The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights recently announced the release of two new resources to help schools comply with the 2024 amendments to Title IX regulations, which went into effect Aug. 1, 2024. The resources explain how the 2024 Title IX regulations clarify and update longstanding obligations related to Title IX coordinator duties, as well as prohibitions on sex discrimination based on pregnancy or related conditions and parental, family, or marital status.
The new Title IX resources are:
2024 Title IX Regulations: Impact on Title IX Coordinator Duties, which highlights new and updated requirements for Title IX coordinators, who play a critical role in ensuring compliance with their schools’ Title IX obligations. This resource answers questions such as:
- What training must be provided to a Title IX coordinator?
- What steps must a Title IX coordinator take in response to notice of possible sex discrimination?
- What actions must a Title IX coordinator take related to students who are pregnant or experiencing pregnancy-related conditions?
2024 Title IX Regulations: Nondiscrimination Based on Pregnancy or Related Conditions & Parental, Family, or Marital Status, which clarifies prohibitions on sex discrimination on these bases for students, employees and applicants for admission or employment. This resource answers questions such as:
- What does “pregnancy or related conditions” include? How does Title IX apply to “parental status”?
- How can a student get pregnancy-related reasonable modifications, leave reinstatement, and access to a lactation space?
- What type of lactation time and space must a school provide for employees?
These new resources complement other previously released technical assistance documents to help implement the 2024 Title IX Regulations, including a summary of major provisions; a resource for drafting Title IX nondiscrimination policies, notices of nondiscrimination, and grievance procedures; pointers for implementation; and a small entity compliance guide.
Please take special note that as of Aug. 28, 2024, pursuant to federal court orders, the Department is currently enjoined from enforcing the 2024 Final Rule in the states of Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wyoming. The Department is also currently enjoined from enforcing the 2024 Final Rule at the schools on the list available here. This list does include school districts in New Jersey and may affect your particular district. Per court order, this list of schools may be supplemented in the future. The Final Rule and these resources do not currently apply in those states and schools. Pending further court orders, the Department’s Title IX Regulations, as amended in 2020 (2020 Final Rule) remain in effect in those states and schools.
Any updates on the 2024 Title IX Regulations will be posted to Sex Discrimination: Overview of the Law, which also includes a link to the final regulations as published in the electronic Code of Federal Regulations at 34 CFR Part 106, as well as the official version and preamble.
Due to the complexities involved in the pending litigations with regard to these regulations, it is imperative that districts discuss their particular status with their board attorney to ensure compliance with the Federal law. This is a constantly changing process so please stay tuned to future School Board Notes articles.