Stop Attacking The Education Department For Enforcing Title IX, 80 Advocacy Groups Say

Article here. Excerpt:

'A coalition of 80 organizations representing women, the LGBT community and minority groups issued a letter Wednesday defending the U.S. Department of Education’s increased Title IX enforcement efforts.

Led by the National Women’s Law Center, the groups argue that critics of how the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights is enforcing Title IX are wrong to say students accused of sexual assault are being denied due process rights. The letter further insists the Education Department did not violate administrative law when it issued guidance on how schools should handle sexual assault cases, as three federal lawsuits filed this year argue.

“Unfortunately, the Department is facing unwarranted criticism for doing its job,” says the letter, which was sent to Education Secretary John B. King Jr. on Wednesday and obtained by The Huffington Post. “Some advocacy organizations, law professors, and legislators claim that the Department violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) by issuing the above guidance documents without going through a formal notice and comment process. They also allege that grievance procedures outlined in the 2011 sexual violence guidance violate due process rights of students accused of sexual assault. Both of these arguments are without merit.”'