The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced that Spectrum Academy in Utah has entered into a resolution agreement to ensure that its restraint and seclusion policies and practices do not deny students with disabilities their civil rights in violation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504), Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Title II), and their implementing regulations. OCR’s investigation revealed that the Academy failed to hold Individualized Education Program (IEP) meetings for specific students with disabilities to evaluate the impact on the students of repeated use of restraint and seclusion and failed to consider the need for compensatory services for these students. OCR also identified four compliance concerns related to another 26 students whom OCR identified as being restrained and/or secluded multiple times in two years. First, the Academy may have failed to consider the educational impact of the repeated use of restraint and seclusion on these students. Second, the Academy may have failed to re-evaluate them to determine if the repeated use of restraint and seclusion for these students caused them to miss instruction or services, denied them a free appropriate public education (FAPE), and indicated a need for more aids and services to ensure a FAPE. Third, the Academy did not evaluate the need for or offer compensatory services to these students for missed services and instruction. Finally, OCR identified a concern that the Academy’s recordkeeping regarding restraint and seclusion may have prevented the Academy from being able to determine whether its current array of special education and related aids and services was sufficient to provide a FAPE. OCR also noted significant inaccuracy in the Academy’s report to the 2017-18 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC), which suggests that the Academy’s system for maintaining records regarding restraint and seclusion may be inadequate to allow the Academy to accurately report incidents of restraint to the CRDC.

The resolution agreement requires the Academy to: (1) revise and distribute its policies, procedures, and forms for restraint and seclusion to its staff to comply with Title II and Section 504; (2) train all teachers, administrators, and other members of IEP and Section 504 teams on the revised policies and the Section 504 FAPE requirements; (3) provide individual remedies for students who were restrained and/or secluded during the review period, by convening their IEP teams and by timely providing compensatory services where appropriate; (4) conduct a review to determine whether any other Academy students were denied a FAPE due to restraint or seclusion from 2019 to the present, and to implement responsive remedies based on this review; (5) maintain complete records about the use of restraint and seclusion and accurately report to the CRDC; and (6) monitor the use of restraint and seclusion to safeguard the civil rights of Academy students.

• Spectrum Academy - Resolution Letter PDF (530K)
• Spectrum Academy - Resolution Agreement PDF (219K)

The Department of Education announced that the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has secured a resolution agreement with the Newark Public School District in New Jersey to ensure the district’s compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972 when responding to notice of sexual harassment of its students by other students and employees.

OCR determined that the district discriminated against students based on sex by failing to respond to incidents of sexual harassment and assault and that it failed to coordinate its responses through its designated Title IX Coordinator. Specifically, OCR found that the Title IX Coordinator did not, and currently does not, coordinate the district’s efforts to comply with its responsibilities under Title IX. Additionally, OCR found that the district failed to investigate confirmed Title IX concerns about employees’ sexually harassing students and deferred its Title IX obligations to respond to such sexual harassment to a state agency for several years without ensuring those obligations were met. OCR further found that the district repeatedly failed to respond to incidents of student-to-student sexual harassment, to address its effect on targeted students, to prevent its recurrence, and to notify the parties of investigation outcomes. OCR also determined that the district did not consistently notify employees, students, and their parents of its designated Title IX Coordinator and that its notice of nondiscrimination and grievance procedures did not comply with Title IX. Lastly, OCR identified concerns about the district’s recordkeeping of sexual harassment incidents.

The district’s commitments in the voluntary resolution agreement include: ensuring that the Title IX coordinator coordinates all of the district’s efforts to comply with Title IX moving forward; developing a program to assess the effectiveness of the district’s Title IX anti-discrimination efforts; revising policies and procedures to comply with the Title IX regulations; training staff and students regarding the district’s Title IX procedures regarding sexual harassment; maintaining required records about reports of sexual harassment; reviewing case files for reported incidents of sexual harassment of district students from school years 2017-2018 through 2021-2022 to determine if further action is needed to resolve each incident equitably; disseminating a notice of nondiscrimination that complies with Title IX; and administering an annual school climate survey to district employees and students at each district school.

• Newark Public Schools - Resolution Letter PDF (470K)
• Newark Public Schools - Resolution Agreement PDF (340K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a Dear Colleague Letter on Race and School Programming to guide schools on lawful programs to promote racially inclusive school communities. This resource clarifies the circumstances under which schools can – consistent with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI) and its implementing regulations – develop curricula or engage in activities that promote racially inclusive school communities. The resource includes examples to help school communities assess their Title VI legal obligations and protections.

The resource explains that Title VI generally does not restrict school districts from holding assemblies, meetings, focus groups, or listening sessions that relate to students’ experiences with race in their school or community. The resource also states that school-sponsored or recognized groups or programs with a special emphasis on race, such as a student club or mentorship opportunity, that are open to all students, do not violate Title VI simply because of a race-related theme.

Schools may be in violation of Title VI when they separate students based on race even if programming for each group is identical. Schools also may violate Title VI when they create, encourage, accept, tolerate, or fail to correct a racially hostile educational environment.

• "Dear Colleague" Letter PDF (638K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) resolved an investigation of sexual assault and disability discrimination regarding the Pflugerville Independent School District in Texas. OCR determined that the district violated Title IX by failing to respond equitably to notice that a student was sexually assaulted by another student in a school restroom in the 2018-2019 school year. OCR also determined that in the above school year, the district violated Section 504 and Title II by failing to provide the student with a required disability accommodation in one of her classes as provided by her Section 504 plan. In addition, OCR identified other related Section 504 and Title II compliance concerns.

The resolution agreement provides that the district will: (1) offer the student and her family a meeting to discuss the district’s handling of the sexual assault allegation and offer reimbursement for the student’s related counseling expenses; (2) designate a Title IX Coordinator; (3) conduct Title IX and Section 504/Title II training for relevant District and school staff; (4) provide OCR with information and documentation regarding sexual harassment complaints received in the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 school years; (5) develop and disseminate a sexual harassment climate survey to the school’s students; and (6) develop and implement a record-keeping system and procedures to document and preserve all sexual harassment complaints and related documentation.

• Pflugerville Independent School District – Resolution Letter PDF (387K)
• Pflugerville Independent School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (642K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s (ED) Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division (Justice) jointly released resources to help colleges and universities understand and comply with the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. President and Fellows of Harvard College and Students for Fair Admissions, Inc. v. University of North Carolina et al. as they continue to pursue campuses that are racially diverse and that include students with a range of viewpoints, talents, backgrounds, and experiences.

• Read the Dear Colleague Letter PDF (256K)
• Read the Questions and Answers Resource PDF (522K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) resolved a compliance review of the Garland Independent School District in Texas with a resolution agreement to address the District’s handling of sexual assault cases, including those involving student and staff misconduct.

OCR determined the District violated Title IX by routinely delaying its investigation of Title IX complaints when law enforcement was involved, and, in some instances, failing to conduct a Title IX investigation and instead relying on law enforcement findings. OCR had a concern regarding the District’s lack of a centralized system for tracking and maintaining Title IX complaint files, which resulted in significant gaps in its recordkeeping. OCR also identified a concern regarding the District’s failure to provide adequate Title IX training for its Title IX Coordinator, administrators, and staff. Additionally, OCR is concerned about the Title IX Coordinator’s ability to coordinate the District’s efforts to comply with its Title IX responsibilities while holding multiple positions in the District. Lastly, OCR also found Title IX violations and had concerns related to the District’s Title IX policies and grievance procedures.

The resolution agreement provides that the District will: (1) take the necessary steps to ensure the District does not discriminate on the basis of sex by reviewing and revising its Title IX grievance procedures and its notice of nondiscrimination, to secure compliance with the Title IX regulation; (2) develop and implement a centralized record-keeping system and procedures that adequately and accurately document and preserve all complaints of sexual harassment and sexual assault; (3) provide OCR with information regarding the District’s processing of each formal complaint of sexual harassment and sexual assault filed with the District during the previous and upcoming school years; (4) provide Title IX training to District staff and age-appropriate education or other resources to students; and (5) conduct a climate survey to be distributed to its students and staff regarding sexual harassment, including sexual assault.

• Garland Independent School District – Resolution Letter PDF (344K)
• Garland Independent School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (191K)

Today the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced the Rhinelander School District entered into an agreement to ensure compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 when responding to harassment based on gender identity.

Based on the evidence in the investigation to date, OCR is concerned that the District response to the persistent harassment limited the student’s participation in school activities. OCR is also concerned that the District records miscoded sex-based harassment, including the use of a slur for gay people, as “peer mistreatment”; did not document the multiple complaints of sex-based harassment brought by the student and their parent; and did not adequately document the District’s responses. Moreover, the District Title IX Coordinator reported that she was unaware of reports of sex-based harassment of the student until after the complainant filed with OCR and therefore had not coordinated a response consistent with Title IX.

The District’s commitments in the voluntary resolution agreement include evaluating whether compensatory services or other services are necessary for the harassed student due to the instructional time the student missed when attending in-person classes on an only part-time basis; providing training to all District administrators and staff regarding the District’s obligation to respond to complaints of sex-based harassment; providing age-appropriate information programs for students to address sex-based harassment, including what students should do if they believe they or other students have experienced such harassment; and conducting a climate survey to assess the prevalence of sex-based harassment and obtain suggestions for effective ways to address harassment.

• Rhinelander School District – Resolution Letter PDF (229K)
• Rhinelander School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (221K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced that Montgomery College, Takoma/Silver Spring Campus, has entered into a resolution agreement to resolve a sexual harassment complaint. OCR’s investigation established that a College professor engaged in sexual harassment of female students during a class he taught by requiring the students to remove their shirts and wear only their bras – and then commenting on their bodies – ostensibly to demonstrate a medical assessment despite the fact that the assessment did not require the clothing removal, or the bodily commentary.

Within approximately three months of the initial report of the professor’s harassment, the College’s investigation confirmed that the professor’s conduct created a hostile environment on the basis of sex. The College terminated the professor’s employment and the College provided written notice of the outcome of its investigation to the student in the class who initially reported experiencing sexual harassment, and also offered supportive services to affected students. However, the College did not notify all affected students regarding the conclusion of its investigation, raising a concern that the College may not have taken necessary steps to ensure that a hostile environment did not persist for affected students.

The resolution agreement requires the College to notify in writing all students in the professor’s class that the College completed its investigation of the sexual harassment complaint against the professor and requires the College to provide OCR with the results of its 2022 Title IX climate survey and a narrative summary of the steps it has taken in response to any concerns raised by that survey in order for OCR to determine whether the College needs to take any additional steps to ensure College students are able to access their education free from discrimination.

• Montgomery School District – Resolution Letter PDF (255K)
• Montgomery School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (149K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a new fact sheet discussing access to specialized or advanced educational programs and services for students who are English Learners (ELs). These programs and services provide valuable educational opportunities, and are often designed to boost college access, increase degree attainment, and improve occupational skills. Data collected as part of OCR’s Civil Rights Data Collection show that students who are ELs have lower participation in specialized and advanced programs.

The fact sheet explains the legal requirements that schools must follow to ensure that eligibility requirements and procedures for specialized or advanced educational programs do not screen out students who are ELs because of their limited English proficiency unless a program is demonstrated to require proficiency in English for meaningful participation. It also identifies kinds of practices that could, depending on facts and circumstances, raise concerns under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits schools from discriminating based on race, color, or national origin. The fact sheet reminds schools that students who are ELs remain entitled to appropriate language assistance services while participating in advanced or specialized programs. More information about OCR’s work in this area is available here.

• Ensuring Meaningful Participation in Advanced Coursework and Specialized Programs for Students Who Are English Learners PDF (490K)
  • En español (Spanish) PDF (283K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division (Justice) jointly released two fact sheets: Protecting Access to Education for Migratory Children and Protecting Access to Education for Unaccompanied Children. The fact sheets highlight specific challenges some migratory children and unaccompanied children may face while accessing public education. The fact sheets also explain where families can seek help and remind public schools of their responsibilities to migratory and unaccompanied children under federal civil rights laws. Specifically, public schools must 1) be open to all students, including unaccompanied and migratory children, regardless of their or their parents’ immigration status; 2) offer language assistance services to K-12 students who have limited English proficiency, including unaccompanied and migratory children; and 3) make information about enrollment, classes, and other educational programs and activities accessible to parents and guardians who have limited English proficiency. More information about OCR’s work in this area is available here.

