Duke recently updated its Title IX regulations in response to changes to the federal policy that took effect on Aug. 1, increasing the number of employees obligated to respond to reports of policy violations and adjusting aspects of the hearing process.
The Biden administration’s new standards, announced by the Department of Education in April, focus on responding speedily and effectively to instances of sex discrimination, including sexual harassment.
“The regulations set out certain requirements for how schools must respond to reports of sex discrimination and sex-based harassment and how schools must train employees on these obligations,” wrote Adrienne Allison, the University’s deputy Title IX coordinator, in an email to The Chronicle. “Duke’s policies, processes and resources already met many of the requirements of the new regulations, thanks in large part to student advocacy and engagement.”
The DOE requires schools that receive federal financial assistance to communicate their “nondiscrimination policies and procedures” to all members of their community so that they “understand their rights.”
Duke released a message to faculty and staff on Sept. 5 detailing policy changes to reporting protocols in cases of “discrimination and harassment,” as well as student disclosures of pregnancy.
“Duke’s existing policy requires staff and faculty who are considered ‘responsible employees’ to share incidents of possible discrimination and harassment with the Office for Institutional Equity,” wrote Kimberly Hewitt, vice president for institutional equity and chief diversity officer, in the Sept. 5 message. “The new regulations have expanded the members of our community who will have some kind of required response to certain types of discrimination and harassment.”
The message notes that “responsible employees” must “report incidents of possible discrimination and harassment” to OIE. The list of employees designated as “responsible” includes faculty, staff with teaching and supervising roles, graduate teaching assistants, resident assistants and athletic department staff, among others.
Allison explained that while the number of “responsible employees” did not increase with the regulation updates, additional employees now have a responsibility to respond to disclosure of Title IX violations.
When a person discloses an incident of “possible discrimination and harassment” to any other employee not designated a “responsible employee,” that employee must provide the person with OIE’s contact information. The same policy applies when a student discloses a pregnancy or related condition to a Duke employee.
The federal regulations require schools to protect students and employees against all sex discrimination, including sex-based harassment and violence.
“These final regulations build on the legacy of Title IX by clarifying that all our nation’s students can access schools that are safe, welcoming and respect their rights,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona in the April press release.
The University updated its Policy on Prohibited Discrimination, Harassment and Related Misconduct to “reflect the regulations’ emphasis that harassment based on sex is not limited to sexual harassment but includes conduct that is based on gender, gender expression, gender identity, pregnancy and sexual orientation,” Allison wrote.
She explained that the existing policy “already included those identities as protected from harassment,” but the new policy “includes a statement that those are also forms of the larger umbrella of sex-based harassment” and removes “Title IX Sexual Harassment” as a separate category.
The new federal guidelines state that schools need to “take prompt and effective action to end any sex discrimination in their education programs or activities, prevent its recurrence and remedy its effects.”
According to Allison, Duke will no longer require members of the Duke community to submit a formal complaint form to request investigations and alternative resolutions. Instead, the University will also accept written or verbal requests.
The federal policy expands the Title IX process to include off-campus allegations of sexual assault. Consequently, with Duke’s new guidelines, alleged assaults that occur both on campus or in a private residence will be officiated by a hearing officer who is “specially trained to adjudicate cases of sexual assault.”
Additionally, the University’s new policy no longer includes cross-examination in hearings. Instead, “parties will provide questions to the hearing officer, who will vet and pose relevant questions to each party.”
Allison added that “for allegations of sex discrimination or sex-based harassment involving a student, students retain the right to request that a report be addressed through a remedies-based process that provides an alternative to an investigation or determination.”
“We welcome continued engagement with and feedback from students on Duke’s efforts to facilitate student-centered processes that prioritize equity, accountability and respect,” wrote Allison.
Resources to report an incident of sexual misconduct or discrimination can be found on the Duke Office for Institutional Equity website.
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Ava Littman is a Trinity sophomore and an associate news editor for the news department.