The Biden Education Department is on the cusp of changing the lives of many across American college campuses.
The plan involves totally reversing Trump-era sexual harassment reforms and broadening Title IX protections, especially for LGBTQI+ students.
This ambitious initiative, first proposed in 2022, seeks not just to revoke the prior administration's approach but explicitly focus on the wants and desires of LGBTQI+ students.
In the intricate ballet of policy-making, the Education Department has marked March 2024 as the deadline to finalize rules on both sexual misconduct and athletics eligibility.
A crucial step in this process has been the transfer of the sexual misconduct rule to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA). OIRA's review, subject to a 90-day limit that can sometimes extend, serves as a penultimate gate before rules can be enacted.
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona has been a vocal advocate for treating Title IX as a comprehensive non-discrimination clause.
Cardona's vision encompasses protections against all forms of sex discrimination, including biases based on sex stereotypes, characteristics, pregnancy, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
A proposal from April 2023, introduced by Cardona, highlights Biden's commitment to supporting the ability of men identifying as women to join the same teams as biological women. The proposal has encountered resistance; at least 24 states have enacted laws or regulations against such participation.
The Education Department's steps toward reform have generated considerable public engagement. Notably, the rule concerning the athletics eligibility of trans students has attracted over 150,000 comments. This voluminous public input necessitates careful review—a testament to the democratic underpinnings of policy formation. It also highlights the passionate and divided public opinion on this issue.
“The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring all students are guaranteed an educational environment free from discrimination on the basis of sex,” an Education Department spokesperson remarked.
“The Department of Education has taken the next step to advance a rule, first proposed in 2022, that strengthens protections for students from sexual harassment and for LGBTQI+ students.”
The administration is navigating challenging political waters as it advances these progressive rules. Amid criticism from various quarters, the moves highlight a balancing act between fostering educational inclusion and managing the political implications of such significant policy shifts.
“The Department is still reviewing a second rule related to athletics, which was first proposed nine months after the first rule, and which received 150,000 public comments which by law must be carefully considered,” stated the department spokesperson.