• Protecting Access to Education for Migratory Children PDF (225K)
  • En español (Spanish) PDF (226K)
• Protecting Access to Education for Unaccompanied Children PDF (225K)
  • En español (Spanish) PDF (223K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced today that the Val Verde Unified School District in California has entered into a resolution agreement to ensure the District’s compliance with Title IX when responding to notice of sexual harassment of its students by other students and employees. OCR determined that the District discriminated against students based on sex by failing to respond appropriately under Title IX to notice of sexual harassment. Specifically, OCR found that the District repeatedly failed to address the effects of the sexual harassment on targeted students, to prevent recurrence of harassment on the targeted students, did not take sufficient steps to prevent recurrence of harassment, and failed to provide adequate notice of the investigation outcomes to targeted students and their parents. In addition, OCR found a failure, persisting today, by the District to coordinate its response to sexual assault and harassment incidents across schools as required by the Title IX regulations. As a result, the District had no system in place to monitor whether schools’ responses complied with Title IX requirements or to identify emergent patterns or systemic problems by school of Districtwide. OCR also determined that the District’s implementation of its current Title IX grievance procedures does not comply with the 2020 amended Title IX regulation regarding sexual harassment, that the District’s Title IX grievance procedures in place during the time period reviewed were inequitable because they treated complainants and respondents differently, and the District had not fulfilled its Title IX duty to publish those procedures to communicate to students, parents, and employees how to use them to file Title IX complaints of sexual harassment. The District’s commitments to resolve these findings include: (1) developing a program to assess the effectiveness of the District’s Title IX anti-discrimination efforts; (2) revising its Title IX policies and procedures to comply with the Title IX regulations; (3) training its staff and students about the District’s Title IX procedures, how to identify what constitutes sexual harassment, and how to report such harassment; (4) maintaining required records regarding reports of sexual harassment; (5) disseminating a notice of nondiscrimination that complies with Title IX; and (6) administering a biannual school climate survey to District employees and students to evaluate the climate at each District school with respect to sexual harassment.

• Val Verde Unified School District – Resolution Letter PDF (350K)
• Val Verde Unified School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (289K)

Today the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that the Beecher Community Unit School District 200U entered into an agreement to ensure compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 when responding to notice of the racial harassment of its students by other students.

During the investigation, OCR found concerns that the District did not conduct adequate investigations of possible racially harassing conduct; did not appear to consider the totality of the circumstances and the cumulative effects of the harassment on the student; did not follow its grievance procedures or conduct complete investigations of possible racially harassing conduct; and did not appear to take escalating steps reasonably designed to prevent the harassment from recurring and remedy the effects of the harassment on the student and other students.

The District’s commitments in the voluntary resolution agreement include taking prompt and appropriate responsive action to investigate the allegations that the student and other Black students were harassed on the basis of race during the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 school years; providing all school administrators, faculty, and staff with effective annual training regarding racial discrimination and harassment; he basis of race; providing age-appropriate orientation session for all school students regarding racial discrimination and harassment; developing a school climate survey to administer to students at the school to assess the effectiveness of training and to ensure the school is free of racial harassment; and maintaining documents relating to specific complaints or other reports of racial harassment of students to ensure that its files contain all information necessary to process complaints under Title VI.

• Beecher Community Unit School District 200U – Resolution Letter PDF (223K)
• Beecher Community Unit School District 200U – Resolution Agreement PDF (291K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) resolved a compliance review of the Mingo County Schools in West Virginia with a resolution agreement to address the District’s handling of sexual assault cases, including those involving student and staff misconduct. During the investigation, OCR found concerns that the district did not complete investigation of allegations of serial misconduct and may have treated male respondents less favorably than female respondents. OCR also determined that the district violated Title IX through failing to identify a Title IX coordinator in a timely manner, failing to adopt and publish grievance procedures and a notice of nondiscrimination that complied with Title IX, and failing to adopt recordkeeping practices with regard to Title IX complaints. The resolution agreement will commit the district to  ensuring a school environment free from discrimination on the basis of sex through hiring a Title IX coordinator and providing training; reviewing and revising its Title IX policies and submitting to OCR case file documentation sufficient to show that the district’s revised Title IX policies are compliant and effective;  publishing a compliant notice of nondiscrimination; reviewing all complaints of student and staff Title IX misconduct during the period of the investigation; and conducting a survey of students and parents to identify additional changes. 

• Mingo County Schools – Resolution Letter PDF (492K)
• Mingo County Schools – Resolution Agreement PDF (271K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division jointly released a Resource on Confronting Racial Discrimination in Student Discipline. The Resource describes how the Departments resolved investigations of 14 school districts in 10 states nationwide under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its regulations, and Title IV of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The investigations involved concerns about discrimination in schools’ use of out-of-school suspensions, expulsions, school-based arrests, referrals to law enforcement, involuntary discipline transfers, informal removals, and other disciplinary actions against Black, Latino, and/or Native American students. 

• Read the resource (English) PDF (1.06M)
• En español (Spanish) PDF (1.06M)

Today the Department of Education’s (Department) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) issued a new Dear Colleague Letter reminding schools of their legal obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI) to provide all students, including students who are or are perceived to be Jewish, a school environment free from discrimination based on race, color, or national origin, including shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics. OCR is releasing this Dear Colleague Letter as part of the Department’s launch of an Antisemitism Awareness Campaign.

• “Dear Colleague” Letter PDF (245K)
• More information can be found at OCR’s Shared Ancestry or Ethnic Characteristics webpage

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announced the resolution of a complaint of sex, race, color, and national origin discrimination against Forsyth County Schools in Georgia. Prior to OCR completing its investigation, the District expressed an interest in resolving the complaint and OCR determined that it was appropriate to resolve the complaint because OCR’s investigation identified concerns that can be addressed through a resolution agreement. OCR identified concerns that communications at District school board meetings provided the District notice that its library book screening process may have created a hostile environment for students; and the District’s responsive steps related to the library book screening process were not sufficient to ameliorate any resultant racially and sexually hostile environment. The resolution agreement ensures that the District will issue a statement to students in the District explaining the library book removal process and offer supportive measures to students who may have been impacted by that process; and administer a climate survey of the student bodies at each of the District’s middle and high schools to assess whether additional steps need to be taken.

• Forsyth County Schools – Resolution Letter PDF (345K)
• Forsyth County Schools – Resolution Agreement PDF (205K)

Today, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a new letter regarding the Departments’ ongoing efforts to address barriers that prevent people with disabilities from participating in online services, programs, and activities that colleges, universities, and other postsecondary institutions make available to students and the public.

Technology plays an increasingly important role in education at all levels. When schools are proactive about ensuring the accessibility of their digital content and technology in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, educational opportunities are improved for all, including for students with disabilities. Today’s letter describes current online accessibility challenges, highlights recent DOJ and OCR enforcement actions that have improved online accessibility at postsecondary institutions across the country, and provides resources about Federal laws that protect the rights of students with disabilities.

• “Dear Colleague” Letter PDF (301K)
• More information can be found at OCR’s Digital Accessibility webpage

Today, the U.S. Department of Education released its notice of proposed rulemaking on eligibility for male and female athletic teams under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the federal law that prohibits sex discrimination in federally funded education programs and activities. The proposed regulation explains that schools may adopt or apply sex-related eligibility criteria for male and female teams. The proposed regulation would permit a school to use criteria that would limit or deny a student’s eligibility to participate on a male or female team consistent with their gender identity if those criteria are substantially related to the achievement of an important educational objective. The proposed regulation would require a school to take into account differences in grade and education level, level of competition, and sports. The proposed regulation would also require a school to minimize harms to students whose participation on teams consistent with their gender identity would be limited or denied. One-size-fits-all policies that ban transgender students from participating consistent with their gender identity across all sports, age groups, and levels of competition would not satisfy the proposed regulation. In addition to the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Department has released a fact sheet. The Department’s notice of proposed rulemaking will be open for public comment until May 15, 2023.

• Unofficial version of the NPRM submitted to the Federal Register on April 6, 2023 PDF (1.8M)
• Fact Sheet PDF (209K)
• The NPRM was published in the Federal Register on April 13, 2023 PDF (406K)
• Submit your comments through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov/document/ED-2022-OCR-0143-0001

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today resolved investigation of a complaint regarding University of Vermont and State Agricultural College’s failure to respond to antisemitic harassment.

OCR identified concerns regarding the University’s response to complaints it received of antisemitic harassment. First, the University’s Affirmative Action and Equal Opportunity (AAEO) Office declined to investigate any of the complaints, even though they notified the University regarding serious allegations of harassment. Second, responsive steps the University did take were delayed; were not designed to rectify concerns communicated to the University, including regarding the existence of a hostile environment; and may have discouraged students and staff from raising further concerns with the University or with participating in the OCR investigation.

“I am grateful for the University of Vermont’s commitment to address antisemitic harassment that violates federal civil rights law,” said Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon. “Everyone has a right to learn in an environment free from antisemitic harassment. We will be watching to be sure these students are safe.”

The complaints about which the University received notice, but did not investigate through its AAEO Office, included allegations that a teaching assistant posted on social media about not giving Jewish students course participation credit; subtracting points for Jewish students, including because “I hate ur vibe in general”; celebrating the theft of an Israeli flag from a Jewish student’s residence; and adding the word Kristallnacht above a picture of a damaged storefront with accompanying Hebrew text. They also included allegations that student groups excluded Jewish students, that students threw rocks at the building housing Hillel and student dormitory space, and that when a student living in the building asked them to stop, one of the students responded, “Are you Jewish?”

To ensure full satisfaction of its obligations under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its implementing regulations, the University entered into a resolution agreement committing it to:

• Review and revise its policies and procedures to include a description of forms of discrimination that can manifest in the university environment, and to ensure that the University’s response to notice of discrimination including national origin harassment on the basis of shared ancestry is consistent with Title VI;
• Develop a protocol clarifying the roles and responsibilities of the AAEO Office and Bias Response Team to monitor implementation of the protocol by the Provost;
• Train University staff responsible for investigation of Title VI complaints;
• Train University senior leadership, all other staff, and students on the Title VI prohibition against harassment based on national origin, including shared ancestry, in the University’s programs and activities;
• Issue a statement with a commitment to address discrimination based on shared ancestry, including antisemitism, within 30 days of the signing of the agreement and again with its annual antidiscrimination statement;
• Review the University’s 2022 Climate Survey results to determine if other actions, beyond those memorialized in the agreement, are needed to improve the campus climate; and
• Submit to OCR during the monitoring of the agreement copies of case files of complaints of antisemitism filed during the preceding academic year.

The letter to the University of Vermont is available PDF (599K) and the resolution agreement is available. PDF (274K)

Today, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights released three new resources to support equal opportunity in athletic programs consistent with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. OCR designed these documents to help students, parents, coaches, athletic directors, and school officials evaluate whether a school is meeting its legal duty to provide equal athletic opportunity regardless of sex. The overview resource provides examples of the kinds of situations that could, depending upon facts and circumstances, raise Title IX concerns at any education level. The two specialized resources – one for K-12 schools and one for colleges and universities – offer information specific to these school communities.

• Supporting Equal Opportunity in School Athletic Programs PDF (243K)
• Title IX and Athletic Opportunities in K-12 Schools PDF (378K)
• Title IX and Athletic Opportunities in Colleges and Universities PDF (421K)

Today, the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights released a new fact sheet confirming for educators, parents, and students that diversity, equity, and inclusion training and similar activities generally are consistent with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Title VI, a law enforced by OCR, prohibits discrimination based on race, color, or national origin in programs or activities receiving federal financial assistance.

In response to confusion regarding the legality of diversity, equity, and inclusion activities in schools, this new fact sheet clarifies that federal civil rights laws do not categorically prohibit schools from offering activities such as instruction on the impact of racism, cultural competency training, or school climate surveys.

OCR will continue to vigorously enforce federal civil rights laws to ensure that all students have equal access to educational opportunities. Learn more at www.ed.gov/ocr.

• Fact Sheet PDF (185K)
• En español (Spanish) PDF (160K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announced the resolution of a student’s complaint of pregnancy discrimination against Troy University in Alabama. The resolution agreement will ensure the University’s compliance with Title IX and its implementing regulation as they apply to requests for adjustments related to pregnancy. The University’s commitments in the voluntary resolution agreement include: providing the student adjustments to grades negatively impacted by the University’s handling of her requests, as well as reimbursement for documented expenses related to courses she has had to retake since the semester when she was pregnant; reviewing and, where necessary, revising or drafting policies and procedures on how to address requests for adjustments from pregnant students to ensure that it complies with Title IX; updating its website to provide information such as the Title IX rights of pregnant students, the process for requesting adjustments, and a link to the grievance procedures that apply to complaints of pregnancy-related or other sex discrimination;  faculty and staff training regarding the Title IX rights of pregnant students and the University’s obligations regarding pregnant students, as well as a survey to gauge the effectiveness of the training; and tracking of students’ requests for pregnancy-related adjustments and the University’s responses to the requests.

