Although Title IX is one of most commonly discussed topics on college campuses today, few people actually understand what it is and how it works. To some, Title IX is just the office on their campus that deals with sexual misconduct issues; yet Title IX is a policy with a deep history in women’s rights and protections. The Title IX regulation states “that except for provided elsewhere in this part, no person shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any academic or extracurricular”. This portion of the amendments made it unconstitutional to discriminate against a woman regarding acceptance into a school or within the workplace.
Prior to 1972, colleges across the US were still denying women due to their sex and were legally allowed to. Since the enactment of Title IX, the number of women in higher education has greatly increased. Now within the United States, there is a higher percentage of women in higher education in comparison to men. Women! Title IX has also created protection for women within school and workplace once they step through the door. Through the policy, there is job and school security for pregnant women throughout each stage of their pregnancy. An important note to remember is that every assurance put in place by Title IX applies to all sexes and same-gender misconducts.
The policies within Title IX have shifted in the past year for the worse. Unfortunately, prior to Trump’s final days in office, his department of Education rewrote the definition of sexual misconduct. This new definition limits sexual misconduct to extremely specific scenarios with harsher guidelines as to what actually fits the definition as a case of harassment. What this means is that it is harder for Title IX lawyers and officers to make a case against people that have committed misconduct. The jurisdiction of Title IX on college campuses was shrunk by this policy change, and in turn it has made the Title IX process more difficult for victims and less likely for charges to pass.
Thankfully, the Biden administration has begun to review these changes and plan to make policies of their own yet it will most likely take over a year to produce the proposals. While this news is frustrating, it is important to continue to hold people accountable for their actions and continue to use the resources that are still in place. Remember, we do it for Ruth.
For further questions on Title IX contact Melissa Nichols: melissa.nichols@furman.edu