U.S. Department of Education Formally Rescinds 2024 Title IX Regulations

In response to a Sept. 28 federal mandate, the college has formally reverted to the 2020 Title IX regulations, which no longer covers discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. While the 2020 regulations have already been implemented as an interim policy since March 2025, the Department of Education’s formal rescission reinstates standards that restrict Title IX coverage to a narrower definition of sexual harassment.

Despite the changes, the administration holds that impacts on nondiscrimination protections and policies will be minimal. In an email to students, faculty, and staff on Wednesday, President Michael Elliott wrote that while the action “seems intended to cause alarm for LGBTQ individuals … Amherst College will continue to abide by the protections for sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression in Massachusetts state law and college policies.” 

Elliott also addressed the recent developments at Cornell University, context with which this federal mandate is intertwined. “The scourge of sexual violence exists on every college or university campus, and this is a moment of justified reckoning about how institutions are protecting students, faculty, and staff and supporting victims and survivors,” he wrote.

Under the 2020 Title IX regulations, education programs receiving federal funding must respond to allegations of sexual harassment consistent with Title IX’s prohibition against sex discrimination. This includes hostile environments, defined by conduct “so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive” that it “effectively denies equal access” to the affected person’s  educational program. They also obligate recipients to respond promptly and supportively to persons victimized by sexual harassment, resolve allegations of sexual harassment promptly and accurately under a predictable, fair grievance process that provides due process protections, and effectively implement remedies for victims. The federal directive follows a period of legal back-and-forth over the scope of Title IX, culminating in court rulings that vacated the Biden administration’s 2024 regulations that expanded protections to harassment based on sexual orientation and gender identity, as well as behavior that is considered “subjectively offensive.”

While identity-based harm and discrimination are no longer governed under Title IX, they continue to be investigated and prohibited by the college’s Nondiscrimination and Harassment Policy, which aligns with Massachusetts state law. 

“We at the [c]ollege have continued to address conduct that falls outside of the narrowed definition of sexual misconduct under the 2020 Title IX guidance,” Director of Civil Rights and Title IX (CRTIX) Catherine Berryman wrote in an email to The Student. “Our policies address a broad range of conduct, and we urge anyone who has experienced sexual misconduct or identity-based harm to report to our office.” 

While the Title IX and nondiscrimination policies differ based on scope, Berryman emphasized that formal reporting processes remain aligned for both policies. “[The office of] CRTIX oversees the investigation process under both policies, using the same external investigators to conduct the investigations. Under both policies, the grievance process involves a hearing in which the parties have the right to ask questions of each other and witnesses and to present opening and closing statements,” she wrote. 

Berryman added that the only difference is that the decision-makers in the grievance process under the Interim [Title] IX policy are external hearing board members, while those in the Nondiscrimination and Harassment Policy’s grievance process are Amherst faculty and staff and members of the Community Standards Review Board.

Though Title IX only applies to misconduct on campus, the location of a misconduct does not alter the college’s initial response. “CRTIX responds to reports of sexual misconduct involving community members in the same way whether it occurs on or off campus,” Berryman said. All of these reports, she added, are reviewed for potential interim measures, such as an interim suspension or other interim restrictions.

“Building and maintaining community trust is an ongoing practice that requires consistent and transparent action,” Berryman wrote. Highlighting the Offices of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (ODEI) and CRTIX’s upcoming information session on Thursday, Oct. 15, Berryman explained that “In recent years, CRTIX has focused on being visible, accessible, and responsive to community outreach.” The session, as well as The Center for Restorative Practices (CRP) and Student Affairs and Health & Wellbeing Education’s upcoming restorative circle, will clarify policy structure and offer reflection on sexual harm on college campuses. 

Berryman finally emphasized the importance of confidentiality in the upcoming sessions, given that patterns and themes will be shared with CRTIX and identities will be kept private. “Trust is a sustained commitment by CRTIX, and input from these upcoming sessions will help us improve communication, expand resources, and adjust institutional approaches,” she wrote.