• Press Release
• Troy University – Resolution Letter PDF (220K)
• Troy University – Resolution Agreement PDF (219K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a fact sheet, Protecting Students from Discrimination Based on Shared Ancestry or Ethnic Characteristics, that explains how the protection offered by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI) extends to students who experience discrimination based on their actual or perceived: (i) shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics; or (ii) citizenship or residency in a country with a dominant religion or distinct religious identity. This resource highlights OCR’s longstanding commitment to protect all students, including students who are or are perceived to be Jewish, Christian, Muslim, Sikh, Hindu, Buddhist, or of another religious group, from discrimination based on shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics. More information, along with other resources on this topic, are available on OCR’s Shared Ancestry or Ethnic Characteristics webpage, available at www.ed.gov/ocr/sharedancestry.html.

• Read the Resource PDF (297K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced that the Southeastern Cooperative Educational Programs (SECEP) in Virginia entered into a resolution agreement regarding the use of restraint and seclusion and the provision of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to students with disabilities. SECEP committed to take steps necessary to ensure that SECEP’s use of restraint and seclusion does not deny to students with disabilities the FAPE to which they are entitled under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
OCR’s investigation identified concerns that students who were subjected to multiple restraints and seclusions lost educational time and services, and that SECEP did not re-evaluate those students to determine whether they needed additional or different supports and compensatory services.

• Press Release
• SECEP – Resolution Letter PDF (544K)
• SECEP – Resolution Agreement PDF (219K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced that the Davis Joint Unified School District in California has entered into a resolution agreement to ensure that its restraint and seclusion policies and practices do not deny students with disabilities a free appropriate public education (FAPE). OCR determined that the District placed three of its students with disabilities in nonpublic school settings and violated their rights under Section 504 and Title II because the District: (1) failed to ensure that District staff making placement decisions for these students had access to and carefully considered information obtained about the use of physical restraint and/or seclusion with these students; (2) separately failed to ensure that those making decisions regarding behavioral interventions for these students were knowledgeable about each student, the meaning of the evaluation data, and the placement; (3) failed to reevaluate these students to determine whether the repeated use of restraint and seclusion for these students denied them a FAPE and if additional aids and services were appropriate to provide a FAPE; and (4) denied a FAPE to all three students based on the above failures and resulting harms to the students. OCR also identified compliance concerns that the District did not document all restraints and seclusions and may have failed to identify all students subjected to restraint and seclusion. OCR is concerned that these failures may have resulted in IEP teams not having access to complete information about restraint and seclusions and parents not consistently having access to the information needed to participate meaningfully on the IEP teams for their children. The resolution agreement requires the District to: (1) revise its policies for restraint and seclusion to promote its compliance with Section 504, Title II, and their implementing regulations; (2) distribute the revised policies to parents, faculty, administrators, staff, and any nonpublic school employees providing special education services to District students; (3) develop and implement a process and form to create and maintain records about the use of restraint and seclusion of District students, including District students placed in a nonpublic school setting, (4) provide training on the revised policies and the FAPE-related requirements of the Section 504 regulation to all faculty, staff, and administrators involved with providing instruction or services to students with disabilities; (5) ensure that staff at nonpublic schools where District students are placed receive training on the District’s policies and the FAPE requirements of the Section 504 regulations; (6) provide an individual remedy for a student subjected to multiple instances of restraint and seclusion by convening a properly constituted IEP team to determine what compensatory services are appropriate for the student and by timely providing such services; (7) conduct a review to identify any District students who were restrained or secluded by staff at nonpublic schools from 2019 to the present, and to implement responsive remedies based on this review; and (8) implement a program to monitor the use of restraint and seclusion with students in District schools and nonpublic schools to safeguard their Section 504 and Title II rights.

• Press Release
• Davis Joint Unified School District – Resolution Letter PDF (871K)
• Davis Joint Unified School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (366K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced the resolution of a complaint of racial harassment filed against Ottumwa Community School District in Iowa. OCR determined that during the course of school years 2020-21 and 2021-22 district students subjected a Black middle school student to racial harassment so pervasive that it constituted a racially hostile environment and that the district failed to take necessary steps to protect the student, in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its implementing regulations. The harassment included repeated use of racial slurs including calling the student the N-word and a “slave” to white students as well as calling the student “blackie” and “cotton-picker,” targeting the student with monkey noises in class and students raising their fists to mock Black Power during class, a white student using the term KKK and then referring to it as the “Kool Kids Klub,” and telling racially derogatory jokes about, for example, killing a Black man and not being able to see Black people at midnight. In one instance, a white classmate knelt on a Gatorade bottle in the student’s presence and said, “It can’t breathe,” to mimic George Floyd’s death. The harassment the student experienced and the district’s failure to provide the student with a safe school environment caused him to suffer significant and enduring emotional harm. OCR also found that even though the district had notice of possible ongoing harassment, the district disregarded its obligations to investigate whether its response to the reported harassment was effective in eliminating the hostile environment, whether it addressed the cumulative effect of the incidents on the harassed student, and addressed the impact the verified wide-spread conduct may have had on other students. In so doing, the district did not take effective school-wide measures to address and remedy the racially hostile environment, which continued to exist at the school. The resolution agreement commits the district to take steps to ensure nondiscrimination based on race, color, or national origin (including based on shared ancestry and ethnic characteristics) in all of its education programs and activities. “Federal civil rights law has for decades promised that no student should experience the racially hostile environment that the young person in this investigation endured,” said Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, Catherine E. Lhamon. “I thank Ottumwa Community School District for committing today to take the steps necessary to ensure that in future it will respond appropriately to reports of racial harassment so every student in the district’s schools will experience the nondiscriminatory learning environment that federal law guarantees.” The district’s commitments in the voluntary resolution agreement include: (1) Reimbursing the student’s parent for documented expenses incurred related to past and future therapeutic services resulting from the racially hostile environment. (2) Publishing an anti-harassment statement stating that the district does not tolerate acts of harassment, including acts of harassment based on a student’s race, color, or national origin. (3) Reviewing and revising its policies and procedures to address Title VI’s prohibition of harassment based on race, color, or national origin. (4) Providing training to district staff regarding the district’s obligation to respond to complaints of harassment based on race, color, or national origin. (5) Providing age-appropriate information programs for students to address harassment based on race, color, or national origin. And, (6) Conducting a climate survey to assess the prevalence of harassment in the student’s former school and provide suggestions for effective ways to address harassment.

• Press Release
• Ottumwa Community School District – Resolution Letter PDF (231K)
• Ottumwa Community School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (223K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today announced a resolution agreement with Fairfax County Public Schools in Virginia requiring the School Division to take steps necessary to ensure that students with disabilities receive educational services, including compensatory services, during and resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. OCR investigated the School Division’s provision during the pandemic of a free appropriate public education (FAPE) to students with disabilities, as required by Federal civil rights law. OCR’s investigation found that the School Division inappropriately reduced and limited services provided to students with disabilities, based on considerations other than the students’ individual educational needs, and failed to adequately remedy these denials of FAPE. OCR also identified concerns with staffing shortages and other administrative obstacles that may have limited the School Division’s provision of FAPE, as well as its ability to sufficiently track its FAPE services.

The School Division agreed to resolve the compliance review by creating and implementing a comprehensive plan to address the compensatory education needs of students with disabilities arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Press Release
• Fairfax County Public Schools – Resolution Letter PDF (615.8K)
• Fairfax County Public Schools – Resolution Agreement PDF (432.1K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today announced the resolution of a complaint alleging inequitable athletics access for girls with respect to locker rooms, practice, and competitive facilities; equipment and supplies; and the opportunity to receive coaching at a high school in the Salem-Keizer School District No. 24J in Oregon. During the investigation, OCR received information that boys’ baseball at a district school has superior playing fields, dugouts, bullpens, fencing, landscaping, bleachers, batting cages, and storage compared to what is provided for girls’ softball and that boys’ baseball players have access to a team room, whereas girls’ softball players do not, and that the district provides boys’ baseball teams with superior and newer uniforms than the district provides for girls’ softball teams. Finally, OCR received information reflecting that the girls’ softball teams also have less opportunity to receive coaching as compared to the boys’ baseball teams because the girls’ softball head coach does not receive a prep period to prepare the fields immediately before practices and games, but the boys’ baseball head coach does receive such a prep period. The voluntary resolution agreement requires the district to (1) conduct assessments of the locker rooms, practice, and competitive facilities; equipment and supplies; and opportunities to receive coaching provided to the boys’ and girls’ interscholastic athletic teams at the school to ensure that members of both sexes are provided with equivalent benefits, opportunities, and treatment; (2) create a corrective action plan to remedy any identified inequities between the girls’ and boys’ interscholastic athletic teams at the school with respect to the provision of locker rooms, practice, and competitive facilities; equipment and supplies; and opportunities to receive coaching; and (3) implement the corrective action plan following its approval by OCR.

• Press Release
• Salem-Keizer School District – Resolution Letter PDF (240K)
• Salem-Keizer School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (139K)

The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today released a resource designed to remind school communities, including students, faculty, families, and educators, that Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 protects students and employees from discrimination based on pregnancy and related conditions. As the resource explains, the Department’s Title IX regulations prohibit discrimination based on pregnancy and related conditions in institutions that receive Federal funding from the Department, and these protections, which include a prohibition on discrimination based on termination of pregnancy, have been in place since 1975. The regulations make clear that Title IX protects students and employees from discrimination based on pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, or recovery therefrom, and the resource discusses issues such as discrimination and exclusion, medical and other benefits and services, leave policies, and more.

• Read the Resource (English)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced the resolution of a complaint of racial harassment filed against Peoria Unified School District in Arizona. OCR determined that the district failed to address harassment of students on the basis of race, color, and national origin, in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its implementing regulations. Peer harassment included race-based slurs, such as targeting the n-word and “ching chong” at students, mocking police killings of Black people, pulling eyes back to mock Asian students, mimicking “Heil Hitler” salutes, drawing Swastikas on photographs of students’ faces on notebooks and in a bathroom, and saying Black people “do not deserve to live” and “should die,” a student’s skin looked like “burnt” food, and that a student should “go back to [their] country” and “eat dog.” Harassment by employees involved repeated touching of and comments exclusively about a Black student’s hair. The resolution agreement commits the district to take steps to ensure nondiscrimination based on race, color, and national origin in its education programs and activities. The district’s commitments include: (1) providing supports and remedies, where appropriate, to students who were subjected to peer harassment based on race, color, or national origin at the school; (2) conducting a climate assessment that examines the prevalence of harassment at the school, the hostile environment created by the widespread harassment, the school’s and district’s handling of reports of harassment, and measures for reducing harassment at the school and for improving the district’s response to reports of harassment; (3) issuing an anti-harassment statement and issuing a notice to parents about identifying and reporting harassment and about how the district is expected to respond; (4) reviewing, revising, and disseminating policies, forms, and record-keeping procedures related to harassment based on race, color, and national origin; (5) training staff about legal requirements under Title VI, reporting and responding to harassment, prohibited retaliation, cultural competency, and implicit bias; and (6) providing developmentally appropriate educational programs about how to recognize and report racial harassment for school students.

• Press Release
• Peoria Unified School District – Letter of Findings PDF (426.9K)
• Peoria Unified School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (314.7K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced the resolution of a complaint of anti-Semitic harassment filed against Kyrene School District #28 in Arizona. OCR determined that the District violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its implementing regulations by failing to respond appropriately to notice of on-going anti-Semitic harassment of a student by other students. OCR found that the student was subjected to months of harassment, both in school and on social media, by numerous classmates. The harassment included calling her anti-Semitic slurs and disparaging and joking about her Jewish heritage, over a period of five months. The harassment the student experienced and the District’s failure to provide the student with a safe school environment caused her to suffer significant and enduring academic and emotional harm. OCR also found that the harassment the District failed to address persisted school wide. The resolution agreement commits the District to take steps to ensure nondiscrimination based on race, color, or national origin (including based on shared ancestry and ethnic characteristics) in all of its education programs and activities. The District’s commitments include: (1) addressing the student’s academic and counseling needs resulting from the harassment; (2) reviewing and revising its policies and procedures to address Title VI’s prohibition of harassment based on race, color, or national origin, including shared ancestry, including by clarifying in its policies and procedures that the prohibition against harassment includes harassment based on Jewish ancestry; (3) providing training to District staff regarding the District’s obligation to respond to complaints of harassment based on race, color, or national origin; (4) providing age-appropriate information programs for students to address harassment based on race, color, or national origin; and (5) conducting a climate survey to assess the prevalence of harassment in the student’s former school and provide suggestions for effective ways to address harassment. 

