The University of Missouri System will evaluate new Title IX guidelines related to sexual assault on campus issued Friday by Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, an MU spokeswoman said.
DeVos rescinded Obama-era policies in which campuses adhered to a “preponderance of evidence” standard of proof when students were accused of sexual assault. The new temporary guidelines allow for colleges and universities to adhere to a “clear and convincing standard of proof” for sexual assault investigations, according to The New York Times.
“The University of Missouri System and our four campuses comply with federal guidelines, and we will review this guidance carefully to see if any changes in policies and procedures are necessary,” MU spokeswoman Liz McCune said.
MU Associate Law Professor Ben Trachtenberg, who has studied Title IX, doesn’t think there will be any immediate changes to how the office investigates sexual assault.
Trachtenberg emphasized that the Title IX policy under Obama was mainly a guideline, not an actual rule.
“The guidance documents that the Obama Administration’s Department of Education had put out were just that — guidance,” Trachtenberg said. “I don’t think, so far, that the new guidance said that universities can’t take the advice that they’d taken before, so I’d be surprised if the UM System immediately changed its rule in response to this news.”
Steven Chaffin, executive director of The Associated Students of the University of Missouri, a student lobbying group, said in an email that the UM System will not immediately alter their policies.
“I have been given reassurances by the system-level Title IX officials that there will be no immediate changes to the UM System’s Title IX policies,” Chaffin wrote. “If policy changes are made, I expect students will be a part of that conversation, and ASUM will work to ensure that’s the case.”
McCune echoed Chaffin‘s sentiments by saying students will be part of the conversation.
“We plan to engage our communities in discussion and feedback,” she said. “Initially, these are discussions that will be facilitated through the Office for Civil Rights & Title IX within each campus.”
About 3 in 10 female undergraduates reported being victims of nonconsensual sexual conduct involving physical force or incapacitation since they arrived at MU, according to a 2015 campus climate survey, which is the latest data publicly available.
During the 2015-2016 school year, the Title IX office received 189 reports from students of non-consensual sexual activity, according to the office’s annual report.
Some respondents to the most recent campus climate survey released Monday expressed frustration with the Title IX reporting process, citing that “nothing was done” or that their report was “swept under a rug.” Another common theme in the report was a fear of retribution.
“(Relationship and Sexual Violence Prevention Center)/Title IX offices are a joke,” one respondent wrote. ”Someone who has been sexually assaulted shouldn’t be ignored by the people who LITERALLY get paid to respond to these situations.”
The student lobbying group is attempting to tackle the issue of sexual assault on the four system campuses, Chaffin said.
“This year, we’ve added sexual assault prevention to our portfolio,” he wrote in an email. “Our approach is straightforward: First, we think that the resources allocated to Title IX offices needs to be reevaluated to ensure offices are adequately equipped to do their jobs. Second, we think educating people about sexual violence at the postsecondary level is too late.”
The student lobbying group also supports the MU branch of It’s On Us, Chaffin said.
It’s On Us, a nationwide campus sexual assault prevention campaign, has been creating dialogue around the prevalence of sexual assault on college campuses and has engaged with the MU community through various events, such as a Teal Out game last spring in conjunction with the university baseball team. The national campaign created a petition asking that the Department of Education reverse its decision.
The MU Division of Inclusion, Diversity and Equity released a statement on its Facebook page Friday stating that the UM System is going to address the federal guidelines.
“We continue to be dedicated to providing an environment free from discrimination, harassment, sexual violence and retaliation,” the statement reads in part. “We reaffirm our commitment to our students, faculty and staff who work every day to support our communities.”
Missouri Senator Claire McCaskill, a Democrat who voted against confirming DeVos as education secretary in February, released a statement Friday afternoon saying that DeVos is reversing progress the government has made in regards to sexual assault on campus.
“As students head back to school this fall, their Department of Education has just told them if they’re assaulted, it’ll now be harder to fight for justice and ensure their safety on campus,” McCaskill said in the statement. “I want Missouri’s students, parents, and administrators to know that I’ll keep fighting with everything I’ve got to make sure we never turn our back on survivors or on their school’s obligation to keep them safe.”
Missouri’s other senator, Roy Blunt, a Republican who voted to confirm DeVos, did not make any public statements about the new guidelines.
Before leaving MU this fall, Ellen Eardley, the former head of the Title IX office, expressed her recommendation for a semester-long course that discusses racism, sexual violence and the importance of bystander intervention.
The U.S. Department of Education released 12 questions and answers that it said should serve as an outline for a school’s compliance with Title IX.
In one of the answers, the department explains how to address sexual misconduct.
“In regulating the conduct of students and faculty to prevent or redress discrimination, schools must formulate, interpret, and apply their rules in a manner that respects the legal rights of students and faculty, including those court precedents interpreting the concept of free speech,” part of the first answer reads.
In the meantime, the department will “solicit input from stakeholders and the public” to come up with new permanent rules, according to the question-and-answer document. Until then, Trachtenberg, the MU law professor, said he can’t predict what will happen.
“Until you know what somebody is actually proposing,” he said, “it is hard to predict what they will do.”
Those seeking services from the Office for Civil Rights & Title IX can contact the office at 573-882-3880 or civilrights-titleix@missouri.edu. The offices are in 202 Jesse Hall and 145 Heinkel Building.
Missourian reporter Katherine White contributed to this report.
Supervising editor is Sky Chadde: news@columbiamissourian.com, 882-7884.