What is Title IX
“No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.” 20 U.S.C. § 1681 and 34 C.F.R. Part 106
Title IX is a federal law that prohibits sex-based discrimination. The specific types of sex-based discrimination include: sex-based harassment, sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, and sexual orientation or gender identity. Sex-based harassment is unwelcome sex-based conduct that, based on the totality of the circumstances, is subject and objectively offensive and is so severe or pervasive that it limits or denies a person’s ability to participate in or benefit from the education program or activity. This may be considered a hostile environment. The primary goal of Title IX is to ensure gender equity in education and prevent discrimination based on sex. It includes equal rights laws that aim to create a safe and inclusive learning environment for all students, promoting equal opportunities and access to education. It protects students, employees, applicants for admission, and applicants for employment. Title IX covers many topics including athletics; sexual misconduct, including sexual harassment and sexual violence; pregnant and parenting students; off-campus school-sponsored and school-related activities; and employment.
Pertaining to students: CRPUSD School Board Regulation 5145.7: Sex Discrimination and Sex-Based Harassment
Pertaining to adults: CRPUSD School Board Regulation 4319.11: Sex Discrimination and Sex-Based Harassment
Definitions
Complaint means an oral or written request to the district that objectively can be understood as a request for the district to investigate and make a determination about alleged discrimination under Title IX or its regulations.
Complainant means: (1) a student or employee who is alleged to have been subjected to conduct that could constitute sex discrimination under Title IX or its regulations; or (2) a person other than a student or employee who is alleged to have been subjected to conduct that could constitute sex discrimination under Title IX or its regulations and who was participating or attempting to participate in the district’s education program or activity at the time of the alleged sex discrimination.
Party means a complainant or respondent.
Peer retaliation means retaliation by a student against another student.
Pregnancy or related conditions means: (1) pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation; (2) medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation; or (3) recovery from pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, or related medical conditions.
Respondent means a person who is alleged to have violated the district’s prohibition on sex discrimination.
Retaliation means intimidation, threats, coercion, or discrimination against any person by the district, a student, or an employee or other person authorized by the district to provide aid, benefit, or service under the district’s education program or activity, for the purpose of interfering with any right or privilege secured by Title IX or its regulations, or because the person has reported information, made a complaint, testified, assisted, or participated or refused to participate in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under this part, including in an informal resolution process, in grievance procedures, and in any other actions taken by the district under 34 CFR 106.44 (f)(1). This provision does not limit the district’s ability to require an employee to participate as a witness in, or otherwise assist with, a Title IX investigation or proceeding.
Sex discrimination includes discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Sex-based harassment is a form of sex discrimination.
Sex-based harassment is a form of sex discrimination and means sexual harassment and other harassment on the basis of sex, including on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity, that is:
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Quid pro quo harassment An employee, agent, or other person authorized by the district to provide an aid, benefit, or service under the district’s
education program or activity explicitly or impliedly conditioning the provision of such an aid, benefit, or service on a person’s participation in unwelcome sexual
conduct;
- Hostile environment harassment Unwelcome sex-based conduct that, based on the totality of the circumstances, is subjectively and objectively offensive and is so severe or pervasive that it limits or denies a person’s ability to participate in or benefit from the district’s education program or activity (i.e., creates a hostile environment). Whether a hostile environment has been created is a fact-specific inquiry that includes consideration of the following:
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The degree to which the conduct affected the complainant’s ability to access the district’s education program or activity
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The type, frequency, and duration of the conduct
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The parties’ ages, roles within the district’s education program or activity, previous interactions, and other factors about each party that may be relevant to evaluating the effects of the conduct
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The location of the conduct and the context in which the conduct occurred
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Other sex-based harassment in the district’s education program or activity; or
3. Sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, or stalking as defined in 34 CFR 106.2.
Supportive measures means individualized measures offered as appropriate, as reasonably available, without unreasonably burdening a Complainant or Respondent, not for punitive or disciplinary reasons, and without fee or charge to the Complainant or Respondent to:
- Restore or preserve that party’s access to the district’s education program or activity, including measures that are designed to protect the safety of the parties or the
district’s educational environment; or
- Provide support during the district’s grievance procedures or during an informal resolution process.
Student and Staff Rights Under Title IX
Students and staff have the right to attend school and participate in school activities without being discriminated against or harassed on the basis of their sex.
CRPUSD School Board Policy 0410: Nondiscrimination in District Programs and Activities
CRPUSD School Board Policy 1313.01: Civility Policy
CRPUSD School Board Policy 5131: Conduct
CRPUSD School Board Policy 5131.2 Bullying
CRPUSD School Board Policy 4030: Nondiscrimination in Employment
What is Title IX? Title IX is a federal law that protects against sex discrimination at school. This includes protection against discrimination and/or harassment on the basis of gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, pregnancy and related conditions, and sex stereotypes.
