Highlights from Secretary DeVos’ Remarks on Title IX Enforcement
WASHINGTON – U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos today discussed
a better way forward on Title IX enforcement with students and faculty at
George Mason University. In her remarks, the Secretary laid out the problems
with the current failed system and the need to establish a regulatory framework
that serves all students.
The following are key excerpts from the Secretary’s prepared
remarks:
Let me be clear at the outset: acts of sexual misconduct
are reprehensible, disgusting, and unacceptable. They are acts of cowardice and
personal weakness, often thinly disguised as strength and power. …
One assault is one too many. One aggressive act
of harassment is one too many. One person denied due process is one too many. …
There is no way to avoid the devastating
reality of campus sexual misconduct: lives have been lost. Lives of victims.
And lives of the accused. …
We need to remember that we’re not just talking
about faceless “cases.” We are talking about people’s lives. Everything
we do must recognize this before anything else. …
[T]he truth is that the system established by
the prior administration has failed too many students. Survivors, victims of a
lack of due process and campus administrators have all told me that the current
approach does a disservice to everyone involved.
The current failed system left one student to
fend for herself at a university disciplinary hearing. Without any legal
training whatsoever, she had to prepare an opening statement, fix exhibits and
find witnesses.
“I don’t think it’s the rape that makes the
person a victim,” the student told a reporter. She said it is the failure of
the system that turns a survivor into a victim. …
Washington’s push to require schools to
establish these quasi-legal structures to address sexual misconduct comes up
short for far too many students. The current system hasn’t won widespread
support, nor has it inspired confidence in its so-called judgments. …
Survivors aren’t well-served when they are
re-traumatized with appeal after appeal because the failed system failed the
accused. And no student should be forced to sue their way to due process. …
For too long, rather than engage the public on
controversial issues, the Department’s Office for Civil Rights has issued
letters from the desks of un-elected and un-accountable political appointees. …
Instead of working with schools on behalf of
students, the prior administration weaponized the Office for Civil Rights to
work against schools and against students. …
The era of “rule by letter” is over.
Through intimidation and coercion, the failed
system has clearly pushed schools to overreach. With the heavy hand of
Washington tipping the balance of her scale, the sad reality is that Lady
Justice is not blind on campuses today. …
Every survivor of sexual misconduct must be
taken seriously. Every student accused of sexual misconduct must know that
guilt is not predetermined.
These are non-negotiable principles. …
A better way means that due process is not an
abstract legal principle only discussed in lecture halls. Due process is the
foundation of any system of justice that seeks a fair outcome. Due process
either protects everyone, or it protects no one.
The notion that a school must diminish due
process rights to better serve the “victim” only creates more victims. …
In order to ensure that America’s schools
employ clear, equitable, just and fair procedures that inspire trust and
confidence, we will launch a notice-and-comment process to incorporate the
insights of all parties in developing a better way.
We will seek public feedback and combine
institutional knowledge, professional expertise and the experiences of students
to replace the current approach with a workable, effective and fair system. …
This is not about letting institutions off the
hook. They still have important work to do.
A survivor told me that she is tired of feeling
like the burden of ensuring her school addresses Title IX falls on her
shoulders.
She is right. The burden is not hers, nor is it
any student’s burden. …
The truth is: we must do better… for each other
and with each other.
Full text of the Secretary's remarks will be posted shortly after the conclusion of the speech onttps://www.ed.gov/news/speeches
###
|
