Education Secretary Betsy DeVos on Wednesday released final regulations for schools dealing with sexual misconduct, giving them the force of law for the first time and bolstering due-process rights.

The rules preserve Ms. DeVos's broad goals in overhauling Title IX, the 48-year-old federal law that prohibits sex discrimination in programs that receive federal funding, by infusing legal standards in disciplinary proceedings that have been left largely to schools to navigate.

The new regulations narrow the definition of sexual harassment and require colleges to hold live hearings during which student victims and perpetrators can be cross-examined to challenge their credibility. The rules also limit the complaints that schools are obligated to investigate to only those filed through a formal process and brought to the attention of officials with the authority to take corrective action.

Schools will also be responsible for investigating only episodes said to have occurred within their programs and activities. And they will have the flexibility to choose which evidentiary standard to use to find students responsible for misconduct — "preponderance of evidence”or "clear and convincing evidence."

To find a school legally culpable for mishandling allegations, they would have to be proven "deliberately indifferent," in carrying out mandates to provide support to victims and investigate complaints fairly.

The final rules, which take effect in August, codify for the first time sexual assault grievance proceedings that until now were covered by Education Department guidance and recommendations.

Source: The New York Times