• Press Release
• Kyrene School District #28 - Resolution Letter PDF (284K)
• Kyrene School District #28 - Resolution Agreement PDF (205K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today announced that the Victor Valley Union High School District in California has entered into a resolution agreement to end race discrimination in implementation of school discipline. OCR determined that the district discriminated based on race in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and its implementing regulations by disciplining Black students more frequently and more harshly than similarly situated white students. OCR identified a pattern of disparate disciplinary actions across types of discipline, schools, and grade levels that imposed greater harms – including in significant lost learning time – on Black students than their white peers. The voluntary resolution agreement requires the district to (1) examine the causes of racial disparities in the district’s discipline and implement a corresponding corrective action plan; (2) employ a director with expertise in nondiscriminatory discipline practices to help the district implement the corrective action plan and the agreement; (3) establish a stakeholder equity committee to inform implementation of the plan; (4) revise its discipline policies and procedures, including regarding law enforcement involvement in school discipline; (5) regularly analyze its student discipline data to identify and, as needed, address possible areas of discrimination; (6) provide training to staff on the revised discipline policies and practices; (7) publicly report disaggregated discipline data; (8) conduct school climate surveys to assess perceptions of fairness and safety; and (8) provide compensatory education to students subjected to discriminatory practices.

• Press Release
• Victor Valley Union High School District – Letter of Findings PDF (1.3M)
• Victor Valley Union High School District – Resolution Agreement PDF (543K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is pleased to release our Annual Report to the Secretary, the President, and the Congress for fiscal year 2021. The Annual Report summarizes the enforcement achievements and policy actions of the 2021 fiscal year. Throughout the 2021 fiscal year, OCR actively pursued our mission to ensure equal access to education and to promote educational excellence through the vigorous enforcement of civil rights. This report describes OCR’s effort to meet the pandemic moment for school communities, safeguarding the civil rights in schools that Congress has long charged OCR with protecting. This report provides a snapshot of OCR’s accomplishments during the 2021 fiscal year, including:

• Resolving 8,238 cases and initiating 17 proactive investigations, including 11 related to the COVID-19 pandemic;
• Clarifying the application of Federal civil rights laws to both remote and in-person learning during the COVID-19 pandemic;
• Addressing the obligations of schools, public agencies, and postsecondary institutions to students and children with long COVID;
• Clarifying OCR’s interpretation of schools’ existing obligations under the 2020 amendments to the Department’s Title IX regulations, including the areas in which schools have discretion in their procedures for responding to reports of sexual harassment;
• Hosting a virtual convening organized with the Department of Justice on Brown 67 Years Later: Examining Disparities in School Discipline and the Pursuit of Safe and Inclusive Schools, where students, educators, school administrators, civil rights attorneys, and researchers considered the impact of exclusionary school discipline policies and practices on our nation’s students, particularly students of color, students, with disabilities, and LGBTQI+ students; and
• Announcing our plan to administer a 2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection, marking the first time OCR has conducted the CRDC in all covered schools two years in a row, which will help illuminate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on education equity.

Fiscal Year 2021 Annual Report PDF (6.4M)

Today, the Department of Education issued guidance documents concerning the rights of students with disabilities in connection with student discipline. The Office for Civil Rights issued Supporting Students with Disabilities and Avoiding the Discriminatory Use of Discipline under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which explains the nondiscrimination requirements that public elementary and secondary schools must follow with regard to the discipline of students with disabilities under Section 504. OCR also issued a fact sheet with a brief overview of the guidance. In addition, the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services issued Questions and Answers Addressing the Needs of Children with Disabilities and IDEA’s Discipline Provisions, which explains requirements that state educational agencies and public elementary and secondary schools must follow with regard to the discipline of students with disabilities under the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA). OSERS also issued a technical assistance document, Positive, Proactive Approaches to Supporting Children with Disabilities: A Guide for Stakeholders.

• Press Release
• Letter from Secretary Cardona
• OCR “Dear Colleague” letter and guidance PDF (1.2M)
• OCR Fact Sheet PDF (299K)
• OSERS “Dear Colleague” PDF (235K)
• OSERS Q and A PDF (998K)
• OSERS Guide for Stakeholders PDF (609K)

Today, OCR published a revised Case Processing Manual, available here.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced the resolution of a sex-based harassment investigation of the Tamalpais Union High School District in California. OCR determined that the district violated Title IX by failing to respond promptly and effectively to repeated notice of ongoing sex-based harassment of a transgender student by another student predicated on sex stereotyping. OCR found that the district failed to investigate known allegations that the other student had repeatedly harassed the student about her appearance, her voice, her body, her name, and her pronouns since the start of the 2017-2018 school year. OCR also found that the district failed to respond promptly and effectively to notice in 2018 that this harassment was continuing, and that the district’s investigation of a 2018 incident involving alleged sex-based harassment of the student was neither adequate nor equitable. As a result of these failures, OCR determined that the district permitted the student to be subjected to a hostile environment based on sex that was sufficiently serious to deny or limit the student’s ability to participate in or benefit from the school’s program. The resolution agreement commits the district to take the steps needed to ensure nondiscrimination on the basis of sex in all of its education programs and activities. The district’s commitments in the voluntary resolution agreement include: (1) offering to reimburse the student or her parent for past counseling and/or therapy services that the student received after the sex-based harassment began; (2) reviewing and revising, as necessary, its policies and procedures to clarify that harassment based on sex includes harassment based on sex stereotyping; (3) training its employees and contractors who respond to sex-based harassment about the Title IX obligation to respond promptly and equitably; (4) monitoring its schools’ responses to sex-based harassment complaints for compliance with the agreement and Title IX; and (5) providing documentation to OCR demonstrating that the district’s responses to complaints of sex-based harassment during academic years 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 complied with the agreement and Title IX.

• Tamalpais Union High School District - Resolution Letter PDF(481K)
• Tamalpais Union High School District - Resolution Agreement PDF(180K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education released for public comment its proposed amendments to the Department’s regulations implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. The proposed amendments reflect the Department’s continued commitment to ensuring that federally funded education programs and activities are free from all forms of sex discrimination, including discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity. In addition to the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, the Department has released a fact sheet and a summary of the major provisions of the proposed amendments. The Department’s proposed Title IX regulations will be open for public comment for 60 days from the date of publication in the Federal Register.

• Read the Press Release
• Unofficial version of the NPRM submitted to the Federal Register on June 23, 2022 PDF (2.7M)
• Fact Sheet PDF (185K)
• Summary of Major Provisions of the Department of Education’s Title IX Notice of Proposed Rulemaking PDF (273K)
• The NPRM was published in the Federal Register on July 12, 2022 PDF (1.6M)
• Submit your comments through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov/document/ED-2021-OCR-0166-0001

The U.S. Department’s Office for Civil Rights published the more than 30,000 written comments received during the virtual national public hearing on Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, held June 7-11, 2021. This hearing was an important part of the Department of Education’s ongoing comprehensive review to ensure that its policies and regulations fully implement Title IX’s protection against sex discrimination in federally funded education programs and activities. Commenters included students, teachers, professors, school administrators and leaders, advocates, parents, and other members of the public from throughout the United States. The public can now view each of those comments, organized alphabetically, on OCR’s webpage dedicated to the public hearing. In addition to reviewing the written comments, the public can also access the entire five-day transcript of OCR’s public hearing.

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announced the resolution of a student’s complaint of pregnancy discrimination against Salt Lake Community College in Utah. OCR determined that the College violated both Title IX and Section 504 after investigating allegations that the College encouraged a pregnant student to drop a course because she was pregnant, did not engage in an interactive process to provide her with academic adjustments or necessary services during her pregnancy, and did not excuse her pregnancy-related absences or allow her later to submit work following those absences. The resolution agreement will ensure the College’s compliance with Title IX, Section 504, and their implementing regulations as they apply to requests for academic adjustments based on pregnancy, pregnancy-related absences, and complaints of pregnancy discrimination. The College’s commitments in the voluntary resolution agreement include: (1) revising its nondiscrimination notice and grievance procedures to comply with Title IX; (2) publishing information on its website for pregnant students about their Title IX rights and how to seek academic adjustments, special services, or excused absences; (3) training its Title IX coordinator, Disabilities Resource Center staff, and other school employees regarding Title IX’s and Section 504’s protections for pregnant students and the academic adjustments and special services available to pregnant students; (4) completing and documenting its investigation of the student’s complaint of pregnancy discrimination; and (5) taking other measures to remedy the discrimination against the student.

• Salt Lake Community College - Resolution Letter PDF (323KB)
• Salt Lake Community College - Resolution Agreement PDF (184KB)

The Office for Civil Rights has resolved a compliance review of Horry County Schools in South Carolina, with the district committing to take steps necessary to ensure that students with disabilities receive the free appropriate public education (FAPE) to which they are entitled without unnecessary restraint or seclusion or missed instruction. OCR’s investigation identified concerns that students who were repeatedly subjected to restraint or seclusion lost educational time and services, and that the district did not re-evaluate students who were repeatedly restrained or secluded to determine whether they should receive additional supports or compensatory services. The district’s commitments to resolve the investigation include: (1) revising its procedures and guidance documents on the use of restraint or seclusion; (2) clarifying the roles and responsibilities of those involved in monitoring and oversight of the district’s use of restraint or seclusion; (3) modifying its recordkeeping system; (4) creating a plan to accurately report data to the Civil Rights Data Collection; (5) training staff on the district’s procedures and new recordkeeping system; (6) reviewing files of currently enrolled students who were restrained or secluded since the start of the 2017-2018 school year to determine, in part, whether any student requires compensatory education for educational services missed due to incidents of restraint or seclusion; and (7) implementing a monitoring program to assess the district’s use of restraint or seclusion.

• Horry County Schools - Resolution Letter PDF (443KB)
• Horry County Schools - Resolution Agreement PDF (2.9M)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today announced significant actions aimed at ensuring digital accessibility for students with disabilities. OCR launched 100 new compliance reviews in the area of digital accessibility for people with disabilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The reviews will be looking at digital accessibility in public-facing and student-facing websites and educational platforms maintained by state departments of education, school districts, charter schools, public libraries, and public and private 2- and 4-year colleges and universities. In addition, OCR, in partnership with the ADA National Network, released a 20-part video series covering topics such as how people with disabilities use technology, applicable Federal laws, and how to identify and remediate different types of technological barriers that can interfere with the ability of parents and students with disabilities to participate in modern American education. The intent of the series is to provide a basic instruction to many different digital accessibility concepts, such as fundamental manual testing techniques, use of color, logical reading order, meaningful video captions, and others. The videos are designed for a wide range of audience members, including school webmasters, parents and students with disabilities, and educational app developers and other IT vendors.

• Digital accessibility video series

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights resolved two complaints against San Juan Bautista School of Medicine, a private medical school in Puerto Rico. The resolution agreement will ensure the school’s compliance with Title IX as it applies to requirements to respond promptly and equitably to complaints of sexual harassment, including sexual assault. The resolution agreement also will ensure that the school uses trained staff to conduct timely and complete investigations of complaints alleging discrimination based on sex as well as race and national origin to comply with Title VI. OCR determined that the school failed to investigate the complainant’s alleged sexual assault in violation of Title IX. The school’s commitments to resolve the investigations include (1) offering to reimburse the complainant for tuition the student paid for two classes for which the complainant received grades of incomplete and had to retake upon transferring to another medical school; (2) revising its policies and procedures to comply with Title IX; (3) training its Title IX coordinator and other school employees involved in processing, investigating, and resolving complaints of sexual harassment and discrimination based on race and national origin; (4) completing and documenting its investigation of the complainant’s allegation of sexual assault and notifying the parties and OCR of the outcome of the investigation; and (5) providing documentation to OCR demonstrating that the school has responded promptly and equitably to complaints of sexual harassment and discrimination based on race and national origin in academic years 2022 and 2023.

• San Juan Bautista School of Medicine - Resolution Letter PDF (1.23M)
• San Juan Bautista School of Medicine - Resolution Agreement PDF (381KB)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has announced that it intends to propose amendments to its regulations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the landmark disability civil rights law. The Department is seeking suggestions from the public to help identify proposals that will best improve current regulations at 34 C.F.R. pt.104. Interested parties may go to www.ed.gov/policy/rights/reg/ocr/ to submit suggestions.

Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights resolved two complaints against San Juan Bautista School of Medicine, a private medical school in Puerto Rico. The resolution agreement will ensure the school’s compliance with Title IX as it applies to requirements to respond promptly and equitably to complaints of sexual harassment, including sexual assault. The resolution agreement also will ensure that the school uses trained staff to conduct timely and complete investigations of complaints alleging discrimination based on sex as well as race and national origin to comply with Title VI. OCR determined that the school failed to investigate the complainant’s alleged sexual assault in violation of Title IX. The school’s commitments to resolve the investigations include (1) offering to reimburse the complainant for tuition the student paid for two classes for which the complainant received grades of incomplete and had to retake upon transferring to another medical school; (2) revising its policies and procedures to comply with Title IX; (3) training its Title IX coordinator and other school employees involved in processing, investigating, and resolving complaints of sexual harassment and discrimination based on race and national origin; (4) completing and documenting its investigation of the complainant’s allegation of sexual assault and notifying the parties and OCR of the outcome of the investigation; and (5) providing documentation to OCR demonstrating that the school has responded promptly and equitably to complaints of sexual harassment and discrimination based on race and national origin in academic years 2022 and 2023.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today secured a resolution agreement with the Los Angeles Unified School District (Calif.) requiring the District to take steps necessary to ensure that students with disabilities receive educational services, including compensatory services, during and resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. OCR investigated the district’s provision during the pandemic of the free appropriate public education (FAPE) to which Federal civil rights law entitles students with disabilities. OCR’s investigation found that the District failed to provide services identified in students’ Individualized Education Programs and Section 504 plans during remote learning. The District agreed to resolve the violations by creating and implementing a comprehensive plan to address the compensatory education needs of students with disabilities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Los Angeles Unified School District - Resolution Letter PDF (358K)
• Los Angeles Unified School District - Resolution Agreement PDF (1.53M)
• Fact Sheet on Compensatory Services PDF (294.6K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today announced the resolution of a sexual harassment investigation of the Chino Valley Unified School District. OCR determined that the district violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and its implementing regulations by failing to provide an effective response to notice of sexual harassment among members of a school athletics team in fall 2017. The resolution agreement commits the district to necessary steps to ensure nondiscrimination in its schools, including contacting all former athletes from the school’s fall 2017 athletic team and offering counseling services or reimbursement for such services received to address the effects of the district’s failure to address known sexual harassment on the team; conducting a climate survey for the school’s athletic team; training district and school administrators and interscholastic coaching staff about their responsibilities for responding effectively to sexual harassment; conducting ongoing Title IX education for student athletes in the district’s athletics program to ensure that they know how to recognize and report sexual harassment; and reporting to OCR about the district’s training and responses to complaints of sexual harassment through the end of the 2022-2023 school year.

• Chino Valley Unified - Resolution Letter PDF (323K)
• Chino Valley Unified - Resolution Agreement PDF (232K)

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a fact sheet reminding schools of their obligation to ensure free appropriate public education (FAPE) under Section 504 for students with disabilities during the pandemic, including schools’ responsibilities to provide compensatory services. Even with the unique challenges the COVID-19 pandemic presents, students with disabilities retain their right to FAPE under Section 504. If a student with a disability did not receive appropriate evaluations or services, then it must be determined whether, and to what extent, compensatory services are required.

• Read the Fact Sheet (English)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today resolved a compliance review of the Huron Valley Schools in Michigan. The district entered a voluntary resolution agreement to take steps necessary to ensure that students with disabilities receive the free appropriate public education, or FAPE, to which they are entitled, including requiring the district to review its use of restraint and seclusion; assessing whether students with disabilities who were subjected to restraint and seclusion require additional remedies or services, including compensatory education; and developing new systems for documenting the use of restraint or seclusion.

• Huron Valley Schools - Resolution Letter PDF (323K)
• Huron Valley Schools - Resolution Agreement PDF (232K)

Today, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced that it has submitted to the Federal Register for public comment a proposed Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) Information Collection Request (ICR) for the 2021–22 school year. The public will have 60 days to provide comments on the proposed collection. The ICR details civil rights data that OCR intends to collect from the nation’s public schools and school districts. OCR plans to introduce new data elements, such as those relating to students’ educational experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as restore key data elements from previous collections. Please view the proposed 2021–22 CRDC ICR by visiting the Federal Register here.

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights today resolved a compliance review of the Saco Public Schools in Maine. The district entered a voluntary agreement to take steps necessary to ensure students with disabilities receive the free appropriate public education to which they are entitled without unnecessary restraint or seclusion or reducing their school days. The agreement calls for identifying ways to minimize the involvement of a school resource officer in student misconduct that can be safely and appropriately handled by school personnel. In addition, the agreement requires accurate reporting of data to the Department as part of the Civil Rights Data Collection.

• Saco School Department - Resolution Letter PDF (221K)
• Saco School Department - Resolution Agreement PDF (407K)

As part of National Bullying Prevention Month, the Department of Education released a webinar that provides information and useful resources from the Department’s Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, and Office for Civil Rights, covering issues such as promoting a positive school climate; preventing and addressing bullying, including cyber-bullying; special considerations for students with disabilities; and bullying and civil rights.

• National Bullying Prevention Month PDF (189K)
• Bullying Prevention Video

In recognition of Intersex Awareness Day, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued a fact sheet on supporting intersex students.

• Read the Fact Sheet PDF (486K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division jointly issued a fact sheet, Supporting and Protecting the Rights of Students at Risk of Self-Harm in the Era of COVID-19, presenting information about public elementary and secondary schools’ and certain postsecondary institutions’ obligations to ensure students with mental health disabilities have access to an education free from discrimination in addition to the services, reasonable modifications, and academic adjustments they need.

• Read the Fact Sheet (English) PDF (819K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued two resource collections—one for elementary and secondary schools and one for postsecondary institutions—designed to assist in planning for a successful and equitable return to schools and campuses. The two collections include fact sheets, Q&As, letters to educators, and other materials explaining the obligations that elementary, secondary, and postsecondary schools have under the federal civil rights laws enforced by OCR to provide educational environments free from discrimination.

• Read the Elementary and Secondary Resource Collection PDF (508K)
• Read the Postsecondary Resource Collection PDF (356K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued a letter to students, educators, and other stakeholders explaining that, pursuant to a court order, postsecondary institutions are no longer subject to the part of 34 C.F.R. § 106.45(b)(6)(i) that prohibits decision-makers in Title IX proceedings from considering any statement from a person who did not submit to cross-examination.

• Read the letter PDF (577K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division jointly issued a fact sheet, Confronting Discrimination Based on National Origin and Immigration Status, sharing information about public elementary and secondary schools’ obligations to enroll all children, regardless of national origin or immigration status, and to provide language assistance services to English learners.

• Read the Fact Sheet (English) PDF (534K)
• En español PDF (557K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) sent a letter to district superintendents announcing that it will administer a 2021–22 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC), marking the first time that OCR has conducted a CRDC, including all public school districts and their schools, two school years in a row—2020–21 and 2021–22.

• Read the superintendent letter PDF (78K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services issued a resource to explain how schools (including postsecondary institutions) and public agencies must respond to students and children who are experiencing long COVID. Long COVID affects many individuals, and schools and public agencies must follow existing IDEA and Section 504 procedures when it comes to a child or student with long COVID.

• Read the resource PDF (309K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued “Questions and Answers on the Title IX Regulations on Sexual Harassment” and a related Appendix. The Q&A clarifies how OCR interprets schools’ existing obligations under the 2020 amendments, and the Appendix provides examples of Title IX procedures.

OCR also published the transcript of the June 2021 virtual public hearing on Title IX. This transcript includes comments from over 280 students, parents, teachers, faculty members, school staff, administrators, and other members of the public on providing students with educational environments free from sexual harassment and sexual violence; ensuring fair and equitable resolution of incident reports; and addressing discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

• Read the Questions and Answers on the Title IX Regulations on Sexual Harassment PDF (1.16M)
• Read the Complete Public Hearing Transcript (June 7 – June 11, 2021) PDF (3.17M)
  • Transcript of June 7, 2021 PDF (956K)
  • Transcript of June 8, 2021 PDF (1.07M)
  • Transcript of June 9, 2021 PDF (1.18M)
  • Transcript of June 10, 2021 PDF (1.45M)
  • Transcript of June 11, 2021 PDF (1.29M)
• Official Notice of the Public Hearing

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued a Dear Educator Letter to celebrate the 49th anniversary of the passage of Title IX, and highlight the law’s impact on education and recent developments and resources, including a new fact sheet on sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination.

• Read the Dear Educator Letter PDF  (552K)
• Read the Fact Sheet PDF (335K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights issued a Notice of Interpretation explaining that Title IX’s prohibition on discrimination based on sex encompasses discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The Department’s interpretation stems from the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in Bostock v. Clayton County (2020), which recognized that it is impossible to discriminate against a person based on their sexual orientation or gender identity without discriminating against that person based on sex.

• Read the Press Release
• Unofficial Notice of Interpretation PDF (611.10K)
• Official Notice of Interpretation

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights published, Education in a Pandemic: The Disparate Impacts of COVID-19 on America’s Students, in response to President Biden’s Executive Order on Supporting the Reopening and Continuing Operation of Schools and Early Childhood Education Providers. The report explores how the impacts of COVID-19 are falling disproportionately on students who went into the pandemic with the fewest educational opportunities, many of whom are from marginalized and underserved communities, with early research showing disparities based on race, ethnicity, LGBTQ+ identity, and other factors.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Report PDF (1.95M)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights published a Request for Information soliciting written comments regarding the administration of school discipline in schools serving students in pre-k through grade 12. These comments will inform determinations about what policy guidance, technical assistance, or other resources would assist schools with improving school climate and safety, consistent with the civil rights laws that OCR enforces, to ensure equal access to education programs and activities. The Request for Information includes instructions for submitting comments.

• Read the Notice PDF (483K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights sent a Dear Educator Letter to remind schools of their obligations to investigate and address all forms of harassment based on race, color, or national origin, including harassment directed at Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) students. The letter provides resources to assist schools in meeting these obligations and was written in response to a recent increase in harassment and violence directed at AAPI individuals.

• Read the Dear Educator Letter PDF (346K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announces a virtual public hearing to gather information for the purpose of improving enforcement of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. OCR seeks comments from the public on steps the Department can take 1) to ensure that schools are providing students with educational environments free from discrimination in the form of sexual harassment, which encompasses sexual assault and other forms of sexual violence; 2) to ensure that schools have grievance procedures that provide for the fair, prompt, and equitable resolution of reports of sexual harassment and other sex discrimination, cognizant of the sensitive issues that are often involved; and 3) to address discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in educational environments.

• Read the Press Release
• Unofficial Notice of Public Hearing PDF (601.33K)
• Official Notice of Public Hearing
• Register to Provide a Live Comment
• Attend the Virtual Hearing

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights released a new Question and Answer resource to help students, families, schools and the public understand their rights and responsibilities in remote, hybrid and in-person educational environments, including in K-12 schools and postsecondary institutions. The Q&A provides information on issues including the rights of students with disabilities to a Free and Appropriate Public Education (FAPE) during remote learning and school reopening; the rights of students with undocumented status and the rights of English learners; students’ rights to the nondiscriminatory administration of discipline; protections for students against sex discrimination, including sexual and gender-based harassment; and schools’ responsibilities to address complaints of sexual harassment, including sexual violence, during remote, hybrid and in-person learning. 

• Questions and Answers PDF (1.40M)

The U.S. Department of Education and U.S. Department of Justice issued Confronting COVID-19-Related Harassment in Schools, a resource for students and families, to share information about schools’ obligation to investigate and address discrimination, including harassment, targeting students because of their race or national origin. The fact sheet responds to a recent increase in discrimination, including harassment and violence, directed at Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) individuals, including students.

• Read the Fact Sheet (English) PDF (507K)
  မြန်မာစကား (Burmese) PDF (942K)
  简体字 (Sim. Chinese) PDF (943K)
  繁體字 (Trad. Chinese) PDF (646K)
  Hakha Chin (Hakha Chin) PDF (904K)
  日本語 (Japanese) PDF (958K)
  ကညီကျိာ (Karen) PDF (988K)
  ខ្មែរ (Khmer) PDF (985K)
  한국어 (Korean) PDF (571K)
  ພາສາລາວ (Lao) PDF (922K)
  ไทย (Thai) PDF (931K)
  Tagalog (Tagalog) PDF (488K)
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) PDF (464K)

The letter from the U.S. Department of Education’s (Department) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) to students, educators, and other stakeholders explains that OCR is taking immediate action to carry out the requirements of the Executive Order on Guaranteeing an Educational Environment Free from Discrimination on the Basis of Sex, Including Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity. Specifically, OCR is undertaking a comprehensive review of the Department’s existing regulations, including the amendments to the Department’s Title IX regulations that took effect on August 14, 2020, entitled “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance,” and other actions related to Title IX. As part of this review, OCR will gather feedback on the issues of sexual harassment in school environments, including sexual violence, and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. This review process, including feedback from students, educators, and others, will enable OCR to determine whether changes or additions to the Department’s Title IX regulations and any related agency actions may be necessary to fulfill the Executive Order and the Department’s commitment to ensuring equal and nondiscriminatory access to education for students in schools across the nation, at all educational levels. During this review process, the existing Title IX regulations, as amended in 2020, remain in effect.

