May 2017 - Save - Leading The Policy Movement For Fairness and Due Process On Campus

Contact: Stephen Coleman

Telephone: 301-801-0608

Proposed CA Bill Would Shortchange Sexual Assault Victims and the Accused: SAVE

WASHINGTON / May 31, 2017 – Stop Abusive and Violent Environments, a leading national organization working to end campus sexual assault, is calling on California legislators to oppose SB-169, citing a recent report that shows current campus policies are shortchanging identified victims and accused students alike.

The SAVE report, “Six-Year Experiment in Campus Jurisprudence Fails to Make the Grade,” details numerous cases of identified victims harmed by campus officials who allegedly failed to conduct a thorough investigation or to impose appropriate sanctions. In some cases, identified victims claim campus officials have discouraged the reporting of their assaults.

The problem can be traced back to 2011, when the U.S. Department of Education released a controversial guideline mandating that all allegations of campus sexual assault be handled by disciplinary committees. This had the effect of sidelining criminal justice authorities.

Against this background, the California legislature is currently considering SB-169, a bill that seeks to turn the problematic federal policy into state law. The bill states: “It is critical for California to implement the federal regulations issued by the United States Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights on April 4, 2011.”

Accused students are being mistreated, as well. Numerous lawsuits alleging lack of due process have been filed against California universities. In one recent decision, a judge ruled that San Diego State University violated the accused student’s Title IX rights sufficiently to “shock the Court’s conscience.”

A recent survey of California voters found 68.5% of respondents believe police, not colleges, should be responsible for investigating allegations of campus sexual assault, and 89.1% want the criminal justice system to make determinations of innocence or guilt.

SAVE believes SB-169 betrays both identified victims and accused students, while marginalizing the role of the criminal justice system. Instead, SAVE recommends consideration of the Campus Equality, Fairness, and Transparency Act.

SAVE (Stop Abusive and Violent Environments) is working for practical and effective solutions to campus sexual assault: www.saveservices.org

Contact: Stephen Coleman

Telephone: 301-801-0608

Email: scoleman@saveservices.org

States Get ‘Green Light’ to Reassert Control Over Higher Education Policies

WASHINGTON / May 1, 2017 – A recent White House Executive Order instructs the Department of Education to implement sweeping changes in order to “protect and preserve State and local control” over the “administration and personnel” of all federally supported schools, including universities and colleges (1). The Order represents a dramatic departure from the command-and-control approach that the federal agency utilized under previous Administrations.

The Executive Order is expected to have wide-ranging effects, including on the numerous Department of Education Dear Colleague Letters that condition federal funding on compliance with its interpretations of the Title IX law, originally enacted in 1972 to end sex discrimination.

Many of these directives relate to campus sexual assault policies and programs:

On April 4, 2011, the Department issued a Dear Colleague Letter on sexual violence that mandated all allegations of campus sexual assault be investigated and adjudicated by campus disciplinary committees.
On April 24, 2015, the Department issued a directive stating that all school schools “must designate at least one employee to coordinate their efforts to comply with and carry out their responsibilities under Title IX.” (2)

The Executive Order draws its authority from earlier laws:

The Department of Education Organization Act of 1979 states that the Department of Education is not authorized to exercise any “control” over the “administration or personnel of any educational institution.” (Section 103) (3)
The General Education Provisions Act of 1979 uses even stronger language, enunciating a “Prohibition Against Federal Control of Education” (Section 438) (4)

The Executive Order instructs the Department of Education to “withdraw or modify any guidance documents pursuant to this subsection” within 300 days.

Citations:

SAVE (Stop Abusive and Violent Environments) is working for practical and effective solutions to campus sexual assault: www.saveservices.org