UNITEDSTATESDEPARTMENTOF EDUCATION
OFFICEFORCIVILRIGHTS,REGIONI
5 POSTOFFICESQUARE,8 1" FLOOR
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS
02109-3921

August 28, 20 17

By Electronic Mail
(b)(6); (b)(7(C)

Re:

OCR Complain t No. 01- 17-2230
Connecticut College

Dea~(b)(6);(b)(7(C)
Thi s letter is to inform you that the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
is opening for investigation the above-referenced comp laint you filed against Connecticut
College (College). In your complaint, you alleged that the College failed to respond promptl y
and equitably to complaints of sexual violence filed against you by another student (Student B)
(Allegation 1). You also allege that, during the course of the College's Title IX grievance
process, the College discriminated against you on the basis of disability (Allegation 2) and race
,
llege failed to investigate allegations of intimate
(Allegat ion 3). Finally, you alleg
partner violence that you raised i (b)(5); (b)(?(C) Allegation 4). For the reasons described below,
OCR is opening Allegations 1 and 2 for investigation and dismissing Allegations 3 and 4.
OCR is responsible for enforcing (i) Title IX of the Educ ation Amendments of 1972 (Title IX),
as amended, 20 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq., and its implementing regulation at 34 C.F.R. Part 106,
which prohibit discrimina tion on the basis of sex in programs or activities receiving financial
assistance from the U.S. Department of Education (Department); (ii) Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 794, and its implementing regulation at 34
C.F.R. Part 104 (Section 504), which prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability in
programs or activities receiving financial assistance from the Departm ent; and (iii) Title VI of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 2000d et seq., and its implementing
regulation at 34 C.F.R. Part 100 (Title VT), which prohibit discrimination on the basis of race in
programs or activities receiving financial assis tance from the Department. The College is subject
to these laws because it is a recipient of Federal financial assistance from the Depar tment.

Allegations 1 and 2
Because OCR has determin ed that it has juri sdiction and that the complaint was filed in a timely
manner, it is opening the allegations for investigation. Specifically, OCR will examine the
following issues:

 Page 2 of 3 ~(b)(5); (b)(?(C)

•

•

!ocRComplaint No. 01-17-2230

Whether the College failed to respond promptly and equitably to complaints, reports,
and/or incidents involving you, including sexual violence and intimate partner violence,
of which it had notice, and if so, whether you were subjected to a sexually hostile
environment, in violation of 34 C.F.R. Sections 106.S(b), 106.31(a) and (b) ; and
Whether the College discriminated against you on the basis of your disability during its
Title IX grievance process, in violation of 34 C.F.R. § I04.43(a).

Please note that opening these allegations for investigation does not imply that OCR has made a
determination with regard to their merits. During the investigation, OCR is a neutral fact-finder,
collecting and analyzing relevant evidence from you, the recipient, and other sources, as
appropriate. OCR will ensure that its investigation is legally sufficient and is dispositive of the
allegations, in accordance with the provisions of OCR ' s Case Processing Manual (CPM), which
can be found online at: http ://www2 .ed.gov/abo ut/offices/ 1ist/ocr/docs/ocrcpm .htm1.
Dismissal of Allegatio n 3
OCR is dismissing Allegation 3 because we have determined it does not state a violation of one
of the laws OCR enforce s. You have not provided sufficient, specific information indicating that
the College ' s treatment of you was because of, or motivated b
our race, despite OCR's efforts
seeking more
to collect such information from you. OCR wrote you o (b)(5); (b)(?(C)
5
information about your allegations. You responded o (b)( ); (b)(?(C)
but did not provide enough
information for OCR to infer that the College's actions were because of or related to your race.
While OCR does not doubt the sincerity of your belief that you were treated unfairly on the basis
of your race, our agency may only open for investigation allegations that state a violation of our
laws or otherw ise allow us to infer such a violation. Without more specific information, we
cannot open generalized allegations of wrongdoing. As a result, Allegation 3 is dismissed.
Dismissal of Allegation 4
OCR is dismissing Allegation 4 because it is untimely. To be considered timely , complaint
allegations must generally be filed with OCR withi n 180 days of the last alleged act of
letter, she wrote that "[i]t only became evident
discrimination. In your attorney' ~ (b)(5); (b)(?(C)
that Caoo College had opt in.vestigated his. complaint (b)(6); (b)(7(C)
l <bl( 5); (b)(?(C)
!when my client received thei .~n-v-e-st-ig
:"_ a_t-:. -n- r --:-n
==Trr T:,- T
=:h-er-e~fo...re,
5
the last discriminatory acts alleged here occurred at the latest 01 (b)( ); (b)(?(C)
the date you
described in your initial complaint as when you rec ·
· inary report. According ly,
you were required to file
· w·
CR by (b)(5); (b)(?(C)
owever , you did not file a
complaint with OCR unt (b)(5); (b)(?(C)

!

(b)(6); (b)(7(C)

0
OCR staff invited you to demonstrate that your untime ly allegation qualified
for a waiver of the 180-da filin requirement based on the reasons listed in the aboveyour attorney wrote that you were not seeking a waiver.
referenced CPM. 0 (b)(5); (b)(?(C)
Therefore, Allegation 4 is dismissed.

