Title IX’s Inherent Flaw
Emily Suski, University of South Carolina School of Law
Title IX’s protections and remedies turn on timing. A student who is sexually abused or harassed
in school must give the school notice of the harassment in order for the school
to be held responsible for it. Yet,
students who suffer sexual abuse and harassment often do not report it. Consequently, Title IX offers them no
protection or relief. This article
critiques Title IX’s notice requirement as specious and one that guts Title IX
of force. It proposes doctrinal and legislative solutions to render it effective.
Leaving More Children Behind: New York’s Special Education District 75
Charisa Kiyô Smith, City University of New York School of Law
Insufficient scholarly and advocacy
attention has been paid to the legal questions raised by New York City School District
75. The district is not geographically
defined and is reserved for students with the most severe disabilities. Few scholars even know of its existence. Although local practitioners and advocates
have growing concerns, they fail to question whether Dist. 75 administration is
lawful and effective, not to mention discriminatory, incompetent, or
ineffective. This case study explores
the mutually constitutive relationship between disability, race, culture, privilege
and the law.
Shocking
violations of both civil rights and special education law should force
challenges to Dist. 75 in courts and on the administrative level. While IDEA and Section 504 require districts
to educate students in the least restrictive environment, students are referred
to Dist. 75 without exploration of alternatives. Few safeguards ensure that Dist. 75 students
are later reviewed; and this placement brands them as uneducable
elsewhere. Referrals to middle and high
schools are racially disparate, while students’ disabilities are incorrectly or
unnecessarily defined. Alarmingly, less
than 1% of Dist. 75 students graduate with a marketable diploma or skills, and
a disproportionate percentage wind up in the justice system. Although parents have received equitable
federal relief for Dist. 75’s failures, reforms neither identify nor address
the true dilemma.