How the new DeVos rules on sexual assault will shock schools — and students

Article here. Excerpt:

'Education Secretary Betsy DeVos is about to shake up how sexual assault and harassment charges are handled at every college campus and K-12 school.

This much is clear: If your child is a victim of sexual misconduct at school, or an accused offender, administrators must soon respond to their cases in major, untested ways. That could mean a courtroom-like hearing where lawyers would cross-examine youthful witnesses and challenge their credibility, a huge shift from traditional behind-the-scenes investigations of highly sensitive and damaging allegations.

The final Title IX rule, anticipated to arrive this month, will invite fury: DeVos has said every survivor must be taken seriously — but also that the accused can’t be presumed guilty. The Obama administration in 2011 laid out guidance pushing schools to resolve an epidemic of complaints of sexual assault and harassment. But DeVos scrapped the Obama-era policies, saying they were unfair to everyone involved, and she now wants to balance the scales of justice with clear, formal rules. “Our proposed rule recognizes that we can continue to combat sexual misconduct without abandoning due process,” she says.'