• Read the Press Release
• Notification of Immediate Action to Carry Out the Requirements of the Executive Order on Guaranteeing an Educational Environment Free from Discrimination on the Basis of Sex, Including Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity PDF (475.1K)

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today unveiled new data from the 2017–18 school year.

• Read the Press Release
• Restraint and Seclusion Issue Brief PDF (758K)
• Sexual Violence Issue Brief PDF (3.1M)
• Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) for the 2017-18 School Year

The U.S. Department of Education today released its Final Rule under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs or activities receiving federal financial assistance. In addition to posting the unofficial version of the Final Rule, the Department is releasing a Fact Sheet, a Final Rule overview, a document detailing the major provisions of the Final Rules, and a document highlighting changes between the prior Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and the Final Rule. Additionally, the Office for Civil Rights has released a Webinar describing the Final Rule and many of its features.

The Final Rule is clear, predictable, and effective at ensuring schools have the tools they need to address incidents of sexual harassment in their programs and activities. Under the Final Rule, schools know the importance of responding to such incidents appropriately by supporting survivors, as well as by providing a fair, transparent process for investigating and adjudicating sexual harassment matters. The Final Rule will carry the force and effect of law as of August 14, 2020.

• Title IX Regulations Addressing Sexual Harassment (Unofficial Copy) PDF (6M)
• Title IX: Fact Sheet: Final Title IX Regulations PDF (209K)
• Title IX: U.S. Department of Education Title IX Final Rule Overview PDF (553K)
• Title IX: Summary of Major Provisions of the Department of Education’s Title IX Final Rule PDF (675K)
• Title IX: Summary of Major Provisions of the Department of Education’s Title IX Final Rule and Comparison to the NPRM PDF (706K)
• OCR Webinar: Title IX Regulations Addressing Sexual Harassment (Length: 01:11:29) 05/06/2020

On Wednesday, March 4, 2020 the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Education (Department) issued a Letter to Education Leaders on Preventing and Addressing potential discrimination associated with COVID-19 in light of the coronavirus and an increasing number of news reports concerning harassment or bullying of students perceived to be of Asian descent. The OCR letter is one of many resources the Department has made available on its COVID-19 ("Coronavirus") Information and Resources for Schools and School Personnel page, where the Department will post regular updates.

• Letter: PDF (170K)
• Visit the ED’s Information and Resources page: https://www.ed.gov/coronavirus?src=feature

Today, the Department of Education announced a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to foster environments that promote open, intellectually engaging, and diverse debate, including through compliance with the First Amendment for public institutions and compliance with stated institutional policies regarding freedom of speech, including academic freedom, for private institutions. Part of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking proposes to clarify how an educational institution may demonstrate that it is controlled by a religious organization for purposes of Title IX, 20 U.S.C. § 1681. The Department is issuing a brief factsheet regarding this aspect of the proposed regulations. The proposed regulations can be viewed here.

• Fact sheet: PDF (680K)

On January 17, 2019, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced an initiative to examine the possible inappropriate use of restraint and seclusion in our nation’s schools. As a part of this initiative, the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has partnered with the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) to support teachers, school leaders, parents, and stakeholders as they work to address the behavioral needs of children with disabilities.

One primary component of the Department’s initiative has focused on providing technical assistance to support schools in understanding how Section 504, Title II, and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) informs the development and implementation of policies governing the use of restraint and seclusion.

To this end, OCR and OSERS are pleased to present the following webinar, Students with Disabilities and the Use of Restraint and Seclusion in K-12 Public Schools Webcast (Length: 00:46:09), as technical assistance to both support children with disabilities – and support the needs of those within school systems serving students.

We hope that you will find this tool to be a helpful resource and valuable technical assistance on how federal laws apply to the use of restraint and seclusion. OCR and OSERS will continue to seek ways to support schools to improve outcomes for children with disabilities and ensure access to technical assistance and available resources.

The U.S. Department of Education announced it will fine Michigan State University (MSU) a record $4.5 million and require the University to make major changes to its Title IX procedures following its systemic failure to protect students from sexual abuse. The fine and required corrective action come after two separate investigations, one by the office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) and the other by the Office for Civil Rights (OCR), as directed by U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos.

• Read the press prelease
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (519K)
  
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (243K)

U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced today that the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) will work collaboratively to improve the information collected in the Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC). The partnership between OCR and NCES will help to ensure that the CRDC data is valid, reliable and authenticated in a manner that provides a more accurate picture of key civil rights issues in education.

"OCR has worked to continuously improve CRDC data quality—and has taken unprecedented steps to ensure school districts report accurate data to the Department," said U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos. "This agreement between OCR and NCES is one additional step to make sure that we are doing everything we can to help states and school districts provide correct CRDC data that can be relied on by the public, parents and families.

• Read the press prelease

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the U.S. Department of Education released new data today that show students who file civil rights complaints under U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos’ leadership are served more efficiently and effectively than students who filed civil rights complaints during the previous administration.

• Read the press prelease

U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos released the following statement for tomorrow’s 47th anniversary of the enactment of Title IX:

“Title IX makes clear that no student shall, on the basis of sex, be subject to discrimination. This important law ensures that institutions that receive federal taxpayer funds will follow the law and grant equal access to all students, regardless of sex, in activities and programs inside and outside the classroom. We take the responsibility of protecting students seriously. The Department’s Office for Civil Rights vigorously enforces Title IX so that every student can pursue a quality education free from discrimination.”

The U.S. Department of Education today submitted for publication in the Federal Register written notice of re-opening of the comment period for the Department's proposed regulations under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance). On November 29, 2018, the Department published in the Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking to amend the regulations under Title IX (Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance). During the 62-day comment period, which closed on January 30, 2019, the Department received more than 104,000 comments. To give the public an additional opportunity to comment—particularly anyone who may have experienced technical difficulties using the Federal eRulemaking Portal—the Department is reopening the comment period for one day on February 15, 2019. As to comments not previously submitted, commenters must submit comments: between 12:00 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. EST on February 15, 2019 if submitted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal (www.regulations.gov); or between 9:00a.m. and 5:00 p.m. EST on February 15, 2019 if hand delivered; or postmarked on February 15, 2019 if delivered by postal mail or commercial delivery. Comments submitted by postal mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery must be addressed to Brittany Bull, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave. SW, Room 6E310, Washington, DC 20202. Please do not resubmit a comment that was previously submitted. The Department is continuously processing and posting all comments received from the public in a manner that ensures the Department is able to review and consider each comment. Once all comments have been processed, they will be posted and publicly available.

• Read the unofficial version of the notice sent to the Federal Register here.
• The official Notice was published in the Federal Register on February 14, 2019 PDF (192K)

The U.S. Department of Education today submitted for publication in the Federal Register written notice of an extension of the comment period for the Department's proposed regulations under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance). On November 29, 2018, the Department published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register (83 FR 61462) to amend the Title IX regulations to provide appropriate standards for how recipients must respond to incidents of sexual harassment. The NPRM established a 60-day comment period through January 28, 2019; however, the Federal eRulemaking Portal was temporarily unavailable for a portion of January 16 and 17, 2019 due to technical issues. To ensure that the public will have had 60 days in total to submit comments on the Department's NPRM using the Federal eRulemaking Portal, the Department is extending the public comment period for an additional two days. Comments must now be submitted to the Department on or before January 30, 2019. Comments may continue to be submitted via the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=ED_FRDOC_0001-0830, or by postal mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery addressed to: Brittany Bull, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave. SW, Room 6E310, Washington, DC 20202.

• Read the unofficial version of the notice sent to the Federal Register here.

U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos announced that the U.S. Department of Education is launching an initiative to address the possible inappropriate use of restraint and seclusion in our nation’s schools. The Office for Civil Rights (OCR), in partnership with the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), will oversee this proactive approach, which will protect students with disabilities by providing technical assistance and support to schools, districts, and state education agencies, and which will strengthen enforcement activities.

• Read the press prelease
• En español PDF (100K)

As part of its ongoing work to protect students' civil rights and effectively, efficiently and fairly investigate civil rights complaints, today the U.S. Department of Education announced additional improvements to the Office for Civil Rights' (OCR) Case Processing Manual (CPM).

The U.S. Department of Education today released its proposed rule under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs or activities receiving federal financial assistance. This package includes the Department's press release, a one page fact sheet, a section-by-section summary of the proposed rule, and the proposed rule in its entirety. The Department's proposed rule will be open for public comment for 60 days from the date of publication in the Federal Register.

• Read the Press Release
• Unofficial version of the NPRM submitted to the Federal Register on November 16, 2018 PDF (531K) ARCHIVED
• Fact Sheet PDF (44K)
• Background & Summary of the Education Department's Proposed Title IX Regulation PDF (258K)
• The NPRM was published in the Federal Register on November 29, 2018 PDF (579K)
• Submit your comments through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov/document?D=ED_FRDOC_0001-0830

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today unveiled new data from the 2015–16 school year.

• Read the Press Release
• STEM Course Taking Issue Brief PDF (2.4M)
• School Climate and Safety Issue Brief PDF (2.6M)
• Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) for the 2015-16 School Year

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today issued a Dear Colleague Letter and Q&A on Campus Sexual Misconduct. The Dear Colleague Letter withdraws the statements of policy and guidance reflected in OCR’s Dear Colleague Letter on Sexual Violence (April 4, 2011), and Questions and Answers on Title IX and Sexual Violence (April 29, 2014). The Q&A on Campus Sexual Misconduct provides information about how OCR will assess a school’s compliance with Title IX while it engages in rulemaking on this topic.

• Read the Press Release
• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (314K)
  Carta a los Estimados Colegas PDF (130K)
• Q&A on Campus Sexual Misconduct PDF (149K)
  Preguntas y Respuestas Sobre la Mala Conducta Sexual en el Campus PDF (165K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced today that it has reached an agreement with Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio, after finding that the university’s handling of complaints arising from reports of sexual assault violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.  Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance.

The Title IX probe was based on two complaints filed in July 2011 and April 2013, alleging that the university failed to respond promptly and equitably to reports that the students had been sexually assaulted. (Read More).

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter
  
  Wittenberg University (OH) (15112115) PDF (181.6K)
  Wittenberg University (OH) (15132141) PDF (181.6K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement
  Wittenberg University (OH) (15112115) PDF (71.54K)
  Wittenberg University (OH) (15132141) PDF (71.54K)

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has reached an agreement with the Palo Alto Unified School District in Palo Alto, California after finding that the district's handling of complaints violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance.

During OCR's June 2013 proactive investigation of the district's handling of Title IX complaints, OCR received a complaint in March 2014 alleging that the district failed to respond promptly and equitably to reports that students were subjected to sexual harassment. OCR's investigation included reviewing the policies and procedures utilized by the district, reviewing investigative and discipline files provided by the district, conducting on-site visits, and interviewing district staff (Read More).

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter
  
  Palo Alto Unified School District (CA) (09141217) PDF (356.10K)
  Palo Alto Unified School District (CA) (09135901) PDF (356.10K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement
  Palo Alto Unified School District (CA) (09141217) PDF (89.88K)
  Palo Alto Unified School District (CA) (09135901) PDF (89.88K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced today that it has reached an agreement with Wittenberg University in Springfield, Ohio, after finding that the university’s handling of complaints arising from reports of sexual assault violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.  Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance.

The Title IX probe was based on two complaints filed in July 2011 and April 2013, alleging that the university failed to respond promptly and equitably to reports that the students had been sexually assaulted. (Read More).

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter
  
  Wittenberg University (OH) (15112115) PDF (181.6K)
  Wittenberg University (OH) (15132141) PDF (181.6K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement
  Wittenberg University (OH) (15112115) PDF (71.54K)
  Wittenberg University (OH) (15132141) PDF (71.54K)

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has reached an agreement with the Palo Alto Unified School District in Palo Alto, California after finding that the district's handling of complaints violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance.

During OCR's June 2013 proactive investigation of the district's handling of Title IX complaints, OCR received a complaint in March 2014 alleging that the district failed to respond promptly and equitably to reports that students were subjected to sexual harassment. OCR's investigation included reviewing the policies and procedures utilized by the district, reviewing investigative and discipline files provided by the district, conducting on-site visits, and interviewing district staff (Read More).

