Understanding and Implementing Title IX Regulations
Dunn, Janessa
Forinash, Jessica
:
2022
Abstract
Established by the Education Amendments of 1972, Title IX is an important statute of legislation
that was enacted to protect individuals when discrimination and harassment on the basis of sex was
prevalent in American society. Title IX states that “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” (Department of Education,
2021; Education Amendments Act of 1972, 20 U.S.C. §1681 et seq). Its broad implications imply that
all individuals involved in a U.S. college or university should be aware of its purpose, their personal
rights established by the statute, and the role they play in making sure the institution is compliant.
Although simple in its phrasing, upholding policies in alignment with Title IX is a hefty task. Title IX
has affected higher education institutions in many ways since its inception, and it is imperative to
highlight key historical movements to understand its impact.
Followed by a historical background of Title IX amendments, an exploratory study will be
described to understand the implications of Title IX amendments for Tennessee Independent Colleges
and Universities Association (TICUA) members—particularly for Title IX coordinators. Descriptive
findings will be analyzed through the lens of four dimensions: the institution’s size, religious affiliation,
minority-serving status, and setting. We define size within three realms: less than 2,000 undergraduate
students, 2000<4,000 undergraduate students, and >4,000 undergraduate students (Dunn & Forinash,
2021). We also delineate an institution’s minority-serving status in alignment with the Office of
Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights’ definition for minority-serving institutions (e.g., Historically
Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and
Asian American and Pacific Islander Serving Institutions) (U.S. Department of the Interior, 2022).
Furthermore, we define setting using the College Board’s Big Future definitions of rural, suburban, and
urban settings (College Board, 2022). Finally, we define religiously affiliated institutions as institutions
who are affiliated with a known denomination as observed in the College Board’s BigFuture college
search tool (College Board, 2022).
We will conclude our descriptive findings with key takeaways and recommendations that can be
adopted by TICUA member institutions as well as the TICUA staff to support Title IX coordinators in
their important work