In recent months, OCR has reached resolution agreements with a school district and two universities after investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment based on ancestry or ethnicity, including allegations...more
7/12/2024
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Anti-Harassment Policies ,
Colleges ,
Compliance ,
Discrimination ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employees ,
Ethnicity ,
Harassment ,
Hostile Environment ,
OCR ,
Race Discrimination ,
School Districts ,
Students ,
Title VI ,
Universities
Earlier this morning, the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights released its long-awaited final Title IX regulations on sexual harassment. These new regulations, which replace the 2020 rules, will take effect on...more
On April 6, the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released its much-anticipated proposed Title IX rule on the eligibility of students for participation in athletic programs based on their gender identity....more
4/17/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Department of Education ,
Education Reform ,
Educational Institutions ,
Federal Funding ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
OCR ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Schools ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Sports ,
Student Athletes ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender
The Biden Administration has recently taken steps through agency guidance, rulemaking and decision-making to highlight protections for students and employees with pregnancy-related conditions, including abortion, under the...more
10/25/2022
/ Abortion ,
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ,
Educational Institutions ,
Healthcare ,
New Guidance ,
OCR ,
Pregnancy ,
Reproductive Discrimination ,
Roe v Wade ,
SCOTUS ,
Students ,
Teachers ,
Title IX
Recent court and OCR decisions regarding transgender students and employees reflect widely varying responses to the Biden administration’s efforts to expand protections for LGBTQ+ individuals under federal law, including...more
9/22/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employees ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
OCR ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender
Recent court and OCR decisions regarding transgender students and employees reflect widely varying responses to the Biden administration’s efforts to expand protections for LGBTQ+ individuals under federal law, including...more
9/20/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Bostock v Clayton County Georgia ,
Educational Institutions ,
Employment Litigation ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal v State Law Application ,
LGBTQ ,
OCR ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Transgender
The Office for Civil Rights in the Department of Education recently issued a new Fact Sheet. The Fact Sheet repeats prior guidance that “the responsibility for schools to comply with Section 504 continues regardless of how...more
Live hearings—the hallmark procedure and one of the most substantial changes under the 2020 Title IX regulations for higher education institutions—may be a thing of the past. This a possible result of the end of the...more
A recent OCR decision out of Wyoming is a reminder to school districts of their Child Find obligations—including during remote instruction. In Teton County School District, Wyoming, OCR found in favor of the school district...more
While much of the talk about Biden’s education agenda has quickly turned to who he will appoint to replace Betsy DeVos and how he will manage the COVID-19 pandemic, both critical issues for sure, we wanted to highlight...more
11/12/2020
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disabled Children ,
Federal Funding ,
IDEA ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OCR ,
Policy Drafting ,
Political Appointments ,
Public Schools ,
Restraints ,
Special Education ,
Students
OCR recently published a Q&A document providing expectations for compliance with civil rights laws during the pandemic. While OCR is not responsible for enforcing the IDEA, it is responsible for Section 504. Because students...more
10/5/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) ,
IDEA ,
Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OCR ,
Public Schools ,
Quarantine ,
Remote Learning ,
Section 504 ,
Special Education
Most changes we’ve seen from the U.S. Department of Education (Department) these past two-and-a-half years have dealt with sex, gender, race, color, and national origin—not disability—and most have reduced federal oversight,...more
Yesterday, in a landmark ruling, a federal appellate court decided that under Title IX a transgender student can challenge a school board policy that limits bathroom and locker room access based on biological sex. The United...more