Education Department Insists List of Title IX Investigations Are Not Random

After releasing a list of 55 schools under federal investigation, the U.S. Education Department (ED) verified the probes were not random.

According to the Huffington Post, the ED said Friday most of the investigations came from complaints filed by students or alumni. Only nine of the 55 schools under investigation were selected for random compliance reviews.

"Compliance reviews are not random audits of schools -- they are selected based on various sources of information, including statistical data, news reports and information from parents, advocacy groups and community organizations," ED spokeswoman Dorie Nolt told the HP. "Compliance reviews are initiated in order to remedy possible violations of students' rights."

The probes are handled by the ED's Office of Civil Rights (OCR) and are conducted to investigate whether or not the school's policies are in compliance with Title IX and the Clery Act. Title IX is a federal gender equity law and the Clery Act requires schools to release annual transparency reports of campus crime.

If the OCR determines a school violated its students' rights, the ED could mandate policy changes, levy fines or even go so far as retracting federal funding. The ED has never taken federal funding from a school as a result of an investigation.

UMass-Amherst spokesman Ed Blaguszewski told the HP he applauds the work of the OCR.

"We factually state that 'no conclusions have been reached.' We do not suggest anything else, and we recognize that Education Department selects schools based on a variety of factors," he said. "As noted in the statement, we fully support the Task Force's work, and we believe that much more must be done to safeguard our students at UMass Amherst."

While the ED officially released its list of schools being probed for the first time, the HP had maintained an unofficial list based on its own reporting.

The White House released its report, titled "Not Alone: The First Report of the White House Task Force to Protect Students From Sexual Assault," of recommendations for schools to adopt in order to curb sexual assault on campus.