, including sanction information, of any institutional        proceeding alleging a sex offense.  Therefore, colleges and universities        may not require a complainant to abide by a non-disclosure agreement,        in writing or otherwise. 

The grievance procedures may include voluntary informal methods (e.g.,      mediation) for resolving some types of sexual harassment complaints. However,      the complainant must be notified of the right to end the informal process      at any time and begin the formal stage of the complaint process.  In cases      involving allegations of sexual assault, mediation is not appropriate. 

If you want to learn more about your rights, or if you believe that a school  district, college, or university is violating Federal law, you may contact  the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, at (800) 421-3481  or ocr@ed.gov.  If you wish to fill out a complaint  form online, you may do so at: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/complaintintro.html .****

1 Use  of the term “sexual harassment” throughout this document includes sexual violenceunless otherwise noted.  

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