Harvard College Sexual Assault Investigation: Feds Announce Probe Resulting From Title IX Complaint

Add Harvard College to the list of colleges under federal investigation for complaints against their handling of sexual assault cases.

According to the Huffington Post, the U.S. Education Department's (ED) Office of Civil Rights (OCR) has officially launched a probe. The HP first reported that the group of Harvard students had filed the complaint March 31.

The OCR responded to the complainants Thursday in a letter, stating they will investigate their claims. Among the accusations against Harvard was the school did remove the victim's assailant from the dorm building where the two lived. The complaint also said Harvard had not updated its sexual assault policy since 1993 and it was sexually discriminatory and outdated.

The OCR will be on Harvard's campus to investigate the school's records of sexual assault policies, practices and other documents. The OCR will also interview students.

Harvard's compliance with the Clery Act and Title IX will be closely examined. Under the Clery Act, a school is required by law to release a detailed annual report of all campus crimes and Title IX is a federal gender equity law banning sexual discrimination. Since sexual assault is considered sexual discrimination, schools are required to adequately investigate each claim brought forth from a student.

Drew Faust, Harvard's president, launched a task force to improve the school's sexual assault policies shortly after the HP's initial report. Both graduate (Harvard Students Demand Respect) and undergraduate (Our Harvard Can Do Better) students are fully behind a change of policy.

"It's hard to say why the school is dragging their feet, or why Harvard is so resistant in making these policy decisions," Michelle Maziar, a Harvard Graduate School of Education alumna and researcher, told the HP.

The OCR may levy sanctions such as mandatory policy changes and fines, but can even cut a school's federal funding at the most severe. After the Harvard complaint, the OCR confirmed it had 52 pending Title IX complaints directly related to sexual assault.