Board chair: I-SS will await final court ruling before implementing new Title IX regulations

Posted on by Mike Fuhrman

BY KARISSA MILLER

The Iredell-Statesville Schools Board of Education met Monday and a significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to a presentation on Title IX.

What is Title IX?

Title IX is commonly associated with girls sports, but it extends beyond athletics. It is a federal statute that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in “any education program or activity receiving federal assistance.”

During the Committee of the Whole meeting, school board attorney Dean Shatley gave a presentation and update on Title IX.

On April 19, the U.S. Department of Education released its final regulations for the implementation of amendments to Title IX.

“They were supposed to be effective and enforceable on August 1,” Shatley said

The new 2024 regulations were made under the Biden administration, following regulations made in 2020 by the Trump administration. Prior to that, it had been nearly three decades before changes were made to the law, Shatley said.

According to the U.S. Department of Education, the final regulations:

♦ Protect against all sex-based harassment and discrimination. The final rule protects all students and employees from all sex discrimination prohibited under Title IX, including by restoring and strengthening full protection from sexual violence and other sex-based harassment. The rule clarifies the steps a school must take to protect students, employees, and applicants from discrimination based on pregnancy or related conditions. And the rule protects against discrimination based on sex stereotypes, sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics.

♦ Promote accountability and fairness. The final rule promotes accountability by requiring schools to take prompt and effective action to end any sex discrimination in their education programs or activities, prevent its recurrence, and remedy its effects. The final rule requires schools to respond promptly to all complaints of sex discrimination with a fair, transparent, and reliable process that includes trained, unbiased decisionmakers to evaluate all relevant and not otherwise impermissible evidence.

♦ Empower and support students and families. The final rule protects against retaliation for students, employees, and others who exercise their Title IX rights. The rule requires schools to communicate their nondiscrimination policies and procedures to all students, employees, and other participants in their education programs so that students and families understand their rights. The rule supports the right of parents and guardians to act on behalf of their elementary school and secondary school children. And the rule protects student privacy by prohibiting schools from making disclosures of personally identifiable information with limited exceptions.

Legal Challenges

On July 2, a U.S. District Court judge in Kansas issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting the Department of Education from implementing or enforcing the new Title IX regulations against any school attended by current or future members of:

• Young America’s Foundation;
• Female Athletes United; and
• Schools attended by the children of members of Moms for Liberty

Moms for Liberty had until July 26 to file a list of schools in which children of members attended. The organization filed another list on July 31.

The list of schools in Iredell County that are exempt are:
• Celeste Henkel Elementary
• Coddle Creek Elementary
• Cool Spring Elementary
• Lake Norman Elementary
• Lake Norman High
• Lakeshore Elementary
• Lakeshore Middle
• North Iredell Middle
• North Iredell High
• Shepherd Elementary
• South Iredell High
• The Brawley School
• Troutman Elementary
• Troutman Middle
• Union Grove Elementary
• West Iredell High
• West Iredell Middle
• Woodland Heights Elementary
• Woodland Heights Middle.
• Sharron Elementary
• Collaborative College for Technology.

“It leaves us with a little bit of challenge because we have some of the schools on the list and some that are not,” Shatley said.

The federal injunction doesn’t prevent the school board from taking action. It prevents the federal government from enforcing the rules against the district.

New Regulations

Some of the controversy, Shatley said, comes from the new Title IX regulations, which prohibit discrimination on the basis of “sextual orientation” and “gender identity.”

“There is no specific discussion in Title IX that (explains) on the basis and how it applies to transgender (individuals) or to people based on gender identity and orientation,” Shatley said.

Following the presentation, school board chairman Bill Howell said that the district will let the U.S. Supreme Court decide whether or not the new regulations are constitutional or not.

“We are going to abide by what we’ve done in the past. Then will find out what the courts decide in the future,” he explained.

“We don’t like bullying. We aren’t going to have it in our schools — bullying of any type. Every student deserves that,” he added.

2 thoughts on “Board chair: I-SS will await final court ruling before implementing new Title IX regulations”

  1. Silence Do-Better says:

    Interesting that the only high school not on the list is Statesville – the very school that so many board members and people in the county love to bash. That’s telling. Also interesting is that the the board was quick to disobey this law while last year there was so much debate about an earlier start to the school year. You’re either for all kids or against them.
    I guess if you want high schoolers protected from bias, discrimination and hatred you’ll need to send them to Statesville High School. Anywhere else and you risk having them indoctrinated.

Comments are closed.