What does this mean? The Cotati Rohnert Park Unified School District expressly prohibits sex discrimination. If you believe you’ve been subjected to discrimination or harassment on the basis of your sex, notify an adult employee that you trust, or one of the CRPUSD Title IX coordinators immediately.
What is discrimination and harassment? Discrimination is when you are treated differently than someone else. Harassment is when you are being targeted because of a certain characteristic.
What are examples of discrimination or harassment based on sex?
- Cat calling
- Explicit drawings or pictures
- Unwanted touching, especially of sensitive areas
- Jokes or comments about your clothing, hair, or other physical features
- Dating violence
- Stalking
- Bullying or ridicule based on sex stereotypes (such as “His voice is so high he must be a girl” or “She’s so tall she must be a boy”)
What happens if I make a report? The District must take steps to stop the discrimination or harassment, and will also take steps to help you feel comfortable at school. This
is referred to as supportive measures. Supportive Measures could mean changing classes, lockers, putting in place a check-in system, offering counseling or other emotional support, and
anything else that we agree on with you.
If you would like, you can ask the District to start a formal Title IX investigation. Even if you don’t want an investigation, the District may need to start one in order to stop the
discrimination or harassment effectively.
You may also be offered an opportunity to participate in a less-formal process to try and resolve your concerns. It is entirely up to you whether you want to participate in this process or
not.
What does a formal Title IX investigation process look like? The District will assign an investigator trained in conducting these types of investigations. They will interview
you and the other individuals involved, and will gather other evidence (such as videos, text messages, etc.). They will make a conclusion about what happened. Then the District will assign
someone to decide whether or not that conduct violates Title IX or any other District policy.
Throughout this process, you will have the opportunity to present your side of the story, and provide evidence. If you don’t like the decision, you have a right to appeal. The other
individual(s) involved have those same rights.
You may be entitled to the following supportive measures during the grievance process: counseling, extensions of deadlines or other course-related adjustments, modifications of work or class
schedules, mutual restrictions on contact between the parties, change in work location, leaves of absence, increased security and monitoring of certain areas of the campus, and other similar
measures. The District will maintain as confidential any supportive measures provided to you, to the extent that maintaining such confidentiality would not impair the ability of the District
to provide the supportive measures.
How to file a Title IX Complaint with CRPUSD
The following people have a right to make a Complaint of sex discrimination, including a Complaint of sex-based harassment, requesting that the district investigate and make a determination about alleged discrimination under Title IX:
- A Complainant;
- A parent, guardian, or other authorized legal representative with the legal right to act on behalf of a Complainant; or
- The district’s Title IX Coordinator or designee.
With respect to complaints of sex discrimination other than sex-based harassment, in addition to the people listed above, the following persons have a right to make a Complaint:
- Any student or employee; or
- Any person other than a student or employee who was participating or attempting to participate in a district education program or activity at the time of the alleged sex discrimination.
In the absence of a Complaint or the withdrawal of any or all of the allegations in a Complaint, and in the absence or termination of an informal resolution process, the Title IX Coordinator, when notified of conduct that reasonably may constitute sex discrimination, shall determine whether to initiate a Complaint of sex discrimination. To make this fact-specific determination, the Title IX Coordinator must consider, at a minimum, the following factors:
- The Complainant’s request not to proceed with initiation of a Complaint;
- The Complainant’s reasonable safety concerns regarding initiation of a Complaint;
- The risk that additional acts of sex discrimination would occur if a Complaint is not initiated;
- The severity of the alleged sex discrimination, including whether the discrimination, if established, would require the removal of a Respondent from campus or imposition of another disciplinary sanction to end the discrimination and prevent its recurrence;
- The age and relationship of the parties, including whether the Respondent is an employee of the district;
- The scope of the alleged sex discrimination, including information suggesting a pattern, ongoing sex discrimination, or sex discrimination alleged to have impacted multiple individuals;
- The availability of evidence to assist a decisionmaker in determining whether sex discrimination occurred; and
- Whether the district could end the alleged sex discrimination and prevent its recurrence without initiating its grievance procedures.
If, after considering these and other relevant factors, the Title IX Coordinator determines that the conduct as alleged presents an imminent and serious threat to the health or safety of the
Complainant or other person, or that the conduct as alleged prevents the district from ensuring equal access on the basis of sex to its education program or activity, the Title IX Coordinator
may initiate a Complaint.
