WEBINAR: Title IX and DS

When:  Nov 7, 2019 from 03:00:40 PM to 04:30:40 PM (ET)

Chris Stone, Ed.D., University of North Carolina Wilmington
Amber Resetar, J.D. University of North Carolina Wilmington

The 2007 College Sexual Assault Study revealed that 19% of female undergraduate students are victims of sexual assault during college. According to Chivers-Wilson (2006), within two weeks of a sexual assault, 94% of women are assessed with PTSD symptoms. Over the course of their lives, women involved in a sexual assault have a discernible increase in the prevalence of ongoing diagnoses of PTSD. These figures, staggering on their own, do not account for other lifelong impairments acquired through assault or the corresponding figures within the male population. They also do not consider reporting from higher education, where students may need immediate services to support successful inclusion and continuation within the educational set.

Colleges and universities often fail to grasp their responsibilities in supporting students who experience gender-based assault, disability, or situations that blur the line between disability and gender-based need or assault. Presenters will discuss guiding documents (Dear Colleague letters and published Resolution Agreements) and underlying principles inherent in laying the foundation necessary to support these individuals on college campuses. This presentation highlights the need for nuanced understanding of accommodating students through disability services or Title IX, as may be appropriate, and will detail efforts to balance the standards of Title IX, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act to ensure seamless service and support for individuals confronted by issues associated with trauma, injury, or orders related to sexual discrimination incidents, and potentially through their identification as a person with a disability with the right to accommodation guaranteed through the ADA.