ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — The St. Johns County School District is looking to approve a new rule its attorney put together for filing and investigating complaints for possible violations of Title IX, the federal law protecting people from sexual harassment and discrimination in schools.
The rule, in part, lays out how complaints made within the school district will be handled, including these highlights:
- Anyone can make a Title IX report, even if it’s not the victim
- The person the complaint is against can be removed from school programs, or put on leave if it’s an employee
- A decision regarding the outcome of the complaint has to be made within 60 days of it being filed
The St. Johns County School District already has rules surrounding the reporting of possible sexual harassment and discrimination. The district tells Action News Jax the new rule was made to fall in line with the federal government’s enforcement of Title IX, which was updated in a letter sent out to schools back in February.
“The federal rules that [the sexual harassment rules] are tied to haST. ve changed, it was clear we needed a separate Title IX rule to meet current requirements,” said Frank Upchurch III, the St. Johns County School District attorney.
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Upchurch said the new rule isn’t in response to any local or national Title IX-related cases, but the U.S. Department of Education’s most recent Title IX report says it saw its highest number of complaints filed in 2024, at least those that led to actual investigations.
If approved, the new rule says Title IX cases will be handled by the school district’s Title IX coordinator, Cynthia Pearson, located at 40 Orange Street in St. Augustine, the address for the St. Johns County School District’s headquarters.
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