Title IX and Sexual Harassment
What is Title IX?
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 states: “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.” Title IX is a federal law intended to end sex discrimination in all areas of education. Title IX:
- requires that all educational institutions that receive federal funds or financial assistance must prohibit sex discrimination in their education programs and activities.
- applies to sexual harassment and sexual assault. According to the Office for Civil Rights, “sexual harassment of students, which includes acts of sexual violence, is a form of sex discrimination prohibited by Title IX.”
What is Sexual Harassment?
“Sexual Harassment” means conduct on the basis of sex that satisfies one or more of the following: (1) an employee of WCC conditioning the provision of an aid, benefit, or service on an individual’s participation in unwelcome sexual conduct (commonly referred to quid pro quo harassment); (2) unwelcome conduct determined by a reasonable person to be so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it effectively denies a person equal access to WCC’s Education Program or Activity; or (3) Sexual Assault, Dating Violence, Domestic Violence, or Stalking as those terms are defined under other federal laws, including the Clery Act and the Violence Against Women Act.
Your Rights Under Title IX
When WCC has Actual Knowledge of Sexual Harassment (or allegations thereof) against a person in the United States in its Educa