On July 5, 2022, the Biden Administration released a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), announcing its proposed changes to Title IX, the federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in all federally-funded programs and activities.
The changes contained in the NPRM touch on many areas of Title IX, including broadening the definition of sexual harassment, expanding the implications of off-campus conduct, prohibiting exclusion based on gender identity, defining all employees as “mandatory reporters,” providing more flexibility in the investigative process, and expanding the boundaries of supportive measures.
The U.S. Department of Education received more than 240,000 comments on the NPRM. Because it will take some time to review and respond to these comments, we do not know when any new Title IX regulations will go into effect.
You can find the NPRM here, and a summary of the major provisions here.
Students who need support should contact the Habif Health and Wellness Center or the Relationship and Sexual Violence Prevention (RSVP) Center.
Support for faculty and staff is available through Work-Life Solutions or by contacting us.
Title IX is a federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance. Under the law, sexual harassment and sexual violence, which are forms of sex discrimination, are also prohibited.
All individuals participating in educational programs or activities that are affiliated with WashU – including faculty, staff, students and third-parties attending university-sponsored events – are protected by Title IX.
Learn more about WashU’s commitment to addressing the serious issues of sexual assault and misconduct on our campus as we keep a firm focus on ensuring that our students are supported, treated fairly and respectfully, and given the appropriate tools to navigate the Title IX process.
See the Title IX Strategic Working Group 2018-19 End of Year Report (PDF) for a summary of Implementation Teams that were created, as well as the charges, outcomes and further recommendations that each Implementation Team reported.
On August 14, 2020, the university implemented a number of changes to its Title IX process as required by the final rule under Title IX that was released in May 2020 by the U.S. Department of Education.
- The university’s Discrimination and Harassment Policy was amended to incorporate a definition and scope of behavior that is prohibited by Title IX.
- Any sexual misconduct matters that fall outside of the Title IX definition or scope of behavior are investigated by separate processes for faculty and staff, and under the Student Gender Equity Grievance Process for students.
- Three Title IX processes are available (determined by the identity of the Respondent):
Statistics on Reports of Sexual Violence
To review reports of sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence and stalking at WashU, visit Appendices D (pg. 73) and E (pg. 82) in our annual Safety and Security brochure (PDF).
Please note that any incidents reported confidentially to the RSVP Center that meet the reporting requirements of the Clery Act – a federal statute that requires disclosure of campus crime statistics and security information by colleges and universities that participate in federal financial aid programs – are included in the report. However, we do not provide or share any identifying information related to these cases.
The results of the 2019 AAU Campus Climate Survey on Sexual Assault and Sexual Misconduct are also available.