Program Overview

Title IX was passed as part of the Education Amendments of 1972 and states that "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."  50 years later, Supreme Court decisions and guidance from the US Department of Education have given Title IX a broad scope that now includes sexual harassment and violence. This CLE will cover the impact of Title IX over the last half-century, focusing on the following topics:

Part 1: Athletic Equity and the Challenges of NIL in the Intercollegiate Athletic World, Sarah Wake, Partner, McGuireWoods and former Title IX Coordinator at Notre Dame and the University of Chicago

Part 2: Sexual Harassment and Abuse, Gina Smith, Head of the Institutional Response Group, Cozen O’Connor

Part 3: Panel discussion on Title IX Issues led by Mark Merritt, including Kayla Rudisel, Sarah Wake, and Gina Smith – hypotheticals to be used

Speakers

Sarah Wake, McGuireWoods

Sarah is a partner in the labor and employment group of McGuireWoods LLP and a member of the firm’s education industry team. Sarah returned to McGuireWoods in December 2021 after spending almost 9 years in higher education, most recently as Associate General Counsel and Associate Vice President for Equity at Northwestern University.  In this role, her principal areas of responsibility included student-related issues (including athletics) and matters related to diversity, equity, and inclusion for students, faculty, and staff. While at Northwestern, Sarah was an active member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s Division I Committee on Infractions, which is charged with deciding cases involving alleged rules violations by NCAA member institutions and their employees. Sarah previously oversaw complaints of discrimination, harassment, and sexual misconduct at the University of Notre Dame and University of Chicago, including serving as their Title IX Coordinator, Americans With Disabilities Act Coordinator, and Affirmative Action Officer.  She started her career as an associate in McGuireWoods’ labor and employment group, and served as a law clerk for the United States Department of Justice. Sarah's full bio can be found here.

 

Gina Smith, Cozen O’Connor

Gina is the chair of Cozen O’Connor’s Institutional Response Group and the founder of the nation’s first practice dedicated to the institutional response to sexual and gender-based harassment, violence, child abuse, elder abuse, other forms of discrimination and harassment, workplace misconduct, and criminal conduct. Gina provides consulting, counseling, and legal advice on all aspects of the institutional response to misconduct. She assists institutions in designing effective institutional responses that integrate the complex federal and state regulatory framework with the unique dynamics of interpersonal misconduct and its impact on individuals, institutions, and communities. Gina is frequently called upon to advise institutional clients including presidents, boards, senior management, and counsel on the intersection of trauma-informed, fair, and impartial processes with the intersecting legal landscape.

Gina is known for adeptly integrating the complexities of criminal, civil, regulatory, and institutional processes with a keen understanding of the unique psychological and cultural considerations attendant to sexual, gender-based, and interpersonal misconduct in the institutional setting. She regularly advises educational and child-serving institutions including public and private K-12 schools, colleges and universities, private industry, public companies, government entities and nonprofit organizations about policies, changes in the law, and investigations into allegations including child abuse and sexual misconduct, including sexual violence. She conducts investigations into individual conduct and institutional responses, and audits policies, procedures and practices. She routinely assists institutions in the development of policy, design of systems, and implementation of operating procedures for effective internal and external responses. She also provides training for boards, senior leadership, employees, K-12 administrators and multiple higher education constituents, including Title IX coordinators, sexual assault response teams, judicial hearing boards, investigators, and members of the campus community.

 

Kayla Rudisel, High Point University

Kayla Rudisel oversees High Point University’s (HPU) Title IX and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 compliance. As the institutional Title IX Coordinator, Rudisel leads university efforts to comply with federal and state law concerning gender, sex, and accessibility and associated policies and guidelines, providing consultation and guidance to the administration and students to advance equity and inclusion at HPU. She has years of experience handling gender-based violence cases and has served on the city-wide domestic violence and sexual assault taskforce. Rudisel, a licensed attorney, earned her Juris Doctor degree from University of North Carolina School of Law.

 

Mark Merritt, Robinson Bradshaw

Mark is a shareholder at Robinson Bradshaw in Charlotte who represents institutions of higher education.  Mark formerly served as Vice Chancellor and General Counsel at the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill where he dealt with a number of Title IX issues.  Mark continues to advise institutions of higher education on issues related to Title IX, intercollegiate athletics and name, image and likeness.  He also has experience in resolving sex abuse claims and in crisis communication.

 

The views and opinions of CLE programs may not necessarily be those of the 26th Judicial District Bar.

This program has been approved for credit in the following jurisdiction(s):

North Carolina State Bar, Board of Continuing Legal Education

Credit has been approved with the North Carolina State Bar, Board of Continuing Legal Education for 3.00 General credits.

Zoom Webinar

Cancellation Policy

Cosmetic Changes Approved by Executive Committee April 23, 2015
Approved by Board of Directors January 24, 2013 

Registration refunds are 1) 100% refundable for requests made 8 or more days before the event; 2) 75% refundable for requests made 7 to 4 days before the event (a 25% processing fee will be incurred); and 3) non-refundable for requests made 3 days or less before the event. Registrants requesting refunds 3 days or less before the event may be offered the option to transfer the registration to a substitute attendee. Payment is due in full if no cancellation is received or if cancellation is received 3 days or less in advance of event.

Reservations are not guaranteed if received less than 24 hours prior to the event. Registrations at the event door will be accepted on a space available basis--additional charges may apply. For some events, food or beverage is not guaranteed for last-minute registrants.

A sponsorship and/or advertisement refund will only be granted in the case that the Mecklenburg County Bar (MCB) does not fulfill the commitment(s) stated in the signed "Sponsorship/Advertisement Agreement".

Refunds on any fees paid to the MCB Lawyer Referral Service (LRS) are subject to the specifications of the MCB LRS Guidelines.

Exceptions or requests for refunds not covered by the above registration refund policy may be considered for approval by the MCB Executive Director or his or her designee.