Holland & Knight previously explained how a Kansas federal district court's unique injunction against the U.S. Department of Education's (Department) enforcement of the 2024 Title IX regulations impacted schools nationwide....more
A federal district court in Kansas enjoined the U.S. Department of Education's (Department) enforcement of the 2024 Title IX regulations in a unique manner that impacts educational institutions nationwide. The decision...more
7/19/2024
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Enforcement ,
Gender Identity ,
Pending Litigation ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Public Schools ,
Sexual Harassment ,
State Attorneys General ,
Title IX ,
Transgender
The U.S. Department of Education (ED) finalized new regulations last year that will take effect on July 1, 2024, directly impacting mergers and acquisitions involving higher education institutions. Specifically, the...more
6/11/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Colleges ,
Compliance ,
Controlling Person ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Financial Responsibility Standards ,
Mergers ,
New Regulations ,
Personal Liability ,
Title IV ,
Universities
The U.S. Department of Education (Department) issued final rules on Oct. 24, 2023, imposing new conditions that higher education institutions must satisfy to participate in federal student aid programs under Title IV of the...more
As it promised in June, the Biden Administration published much-anticipated federal guidance on higher education admissions on Aug. 14, 2023. The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (ED) and U.S. Department...more
8/24/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Biden Administration ,
Civil Rights Act ,
College Admissions ,
Colleges ,
Dear Colleague Letter ,
Department of Education ,
Diversity ,
Educational Institutions ,
New Guidance ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Universities
Massachusetts colleges and universities received some good news recently as Gov. Maura Healey signed a bill that limits their liability for certain tuition and fee refund claims arising from the COVID-19 pandemic....more
8/17/2023
/ Breach of Contract ,
Civil Liability ,
Class Action ,
Colleges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Educational Institutions ,
Fees ,
New Legislation ,
Refunds ,
School Closures ,
Tuition ,
Universities
In a historic ruling on June 29, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the race-conscious admissions policies of Harvard College and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC) are unconstitutional. A copy of the...more
6/30/2023
/ Affirmative Action ,
Civil Rights Act ,
College Admissions ,
Colleges ,
Diversity ,
Educational Institutions ,
Equal Protection ,
Fourteenth Amendment ,
Race Discrimination ,
SCOTUS ,
Students for Fair Admissions v Harvard College ,
Students for Fair Admissions v University of North Carolina ,
Title VI ,
Universities
The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) published on April 6, 2023, a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) about sex-related criteria used to limit or deny a student's ability to participate in...more
4/24/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
College Athletes ,
Colleges ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
Multi-Factor Test ,
NCAA ,
NPRM ,
OCR ,
Public Schools ,
Sports ,
Student Athletes ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender ,
Universities
Signed into law back in January 2021, the state's landmark Campus Sexual Violence Act (Act) took effect Aug. 1, 2021, and new regulations from the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education (DHE) will take effect Aug. 13....more
8/12/2021
/ Clery Act ,
Colleges ,
Educational Institutions ,
Governor Baker ,
Memorandum of Understanding ,
New Legislation ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Training Requirements ,
Universities
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker signed on Jan. 12, 2021, landmark legislation addressing sexual violence on college and university campuses. The new law is the state's version of Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex...more
1/18/2021
/ Clery Act ,
Colleges ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender-Based Violence ,
Governor Baker ,
New Legislation ,
Preemption ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Violence Policies ,
Title IX ,
Universities
Institutions of higher education (IHEs) that received emergency relief funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the CARES Act) must report certain designated information to the U.S. Secretary of...more
5/12/2020
/ CARES Act ,
Colleges ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Federal Grants ,
Financial Stimulus ,
New Guidance ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Students ,
Universities
Massachusetts begins financial screening of independent institutions of higher education (IHEs) this month. The state legislature enacted the first-of-its-kind legislation in late 2019. The Board of Higher Education (BHE)...more
The fluid and fast-changing impact of the new coronavirus (COVID-19) has left institutions of higher education (IHEs) scrambling to address unexpected legal issues. This guidance addresses some of their more frequently asked...more
3/18/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Colleges ,
Commercial Contracts ,
Contract Terms ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Fair Housing Act (FHA) ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
FERPA ,
Force Majeure Clause ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
OCR ,
OSHA ,
PHI ,
Public Accommodation ,
Public Health ,
Quarantine ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Risk Management ,
School Closures ,
Student Privacy ,
Universities ,
Vendors ,
Workers' Compensation Claim
In the latest attempt to address the financial challenges facing higher education, the Massachusetts Board of Higher Education (BHE) has issued new regulations that for the first time establish a state program for annual...more
• Recently released guidance from the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) confirms that both private and public institutions of higher education must report litigation, settlements and other...more
• The U.S. Department of Education (Department) on Nov. 16, 2018 proposed sweeping changes to the regulations implementing Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sexual harassment and sex discrimination.
• The newly...more
11/20/2018
/ Colleges ,
Comment Period ,
Cross Examination ,
Department of Education ,
Due Process ,
Educational Institutions ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Comment ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Standard of Proof ,
Title IX ,
Universities
Changing course on complaints involving transgender students, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) recently issued new field instructions to its regional staff excluding discrimination claims based...more
6/26/2017
/ Bullying ,
Colleges ,
Complaint Procedures ,
Department of Education ,
Educational Institutions ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
OCR ,
Rescission ,
Rollbacks ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Stereotyping ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender ,
Trump Administration ,
Universities
Reversing the practice under the Obama Administration, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has just issued new internal guidance changing how regional OCR offices will investigate discrimination...more
6/20/2017
/ Class Action ,
Complaint Procedures ,
Department of Education ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disability Discrimination ,
Educational Institutions ,
OCR ,
Race Discrimination ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Students ,
Transgender ,
Trump Administration
Two divisions of the federal government have weighed in on the recent legal controversies surrounding accommodations for transgender students. The U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and the U.S....more
5/18/2016
/ Dear Colleague Letter ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Educational Institutions ,
FERPA ,
Gender Discrimination ,
Gender Identity ,
LGBTQ ,
OCR ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sexual Orientation Discrimination ,
Students ,
Title IX ,
Transgender
The disturbing increase in campus shooting tragedies demands a careful review of campus safety measures. Recent incidents in several states remind us that violence can erupt without much, if any, advance warning. Educational...more
10/20/2015
/ Background Checks ,
Best Practices ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Educational Institutions ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Emergency Response ,
Mass Shootings ,
Notification Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
School Safety ,
School Shootings
When is it legal and proper for higher education institutions to use student medical records other than for a student's healthcare? In answering that question, institutions have to balance students' privacy interests,...more
9/3/2015
/ Colleges ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Educational Institutions ,
FERPA ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare ,
Medical Records ,
Personally Identifiable Information ,
Student Privacy ,
Student Records ,
Universities
A key section of the comprehensive federal legislation passed last year to prevent and address violence against women on campuses nationally takes effect this month. It is critical for educational institutions to understand...more
Educational institutions face greater legal exposure given their increasing use of online educational services – and situations where they can both collect and disclose protected information. As a result, these institutions...more