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter
  
  Palo Alto Unified School District (CA) (09141217) PDF (356.10K)
  Palo Alto Unified School District (CA) (09135901) PDF (356.10K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement
  Palo Alto Unified School District (CA) (09141217) PDF (89.88K)
  Palo Alto Unified School District (CA) (09135901) PDF (89.88K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today released a package of documents to assist schools, colleges, universities, educators, and students understand how Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, enforced by OCR, protects students of any religion from discrimination, including harassment, based on race, color, or national origin, including discrimination based on a student’s actual or perceived:

• shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics, or
• citizenship or residency in a country with a dominant religion or distinct religious identity.

The package includes a Know Your Rights document on when discrimination involving students who are or are perceived to belong to a religious group may be discrimination that is prohibited by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act; a fact sheet on combatting discrimination against Jewish students; a fact sheet on combatting discrimination against AANHPI/MASSA students; and a Dear Colleague Letter on Title VI and Title IX and Religious Discrimination

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) jointly issued a Dear Colleague Letter (DCL) and separate question and answer guidance documents to help educators, parents, students, and other stakeholders better understand the rights of students with disabilities in public charter schools under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504) and the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). In addition, OCR and OSERS jointly issued a fact sheet that provides a brief overview of the guidance.

• Read the Press Release
• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (107.78K)
• OSERS Frequently Asked Questions PDF (561.96K)
• OCR Frequently Asked Questions PDF (593.96K)
• Fact Sheet PDF (91.72K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today issued legal guidance to school districts as to how the use of restraint or seclusion can result in discrimination against students with disabilities, in violation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. In addition, the Department also released a “Fast Facts” document that provides a brief overview of the guidance.

• Read the Press Release
• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (395.68K)
• Fact Sheet PDF (161.97K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today issued a resource guide to help parents and the public elementary and secondary school community  understand student rights and school district responsibilities under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504), a Federal civil rights law that prohibits disability discrimination.

• Read the Press Release
• Section 504 Resource Guide PDF (590.96K)

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has reached an agreement with Elmira College in Elmira, New York, after finding that the college violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 by failing to promptly and equitably respond to complaints of sexual harassment and sexual violence.

“Elmira College has demonstrated a strong commitment to address and prevent sexual harassment and violence among students, staff and the college community,” said Catherine E. Lhamon, assistant secretary for civil rights. “I thank Elmira and its leadership for their commitment to work with OCR to implement this agreement, and to ensure student safety.”

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (412.97K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (213.03K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today issued guidance addressing the interplay of the Title VI prohibition against discrimination on the basis of race/color/national origin in the administration of special education in public schools.

• Read the Press Release
• "Dear Colleague" Letter PDF (432.29K)
• Fact Sheet PDF (152.08K)

The U.S. Department of Education released two reports today that spotlight the challenges and achievements of the Department’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in protecting students’ civil rights during an event with U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr., former Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon.

• Read the Press Release
• Securing Equal Education Opportunity (FY16 Report) PDF (4.19K)
• Achieving Simple Justice (2009-16 Report) PDF (13.84K)

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has reached an agreement with Connecticut’s East Hartford Public Schools after finding that the district violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by failing to provide adequate language services to limited English proficient (LEP) parents and guardians and by unlawfully imposing barriers to enrollment and applying additional registration and enrollment criteria to students based on national origin.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (346.39K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (219.17K)

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has entered into a resolution agreement with the Yonkers (N.Y.) Public Schools to address address problems concerning appropriate access to general education instruction for the district’s more than 4,000 students with disabilities.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (216.99K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (112.25K)

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has reached an agreement with the City University of New York (CUNY) and its Hunter College after finding that the college violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 by failing to promptly and equitably respond to complaints of sexual harassment and sexual violence.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (373.47K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (173.83K)

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has reached an agreement with Wesley College in Dover, Delaware after finding the college in violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 as it applies to sexual violence and sexual harassment. OCR determined that students accused of sexual misconduct had their Title IX rights violated by Wesley in the course of its investigation of the case.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (280.36K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (115.44K)

This "Questions and Answers" entry provides information about the U.S. Supreme Court's June 2016 ruling in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin (Fisher II), and reiterates the continued support of the Departments of Education and Justice for the voluntary use of race and ethnicity to achieve diversity in education.

• Questions and Answers PDF (116.63K)

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has entered into an agreement with Frostburg State University of the University System of Maryland to ensure compliance with Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 as it applies to sexual violence and sexual harassment. The action follows an OCR investigation which found Frostburg to be in violation of Title IX.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (253K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (264K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced today that the Lodi Unified School District in Lodi, California, has entered into a resolution agreement to end the racially discriminatory impact of the district’s discipline policies and address concerns that it disciplines African-American students more harshly than white students.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (717K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (478K)

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has entered into a resolution agreement with the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools in California to address compliance issues involving students with disabilities in alternative and juvenile court schools.

An OCR investigation found that the county discriminated against students with disabilities in violation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (Read more).

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (318K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (384K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today issued guidance clarifying the obligation of schools to provide students with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) with equal educational opportunity under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504).  The guidance—in the form of a Dear Colleague Letter and accompanying Resource Guide—provides a broad overview of Section 504 and school districts’ obligations to students with ADHD, including appropriately evaluating and providing services to such students, and ensuring due process. In addition, the Department also released a Know Your Rights document that provides a brief overview of the guidance.

• Read the Press Release
• "Dear Colleague" letter and Resource Guide PDF (955.16K)
• Know Your Rights PDF (198.37K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today unveiled a new webpage about religious discrimination and an updated online complaint form to make clearer when OCR can investigate complaints of discrimination involving religion. Both aim to ensure that students of all religious backgrounds receive the full protection of the Federal civil rights laws that OCR enforces. 

• Read the Press Release
• Protecting Students of All Religious Backgrounds from Unlawful Discrimination
• View OCR’s Religious Discrimination Webpage
• View OCR’s Updated Online Complaint Form

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced today that it has entered into a resolution agreement with Minot State University, North Dakota, after finding the university in violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (189.71K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (1.12M)

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) announced today that it has entered into a resolution agreement with the Hampton, Virginia, City Schools after finding the division in violation of the civil rights laws enforced by OCR that prohibit retaliation for opposing discriminatory practices or for participating in OCR's complaint resolution process.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (229.65K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (101.18K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) today announced that it has reached settlements with education organizations in seven states and one territory to ensure website accessibility for people with disabilities.

• Read the Press Release
• Read Resolution Letters and Agreements for each organization

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announced today that it has entered into a voluntary resolution agreement with Dorchester County School District Two in South Carolina, after finding the district in violation of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 for discriminating against a transgender elementary school student. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 protects all students from sex-based discrimination.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (222.92K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (90.36K)

The Dear Colleague Letter from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education explains that all students, regardless of their sex, must have equal access to the full range of career and technical education (CTE) programs offered. The Dear Colleague Letter includes an overview of the legal requirements most relevant to ensuring gender equity in CTE programs and provides examples of ways schools can prevent or remedy inequity.

• Read the Press Release
• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (590.96K)

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has reached an agreement with Occidental College in Los Angeles to resolve a sexual violence and sexual harassment complaint investigation.

• Read the Press Release
• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (620.1K)
• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (80.3K)

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) todayunveiled new data from the 2013-2014 school year showing gaps that still remain too wide in key areas affecting educational equity and opportunity for students, including incidents of discipline, restraint and seclusion, access to courses and programs that lead to college and career readiness, teacher equity, rates of retention, and access to early learning. U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King, Jr. said that, despite significant work from districts across the country, the persistent disparities shown in the Civil Rights Data Collection – which collected data from all public schools and school districts nationwide for the 2013-14 school year – highlight the need for a continued focus on educational equity, especially in the implementation of the new Every Student Succeeds Act.

• Read the Press Release
• First Look Report PDF (750.8K)
• Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) for the 2013-14 School Year

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Educational Opportunities Section, and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders issued a fact sheet that includes examples of forms of discrimination that members of the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) and Muslim, Arab, Sikh, and South Asian (MASSA) communities commonly face.

• The fact sheet in English PDF (239.2K) and in other languages about combating discrimination against Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) and Muslim, Arab, Sikh, and South Asian (MASSA) students.

The "Dear Colleague" Letter from the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Justice summarizes a school’s Title IX obligations regarding transgender students and explains how the Departments evaluate a school’s compliance with these obligations. The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Elementary and Secondary Education issued a companion document, Examples of Policies and Emerging Practices for Supporting Transgender Students, which summarizes key components of policies on transgender students from school districts and state education agencies across the country. The "Dear Colleague" Letter and Emerging Practices are available on the Transgender and Gender-Nonconforming Students Resources page.

• Read the Press Release

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (717.33K)

• Examples of Policies and Emerging Practices for Supporting Transgender Students PDF (636.35K)

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights today released its fiscal year 2015 annual report highlighting efforts during the last year to protect students’ civil rights and increase educational equity nationwide.

The report, Delivering Justice, cites examples of OCR’s enforcement activities in 2015, including processing of a record 10,392 civil rights complaints, opening more than 3,000 investigations, and reaching more than 1,000 substantive resolutions with institutions that included remedies or changes designed to protect students’ civil rights.

• Read the Press Release

• Read the Report PDF (7.41M)

The U.S. Departments of Education’s Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division entered into a voluntary settlement agreement late yesterday with the Arizona Department of Education (ADE) under the Equal Educational Opportunities Act and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

• Read the Press Release

• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (916.2K)

• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (409.3K)

The U.S. Department of Education today reached a settlement agreement with the Oklahoma City Public Schools to address disproportionate discipline of black students. An investigation revealed black students were significantly overrepresented in disciplinary actions.

• Read the Press Release

• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (183.69K)

• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (107.65K)

The U.S. Department of Education announced today that its Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has reached a settlement with Erie Community College in Buffalo, New York, to resolve issues of women’s access to athletic opportunities at the institution.

• Read the Press Release

• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (253K)

• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (42K)

The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights and Toledo Public Schools announced today that the district has entered into a resolution agreement to ensure compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 in providing equitable resources to African American students.

• Read the Press Release

• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (253K)

• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (42K)

The Dear Colleague Letter from Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon explains the circumstances under which a school district lawfully may work with outside organizations that provide single-sex programming under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972.

• Read the Press Release

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (317K)

The District voluntarily signed a resolution agreement to resolve a Title IX violation on December 3, 2015. On November 2, 2015, OCR issued a letter of finding stating that the district was in violation of Title IX for discriminating against a transgender high school student by denying her access to the girls' locker rooms for more than two years. The agreement requires the District ... (Read Entire Summary).

• Read the Press Release

• Read the Letter of Findings PDF (243K)

• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (47.64K)

• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (100.37K)

The U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the University of Virginia (UVA) announced today that UVA has entered into a resolution agreement to ensure that the university’s handling of sexual violence and sexual harassment complies with the requirements of Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX).

• Read the Press Release

• Read the Resolution Letter PDF (490K)

• Read the Resolution Agreement PDF (264K)

OCR has recently released an Annual Report on Activities for Fiscal Year 2012-2014. These reports summarize OCR's policy and enforcement activities, and are required to be presented to the President, the Secretary of Education, and Congress by Section 203(b) of the Department of Education Organization Act of 1979, Pub. L. No. 96-88.

• View Annual Report PDF (4.15M)

The Dear Colleague Letter is accompanied by a letter to Title IX coordinators that provides them with more information about their role and a Title IX resource guide that includes an overview of Title IX’s requirements with respect to several key issues. The Dear Colleague Letter, the letter to Title IX coordinators and the Title IX Resource Guide are available on the Title IX Coordinators page.

• Press Release

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (351K)

• Letter to Title IX coordinators PDF (298K)

• Title IX Resource Guide PDF (501K)

OCR Fact Sheet entitled “Addressing the Risk of Measles in Schools while Protecting the Civil Rights of Students with Disabilities.” The Fact Sheet addresses how school officials can implement recommendations and resources from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) related to protecting children and their families from measles without discriminating on the basis of disability, particularly in the case of students who are medically unable to receive a vaccine because of a disability, and explains what school officials must do to ensure continuity of learning if a student is legitimately excluded from school. Other resources on measles can be found at rems.ed.gov/KeepSchoolsSafeFromDiseases.aspx.

• OCR Fact Sheet PDF (146K)

Notice – OCR is now posting its updated Case Processing Manual (CPM), which replaces the January 2010 version of the CPM.

“The U.S. Departments of Education (ED) and Justice (DOJ) today released joint guidance: "Dear Colleague Letter: English Learner Students and Limited English Proficient Parents" reminding states, school districts and schools of their obligations under federal law to ensure that English learner students have equal access to a high-quality education and the opportunity to achieve their full academic potential.” In addition to the guidance, the Departments also released additional tools and resources to help schools in serving English learner students and parents with limited English proficiency, including:

• Press Release

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (499K)
  Carta a los Estimados Colegas PDF (809K)

• A fact sheet in English and in other languages about schools' obligations under federal law to ensure that English learner students can participate meaningfully and equally in school.

