The U.S. Department of Education (DOE) issued new Title IX regulations mandating how schools across the country respond to complaints of sexual harassment, which includes sexual violence. This FAQ addresses common questions about the DOE Regulations and the impact on the CIA community.
What are the Title IX regulations?
Title IX prohibits sex discrimination in federally funded education programs and activities. The Title IX regulations tell institutions how to implement Title IX, including how to respond to certain sexual harassment complaints.
When did the new Title IX regulations go into effect?
The regulations went into effect on August 14, 2020. While there have been many legal challenges to the regulations, CIA must implement the regulations to comply with the law.
How has CIA’s HSMD Policy changed?
Generally, the HSMD Policy has not changed, however a new process that CIA uses to respond to some reports of sexual harassment has been added to the policy. Additional information on the HSMD Policy changes can be found below.
What will happen to pending HSMD investigations?
The regulations only apply to conduct that occurs on or after August 14, 2020. HSMD investigations pending before that date will proceed under the existing HSMD Policy. In addition, the regulations do not apply to new reports of sexual harassment if the underlying conduct occurred prior to August 14, 2020.
Does this change CIA Responsible Employee duties?
No. All HSMD Policy requirements regarding Responsible Employees remain in effect. All CIA Employees who are not confidential resources and become aware of alleged sexual violence or sexual harassment of students must report the information to the Office of Title IX at TitleIX@culinary.edu or use our online reporting system.
Is harassment based on gender identity and sexual orientation prohibited? Does the HSMD Policy still apply to Discrimination?
Yes. The HSMD Policy explicitly prohibits sex-based harassment, including on the basis of any protected characteristic, including: race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, religion, disability, age, genetic information, familial status, marital status, veteran status, ancestry, national or ethnic origin, and any other protected group or classification under the law. The regulations also prohibit sex-based harassment.
Do the new regulations limit what is considered sexual violence or sexual harassment?
The same conduct that was prohibited by the HSMD Policy prior to August 14 is still prohibited. A subset of Prohibited Conduct is now covered by the Department of Education (DOE) regulations—“Title IX DOE Covered Conduct.”

The HSMD Policy will continue to cover all forms of Prohibited Conduct, including DOE-Covered Conduct.
Do the new regulations change how CIA responds to reports of Prohibited Conduct?
The scope of the HSMD Policy is unchanged, as is CIA’s commitment to preventing and responding to reports of sexual harassment from our community members. The HSMD Policy includes procedures that detail how we respond to reports of Prohibited Conduct, which may include providing resources and support services, conducting an investigation or other resolution process, and instituting discipline and other corrective action if a violation of the HSMD Policy has occurred.
The new regulations require institutions to follow particular procedures to respond to reports of DOE-Covered Conduct. These procedures are called the “Title IX DOE Grievance Process.” So, the CIA will essentially have two investigation processes: a Title IX DOE Grievance Process—which applies to formal complaints of DOE-Covered Conduct, and our existing HSMD formal investigation procedures called the “Prohibited Conduct Other Than Title IX DOE Process—which apply to all other reports of Prohibited Conduct.
What is different from existing HSMD procedures?
Some of the steps required in the Title IX DOE Grievance Process are already a part of our existing HSMD procedures, such as providing written notice to the parties, the right to an advisor, and conducting a thorough investigation. Other required steps were not a part of our existing procedures. The CIA has revised our procedures to be fully compliant with the DOE regulations, reflect our values, and continue to protect our community from all Prohibited Conduct.
What are the key elements of the regulations and Title IX DOE Grievance Process?:
Definition of Sexual Harassment
The regulations define sexual harassment as “unwelcome conduct determined by a reasonable person to be so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it effectively denies a person equal access to the recipient’s education program or activity.” The DOE definition imposes a higher standard that may be harder to prove and is different than New York, California, and Texas state law and our HSMD Policy, however, sexual harassment that does not meet the DOE definition may still be addressed under the HSMD Policy.
Location of Harassing Conduct
The regulations cover only sexual misconduct that occurs in a school’s program or activity, while the complainant was in the United States. This excludes some off-campus conduct, for example, study abroad programs. The protections in the HSMD Policy are broader, cover on-campus conduct, conduct in a CIA program or activity (wherever located), and off-campus conduct that that creates a hostile environment on campus or in a CIA program or activity.
Additional Investigatory Steps
The regulations require additional steps during the investigation process which involve sharing of evidence with both parties and allowing them to comment.
Live Hearing, Cross Examination and Questioning by Advisors
The regulations require a mandatory live hearing to determine whether a student, staff or faculty respondent engaged in Title IX DOE-Covered Conduct. This was not previously required and has been added to the Title IX DOE Grievance Process. The live audio-recorded hearing also requires questioning by parties’ advisors, who may be an attorney. This means, for example, that if the complainant has questions for the respondent, the complainant's advisor can ask them at the hearing.
Additional Questions? Contact us at TitleIX@culinary.edu.