 Page 3 of 3

(b)(5 ); (b)(?(C)

OCR Complaint No. 01-17-2 230

Conclusion
We have notified the College that we have opened Allegation s 1 and 2 for investigation . The
regulations enforced by OCR prohibit retaliation. Specifically, the regulations state that no
recipient or other person shall intimidate, threaten, coerce or discriminate against any individual
for the purpose of interfering with any right or privilege secured by regulations enforced by OCR
or because one has made a complaint, testified , assisted or participated in any manner in an
investigation , proceedings or hearing held in connection with a complaint. If this happen s, you
may file another complaint alleging such treatment.
Under the Freedom of Information Act, it may be necessary to release this document and related
con-espondence and record s upon reque st. In the event that OCR receive s such a reque st, it will
seek to protect , to the extent provided by law, per sonally identifiable information that if released,
could constitute an unwan-anted invasion of personal privacy.
If you have any questions concerning this letter or the proce ssing of this complaint, please
contact Civil Rights Attorney Catherine Deneke at 617-289-0080 or Catherine.Deneke@ed .gov.
Please reference complaint numb er 01-17 -2230 in any communication with OCR regarding this
matter.

Sincerely,
r X6);(bX7(C)

Christine Colmey
Compliance Te am Leader

 UNITEDSTATESDEPARTMENTOF EDUCATION
OFFICEFORCIVILRIGHTS,REGIONI
5 POSTOFFICESQUARE,8 11• FLOOR
BOSTON,MASSACHUSETTS
02109-3921

August 28, 2017
Katherine Bergeron
Office of the President
Connecticut College
200 Fanning Hall
270 Mohegan Avenue
New London , CT 06320
Re:

OCR Complaint No. 01-17-2230
Connecticut College

Dear President Katherine Bergeron:
This letter is to inform you that the U.S. Department of Education , Office for Civil Rights (OCR)
is opening for investigation the above-referenced complaint filed against Connecticut College
(College) alleging discrimination on the basis of sex and disability. Specifically, the
Complainant alleges that the College failed to promptly and equitabl investi ate another
Allegation 1).
student's (Student B) allegation that he had sexually assaulted her i (b)(5); (b)(?(C)
Complainant also alleges that, during the course of the College's Title IX grievance process, the
College discriminated against him on the basis of disability (Allegation 2).
OCR is responsible for enforcing (i) Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX),
as amended, 20 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq., and its implementing regulation at 34 C.F.R. Part 106,
which prohibit discrimination on the basis of sex in programs or activities receiving financial
assistance from the U.S. Department of Education (Department); (ii) Section 504 of the
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 794, and its implementing regulation at 34
C.F.R. Part 104 (Section 504), which prohibit discrimination on the basis of disabi lity in
programs or activities receiving financial assistance from the Department; and (iii) Title VI of
the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended , 42 U.S.C. § 2000d et seq., and its implementing
regulation at 34 C.F.R. Part 100 (Title VI), which prohibit discrimination on the basis of race in
programs or activities receiving financial assistance from the Department. The College is subject
to these laws because it is a recipient of Federal financial assistance from the Department.
Because OCR has determined that it has jurisdiction and that the complaint was filed in a timely
manner, it is opening the allegations for investigation. Specifically, OCR will examine the
following issues:
•

Whether the College failed to respond promptly and equitably to complaints, reports,
and/or incidents of alleged sexual violence involving the Complainant, of which it had
notice, and if so, whether the College perpetuated a sexually hostile environment, in
violation of 34 C.F.R. §§ 106.8(b), 106.31(a) and (b); and

 Page 2 of 2 -President Bergeron, OCR Complaint No. 01-17-2230
•

Whether the College discriminated against the Complainant on the basis of his disability
during its Title IX grievance process, in violation of 34 C.F.R. § 104.43(a).

Please note that opening these allegations for investigation does not imply that OCR has made a
determination with regard to their merits. During the investigation, OCR is a neutral fact-finder,
collecting and analyzing relevant evidence from the complainant, the recipient, and other
sources, as appropriate. OCR will ensure that its investigation is legally sufficient and is
dispositive of the allegations, in accordance with the provisions of OCR' s Case Processing
Manual, which can be found online at:
http://www2 .ed .gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/ocrcpm .html .
To facilitate OCR's prompt resolution of this complaint, OCR requests that, within fifteen (15)
days of the date of this letter, the College produce the information listed on the enclosed Data
Request. OCR's authority to gather information and conduct an investigation is found at the
regulation implementing Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, at 34 C.F.R. §§ 100.6 (b) and
(c). This requirement is incorporated by reference in the regulation implementing Section 504, at
34 C.F.R. § 104.61, and the regulation implementing Title IX, at 34 C.F.R. Section 106.71. The
regulation implementing the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act at 34 C.F.R. Section
99 .31 (a)(3)(iii) specifically authorizes educational institutions to disclose personally identifiable
information concerning students to OCR. Further, pursuant to 34 C.F.R. Section 100.6(c), an
institution may not assert considerations of privacy or confidentiality to bar OCR from
performing its investigative function. Accordingly, the College must provide OCR access to the
College's records in original, non-redacted form.
Please be advised that regulations enforced by OCR prohibit retaliation. Specifically, the
regulations state that no recipient or other person shall intimidate, threaten, coerce or
discriminate against any individual for the purpose of interfering with any right or privilege
secured by regulations enforced by OCR or because one has made a complaint, testified, assisted
or participated in any manner in an investigation, proceedings or hearing held in connection with
a complaint. If this happens, an individual may file a complaint alleging such treatment.
Under the Freedom of Information Act, it may be necessary to release this document and related
correspondence and records upon request. In the event that OCR receives such a request, it will
seek to protect, to the extent allowed by law, perso nally identifiable information that, if released,
could constitute an unwairnnted invasion of personal privacy.

If you have any questions concerning this letter or the processing of this complaint , please
contact Civil Rights Attorney Catherine Deneke at 617-289-0080 or Catherine.Deneke@ed .gov.
Please reference complaint number 01-17-2230 in any communication with OCR regarding this
matter.
Sincerely,
l(bX6);(bX7(C)

Christine Colmey
Compliance Team Leader