• A fact sheet in English and in other languages about similar obligations to communicate information to limited English proficient parents in a language they can understand.

• A toolkit to help school districts identify English learner students.

The Fact Sheet addresses how school officials can implement Ebola guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) without discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, or disability; explains what school officials must do to ensure a continuity of learning if a student is legitimately excluded from school; and reminds school officials of their responsibility to respond to bullying and harassment. Other resources on Ebola can be found at www.ed.gov/ebola-response.

• Fact Sheet PDF (158K)

"Dear Colleague" letter from Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon and Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, Vanita Gupta, U.S. Department of Justice, concerning the applicability of Federal civil rights laws to juvenile justice residential facilities. The letter provides a reminder that juvenile justice residential facilities receiving Federal funds are subject to the same Federal civil rights obligations as all other public schools, and highlights some of the legal requirements related to access to academic coursework and career and vocational training, students with disabilities, English language learners, and the administration of discipline.

• Dear Colleague Letter PDF (676K)

These questions and answers clarify the legal requirements under the Department's Title IX regulations governing single-sex elementary and secondary classes and extracurricular activities.

• Press Release

• Questions and Answers PDF (544K)

“Dear Colleague” letter PDF (159K) and accompanying Frequently Asked Questions document (FAQ) PDF (418K) and Parent Fact Sheet PDF (103K) from Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon, Acting Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services Michael K. Yudin, and Vanita Gupta, Acting Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights, U.S. Department of Justice, concerning effective communication for students with hearing, vision, or speech disabilities in public elementary and secondary schools.

• Dear Colleague Letter PDF (159K)
  Carta a los Estimados Colegas PDF (159K)

• FAQ PDF (418K)

• Parent Fact Sheet PDF (103K)
  En español PDF (103K)

Dear Colleague letter PDF (363K) from Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon, concerning the obligation of elementary and secondary schools to respond to the bullying of students with disabilities, including those students who are not eligible for services under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act but are entitled to services under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The guidance discusses the actions schools must take when bullying interferes with the education of a student with a disability who is bullied on any basis, and provides insight into how OCR analyzes complaints involving bullying of students with disabilities.

• Press Release

• Dear Colleague Letter PDF (363K)
  Carta a los Estimados Colegas PDF (388K)

• Fact Sheet PDF (88K)
  En español PDF (40K)

Dear Colleague Letter: Resource Comparability from Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon about ensuring students have equal access to educational resources without regard to race, color, or national origin. The guidance, fact sheet, and resources for technical assistance are also available on the Resource Comparability Materials homepage.

• Press Release
  En español

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (469K)
  Carta a los Estimados Colegas: Comparabilidad de Recursos PDF (307K)

• Fact Sheet PDF (179K)
  En español (Spanish) PDF (510K)
  情况说明书 (Sim. Chinese) PDF (299K)
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) PDF (431K)
  한국어 (Korean) PDF (352K)
  русский (Russian) PDF (254K)
  Tagalog (Tagalog) PDF (180K)
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) PDF (223K)

The new guidance highlights critical subjects that have arisen in charter schools, including the schools’ obligations to avoid discrimination in admissions practices and the administration of discipline; to provide a free appropriate public education for students with disabilities; and to take affirmative steps to assist English learners. The guidance also points to other OCR publications regarding additional civil rights principles that are equally applicable to charter schools.

• Dear Colleague letter PDF
  Carta a los estimados colegas: Escuelas Chárter PDF

Important updates to the joint 2011 guidance regarding school responsibilities under Plyer v. Doe, including examples of permissible enrollment practices, as well as examples of the types of information that may not be used as a basis for denying a student entrance to school.

• Press Release
• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF
  En español (Spanish) PDF (177K)
  العربيّة (Arabic) PDF (269K)
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) PDF (230K)
  한국어 (Korean) PDF (244K)
  Tagalog (Tagalog) PDF (155K)
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) PDF (214K)

• Questions and Answers about Dear Colleague PDF (326K)
  En español (Spanish) PDF (196K)
  العربيّة (Arabic) PDF (234K)
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) PDF (259K)
  한국어 (Korean) PDF (386K)
  Tagalog (Tagalog) PDF (185K)
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) PDF (314K)

• Fact Sheet about Dear Colleague PDF
  En español (Spanish) PDF (569K)
  العربيّة (Arabic) PDF (203K)
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) PDF (253K)
  한국어 (Korean) PDF (289K)
  Tagalog (Tagalog) PDF (156K)
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) PDF (248K)

Dear Colleague Letter concerning the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Schuette v. Coalition to Defend Affirmative Action. The letter provides information about the Schuette decision and reiterates the Departments’ support for the voluntary use of race and ethnicity to achieve diversity in education.

• Dear Colleague Letter PDF (99K)

These questions and answers further clarify the legal requirements under Title IX articulated in the April 4, 2011 Dear Colleague letter on Sexual Violence and the January 19, 2001 Revised Sexual Harassment Guidance and provide recommendations for addressing allegations of sexual violence.

• Press Release

• Questions and Answers PDF (867K)

• Know Your Rights about Title IX and Sexual Violence PDF (551K)
  

  En español (Spanish) PDF (551K)
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) PDF (338K)
  한국어 (Korean) PDF (272K)
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese ) PDF (236K)

The guidance package will assist states, districts and schools in developing practices and strategies to enhance school climate, and ensure those policies and practices comply with federal law in light of the difficulty of creating and maintaining safe, positive environments. Included within the guidance package is the "Dear Colleague letter: Racial Disparities In The Administration Of School Discipline" from Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine E. Lhamon, U.S. Department of Education, and Acting Assistant Attorney General Jocelyn Samuels, U.S. Department of Justice.

• Press Release

• "Dear Colleague" letter
  Carta a los Estimados Colegas: Administración no discriminatoria de la disciplina escolar PDF (640K)

• Full guidance package

December 23, 2013: Posting of state and national estimations for the 2009-10 Civil Rights Data Collection (CRDC) on the CRDC website at http://ocrdata.ed.gov. On December 23, 2013 the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) posted files containing state and national estimations based on the 2009-10 school year CRDC data from a sample of our nation’s public schools on OCR’s website for the CRDC.

The 2009-10 school year CRDC surveyed a sample of approximately 7,000 public school districts and over 72,000 public schools, representing about 85% of the country’s public school students. OCR developed the state and national estimates to approximate what the results of this survey might have been at the state and national level if every public school had been surveyed. The school and district level data for the 2009-10 CRDC has been available on http://ocrdata.ed.gov since March 2012.

The technical notes available at http://ocrdata.ed.gov provide some caveats and considerations that users should take into account when using the state and national estimations, particularly for items collected for the first time in the 2009-10 school year.

This “Dear Colleague” letter and Questions and Answers document provides colleges and universities with information about the ruling in Fisher v. University of Texas at Austin, and reiterates the Departments of Justice and the Department of Education’s position on the voluntary use of race to achieve diversity in higher education.

• Press Release

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (282K)
  Carta a los Estimados Colegas PDF (253K)

• Questions and Answers PDF (305K)
  En español PDF (333K)

“Dear Colleague” Letter and Pamphlet: Supporting the Academic Success of Pregnant and Parenting Students Under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 from Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Seth Galanter. This pamphlet clarifies the specific requirements of Title IX applicable to pregnant and parenting students. The pamphlet contains a FAQ section that explains the Title IX requirements and provides examples to ensure that schools understand their obligations and pregnant and parenting students understand their rights under Title IX. The pamphlet also provides information on strategies that educators may use and programs schools can develop to address the educational needs of students who become pregnant or have children. It also provides examples of promising practices designed to support pregnant and parenting students that schools may choose to implement.

• Press Release

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (297K)

• Pamphlet: Supporting the Academic Success of Pregnant and Parenting Students Under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 PDF (251K)
  En español (Spanish) En español (242K)

• Know Your Rights about Dear Colleague and Pamphlet PDF (412K)
  En español (Spanish) En español (410K)

Joint OCR/DOJ/HHS "Dear Colleague" Letter, addressing the rights of students with hepatitis B in postsecondary medical, dental, nursing, and other health-related programs. The letter discusses the latest recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding the participation of students with hepatitis B in health-related schools, and how the CDC recommendations relate to the federal laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of disability, race, color, and national origin.

• Press Release

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (108K)

The letter clarifies the basic principles of retaliation law and describes OCR’s methods of enforcement.

• “Dear Colleague” letter PDF (64K)
  En español (Spanish)

"Dear Colleague" letter from Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Seth Galanter, addressing equal access to extracurricular athletics for students with disabilities. The Dear Colleague letter provides an overview of the obligations of public elementary and secondary schools under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 504), and the Department’s Section 504 regulations; cautions against making decisions based on presumptions and stereotypes; details the specific Section 504 regulations that require students with disabilities to have an equal opportunity for participation in nonacademic and extracurricular services and activities; and discusses the provision of separate or different athletic opportunities.

• Press Release

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (546K)

• 'Fast Facts' about Dear Colleague Letter PDF (245K)
  En español (Spanish) PDF (241K)

The Department of Education has published in the Federal Register a Notice of Interpretation of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 for new construction and alterations in light of recent revisions, by the Department of Justice, of regulations implementing Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

• Federal Registry PDF (237K)

• Discrimination on the Basis of Disability in Federally Assisted Programs and Activities

With the Part 2 release of data from the 2009-2010 Civil Rights Data Collection, OCR shows, among other things, that minority students across America face harsher discipline, have less access to rigorous high school curricula, and are more often taught by lower-paid and less experienced teachers.

• Press Release

• Data Summary

• 2009-2010 CRDC Table Layouts with Definitions

• 2009-2010 CRDC Questions and Answers

• About the CRDC

Effective Jan. 1, 2009, the Amendments Act alters the ADA and the Rehabilitation Act, such that the meaning of disability is broadened and, in most cases, the focus is shifted away from the question of whether a student has a disability and toward the school districts' actions and obligations to ensure equal education opportunities. OCR’s “Dear Colleague” letter and FAQ sheet elaborate on the effects of the Act.

• Press Release

• “Dear Colleague” letter

• FAQ sheet

Joint OCR/DOJ "Dear Colleague" Letter and guidance documents addressing the voluntary use of race to achieve diversity or avoid racial isolation in elementary and secondary schools, and the voluntary use of race to achieve diversity in postsecondary institutions.

• Press Release
  En español (Spanish) PDF (83K)
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) PDF (178K)
  한국어 (Korean) PDF (149K)
  Tagalog (Tagalog) PDF (26K)
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) PDF (153K)

• Joint OCR/DOJ “Dear Colleague” Letter PDF (136K)

• Guidance for K-12 Schools PDF (290K)

• Guidance for Postsecondary Schools PDF (124K)

With this first installment of a two-part biennial survey, the U.S. Department of Education provides data that not only calls attention to disparities in education resources and opportunities, but also enables policymakers, educators and parents by giving them critical information to help in identifying inequities and closing the educational achievement gap.

• Press Release

• 2009-10 CRDC Table Layouts with Definitions

• 2009-10 CRDC Questions and Answers

• About the CRDC

The above excerpt is from a joint Departments of Education and Justice “Dear Colleague” letter regarding schools’ enrollment procedures.

• "Dear Colleague" letter PDF (1.3M)
  En español (Spanish) PDF (598K)
  العربيّة (Arabic) PDF (646K)
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) PDF (783K)
  한국어 (Korean) PDF (773K)
  Tagalog (Tagalog) PDF
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) PDF (610K)

• Fact Sheet about Dear Colleague PDF (606K)
  En español (Spanish) PDF (602K)
  العربيّة (Arabic) PDF
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) Chinese
  한국어 (Korean) Korean
  Tagalog (Tagalog) Tagalog
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) Vietnamese

• Questions and Answers about Dear Colleague PDF

Through the release of a “Dear Colleague” letter, Vice President Biden and Secretary of Education Arne Duncan have introduced comprehensive guidance to help schools, colleges and university better understand their responsibility to prevent the problem of campus sexual assault.

• “Dear Colleague” letter en español

  Fact Sheet about “Dear Colleague” letter En español (Spanish) En español 368
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) Chinese (374K)
  한국어 (Korean) Korean (431K)
  Tagalog (Tagalog) Tagalog (160K)
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) Vietnamese (161K)

• Know Your Rights about “Dear Colleague” letter PDF (143K)
  En español (Spanish) En español (178K)
  情況說明書 (Trad. Chinese) Chines (493K)
  한국어 (Korean) Korean (434K)
  Tagalog (Tagalog) Tagalog (187K)
  Việt-ngữ (Vietnamese) Vietnamese (175K)