Title IX Working Group Looks Back at a Milestone Year
In a plenary session marking the conclusion of the group’s 10th-anniversary year, community members spoke candidly about how the school can foster a safe and supportive campus environment.
On April 22, students, staff, and faculty gathered in a packed classroom to reflect on the work of the Yale SOM Title IX Working Group over the past year and look ahead to the next.
Title IX, a civil rights law, prohibits sex-based discrimination in federally funded schools. At Yale SOM, the Title IX Working Group leads awareness and education efforts around issues like sexual misconduct and gender equity. It is the school’s longest-running group that is open to students, staff, faculty, and partners.
The working group was looking back on a milestone year: the plenary session marked the conclusion of the working group’s 10th-anniversary year. Dean Kerwin K. Charles and Anjani Jain, deputy dean for academic programs and professor in the practice of management, joined the session, along with two members of the university’s Title IX Office.
Working group leaders outlined next year’s priorities, which include helping SOM students better navigate Title IX reporting structures and supporting the creation of a committee for pregnant and parenting students. They plan to build on ongoing initiatives, like Sober Buddies, a program through which sober student volunteers support their peers at social events.
Much of the session was dedicated to open discussion. SOMers explored how the school can make Title IX more accessible to international students, who may not have a legal equivalent in their home countries. They also considered how the timing, delivery, and content of Title IX education shapes how the community engages with it.
Reporting and investigation timelines for formal Title IX complaints—and how accountability is communicated—were a key focus of the conversation. Members from the Yale Title IX Office, which handles cases across the university, provided insight into administrative processes.
The session also celebrated a year of robust, collaborative programming. Student leaders pointed to February’s Title IX Anniversary Series, which drew more than 265 registrants from across the Yale community. The working group partnered with the Office of Community Engagement and Dialogue, the student club Women in Management, and other groups to bring speakers, panels, and even a self-defense class to campus.
“We hit a big milestone this year with our 10-year,” said Rebecca Udler, assistant dean of academic affairs and student life, SOM’s Title IX coordinator, and the founder of the working group. “We hope this is just the beginning of the partnership and work that will continue here at SOM.”
