Expect the Title IX Inquisition

Article here. Excerpt:

'Last week, on the 50th anniversary of the passage of Title IX—the federal law banning sex-based discrimination in education—the Biden administration announced sweeping proposed regulations to address how colleges and universities adjudicate sexual misconduct allegations. The move wasn’t very surprising: During the 2020 campaign, Joe Biden had sharply criticized the existing regulations developed by former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, which require colleges to conduct live hearings with cross-examination in campus Title IX cases.

Thursday’s announcement did, however, represent a further escalation in a policy and legal debate that has spanned more than a decade. Beginning in 2011, the Obama administration had expressed concern that far too many students, especially female undergraduates, were sexually assaulted while in college—which was undeniably true, though specific numbers remain a point of contention. It then argued that universities too often swept these allegations under the rug—which was sometimes true, especially when cases involved allegations against powerful university employees and high-profile athletes. In response, the administration issued guidance documents threatening to withhold federal funds unless universities changed their adjudication procedures by lowering the standard of proof for sexual misconduct allegations and by allowing accusers to appeal not-guilty findings.'