If the Title IX Coordinator initiates a Complaint, the Title IX Coordinator shall notify the Complainant of the Complaint prior to doing so, as well as provide other notices as required by
the Title IX regulations at specific points in the grievance procedures, and appropriately address reasonable concerns about the Complainant’s safety or the safety of others, including
by providing supportive measures.
Regardless of whether a Complaint is initiated, the Title IX Coordinator shall take other appropriate prompt and effective steps, in addition to steps necessary to effectuate the remedies
provided to an individual Complainant, if any, to ensure that sex discrimination does not continue or recur within the district’s education program or activity. Complaints of sex
discrimination may be consolidated when they arise out of the same facts or circumstances, including Complaints against more than one Respondent, Complaints by more than one Complainant, or
Complaints by one party against another party.
When implementing the district’s Title IX grievance procedures, the Title IX Coordinator shall ensure compliance with the following requirements:
- That Complainants and Respondents are treated equitably.
- That the Title IX Coordinator, investigator, decisionmaker, appeal decision maker, and any facilitator of an informal resolution process do not have a conflict of interest or bias for or against Complainants or Respondents generally or an individual Complainant or Respondent. Such persons shall also receive training in accordance with 34 CFR 106.8. A decisionmaker may be the same person as the Title IX Coordinator or investigator.
- That the Respondent is presumed not responsible for the alleged sex discrimination until a determination is made at the conclusion of these grievance procedures.
- That discipline is not imposed on a Respondent for sex discrimination prohibited by Title IX or its regulations unless there is a determination at the conclusion of these grievance procedures that the Respondent engaged in prohibited sex discrimination.
- That reasonable steps are taken to protect the privacy of the parties and witnesses during its grievance procedures. These steps shall not restrict the ability of the parties to obtain and present evidence, including by speaking to witnesses (subject to the district’s prohibition on peer retaliation); consult with their family members, confidential resources, or advisors; or otherwise prepare for or participate in the grievance procedures.
- That all relevant and permissible evidence – including both inculpatory and exculpatory evidence – is objectively evaluated and that credibility determinations are not based on a person’s status as a Complainant, Respondent, or witness.
- That all evidence considered impermissible or privileged under 34 CFR 106.45(b) is excluded.
How to file a Title IX Complaint with Office for Civil Rights
A complainant also has the right to file a complaint with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights within 180 days of the date of the most recently alleged misconduct. If the complaint involves matters that occurred longer ago than this, a complainant may request a waiver of the requirement from OCR by providing an explanation as to why the complaint was delayed. Information regarding OCR’s investigation process can be found HERE.
Additional information about filing a complaint with OCR is available HERE. OCR complaints can be submitted to OCR using that link or by mail or fax.
OCR's Discrimination Complaint Form is available HERE
U.S. Department of Education
Office for Civil Rights
Lyndon Baines Johnson Department of Education Bldg
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20202-1100
Telephone: (800) 421-3481
FAX: (202) 453-6012
TDD: 800-877 8339
Email: OCR@ed.gov
For information or assistance regarding filing a complaint with OCR, please contact the California regional office at:
Office for Civil Rights
U.S. Department of Education
50 United Nations Plaza
Mail Box 1200, Room 1545
San Francisco, CA 94102
Telephone: 415-486-5555
FAX: 415-486-5570
TDD: 800-877-8339
Email: ocr.sanfrancisco@ed.gov
Related Board Policies
Board Policies and Administrative Regulations pertaining to bullying and harassment, sexual harassment and Title IX, suicide prevention can be found on the CRPUSD Board Policy & Administrative Regulations web page.
Training Materials
The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) provides guidelines for how schools must respond to sexual-harassment claims. The guidelines apply to all types of sexual harassment, including student against student, student against school employee, school employee against school employee, and school employee against student. All employees, without delay, must report possible acts of sexual harassment to a Title IX coordinator. The following course will: define sexual harassment; explain schools’ obligations with regards to sexual-harassment claims under Title IX; and outline Title IX investigative procedures.
View the course: "Title IX: Protecting Students and School Employees from Sexual Harassment"
Title IX Discrimination or Equity Complaints Involving Students:
Director of Student Services / Student Title IX Coordinator
Matthew Marshall
7165 Burton Avenue
Rohnert Park, CA 94928
Phone: 707-792-4700
Email: matthew_marshall@crpusd.org
Title IX Discrimination or Equity Complaints Involving Staff:
Director of Human Resources / Staff Title IX Coordinator
Jennifer Hansen
7165 Burton Avenue
Rohnert Park, CA 94928
Phone: 707-792-4700
Email: jennifer_hansen@crpusd.org