Title IX reverts to 2020 regulations after federal ruling

By Grace Bertrand

Confusion lingers over schools nationwide as 2024 Title IX policies were vacated by a federal judge on Jan. 9, requiring institutions to revert back to the 2020 regulations. 

As a result, Rider’s Title IX Anti-Harassment and Non-Discrimination Policy has been updated back to comply with the 2020 Title IX regulations on the university website. 

Title IX Coordinator Debbie Stasolla said in an interview with The Rider News, “I don’t see any difference between either set of regulations in terms of its effect on our policies … Yes, there are definitely some differences, but not in a way that would affect the safety of our community or any populations within our community.” 

Rider’s Title IX department sent out a universitywide email on Jan. 27 to update students and faculty on its no-tolerance policy, the responsibility to report cases, support for parenting students and who students can contact. 

In the email, Stasolla and Ryan McKinney, director of Title IX and Equal Opportunity Compliance, wrote, “Harassment or discrimination of any kind, including sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating and domestic violence and stalking, have no place at Rider.” 

Under the 2024 regulations, put in place by former President Joe Biden, students and faculty were protected under Title IX against all types of sex discrimination, including discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy and sexual harrassment. 

Stasolla explained that the 2024 regulations gave the Title IX department clarity on expanded definitions and more flexibility on resolution options, which it did not have before. 

With compliance to the 2020 regulations, institutions are reverting the changes made to their policy in their expanded definitions for harassment, policy procedures, new training requirements, pregnancy-related harassment, an informal resolution process, appeal of supportive measures, prohibitions against retaliation and gender identity as a protected category, according to the National Association of Elementary School Principals.

As Rider aims to continue its enforcement of a no-tolerance harassment policy, Stasolla explained the changes in the Title IX regulations should not affect how students perceive the Title IX department as a reliable resource.  

“The bottom line is that whether under the 2024 regulations or the 2020 regulations, what we are responsible for in our office is to make sure that no one is limited in their full experience, educational experience or work experience here at Rider,” said Stasolla. 

Community struggles 

When it comes to a difference in how the department handled cases that arose under the 2020 regulations versus the 2024 regulations, McKinney expressed a neutral sentiment: “We have to do it the way that the law is written.” 

Both McKinney and Stasolla agreed they had a shared appreciation for the 2024 regulations because of the expanded opportunities and flexibility it offered them in resolving matters. However, Stasolla described the expanded definitions of discriminatory harassment as “more challenging” for the Title IX department to apply to a variety of cases. 

Stasolla and McKinney said they often found themselves asking, “How do we apply this long definition and try to distinguish between what is ‘subjectively and objectively offensive, so severe or pervasive?’” 

They were not alone in that struggle. Stasolla explained there were other institutions that shared the same sentiment in training and webinars offered to institutions through the Association of Title IX Administrators to help transition to the 2024 regulations when they were first put in place on Aug. 1, 2024.  

Reverting back to the 2020 regulations, Title IX departments nationwide and education administrators were required to dissolve the training they had undergone less than six months prior for the 2024 regulations. 

McKinney and Stasolla explained that it was especially challenging for them to have to re-train various departments and organizations at Rider with the 2024 regulations in August, only for them to then revert back to the 2020 regulations. 

“[The regulations] become a real Bible for us,” said Stasolla. “Although some of the training still applies, it is frustrating and makes our job more challenging.” 

Director of the Center for Diversity and Inclusion Jasmine Johnson expressed her appreciation for training amidst the changes in regulations. 

“Although training is tedious, it is definitely needed,” said Johnson. “In general, regulations change and when they do, it’s important for us to privy on what those changes are and how it will impact not only faculty and staff, but students as well.” 

 According to Johnson, the CDI has not yet been trained for the 2020 regulations, but she presumes it is only a matter of time before they are, being that they are a diverse space.  

Faculty and administration are not the only ones who have encountered struggles with the change in regulations. 

Students have also been faced with confusion amidst the back and forth changes of the Title IX policies, according to the Student Government Association Vice President for University Affairs Moira Geiger, a sophomore computer science major, who oversees the Health and Safety Committee.  

“I definitely do see students being confused and getting frustrated with these changes because it’s already confusing on an administration level and a governmental level, let alone a student one,” said Geiger. 

As the regulation changes unfolded, Geiger explained that the Student Government Association has been meeting with faculty and administration to ensure it is more of “an adaptive process.” 

“Our motivation is to keep everything as open to everyone as possible and the best way to go about it is to keep everyone in the know so that everyone is on the same page,” said Geiger. 

‘Protect all students’  

Johnson echoed Geiger’s sentiment about helping students find a safe space, including people of the LGBTQIA+ community who may be affected by these changes. 

In January, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that proclaimed only two biological sexes would be recognized: male and female. As a part of this executive order, Trump put an end to Biden’s efforts to extend Title IX’s protections to transgender students on his first day in office. 

“Even with the policy changes, I do believe there are still policies in place to protect all students, regardless of how a student may or may not identify,” said Johnson. 

As Rider’s Title IX department continues to move forward with the 2020 regulations, they emphasize they are a resource for any students and faculty who are confused. 

McKinney explained their goal in writing any subsequent policy is to always make it as digestible as possible. 

“When students need to read the policy, it’s generally at a very low point in their life,” said McKinney. “It would be twice as difficult to understand some of this legal jargon when you’re already going through something so difficult, so I want them to be able to digest it as much as possible.” 

While the policy is available on the university website, McKinney confessed that he does not expect everyone to be as familiar with it as the department is or have it memorized. 

Amid the changes, McKinney expressed that the Title IX department is always willing to walk people through the process whether they are just starting out or have experience in the field.  

“We’re not here to punish people,” said McKinney. “We’re here to educate and then address the behavior in question and support the students involved. And that hasn’t changed even with the change in the regulations.”