Your Morning Boost - Navigating the Intersection of Title IX and IDEA: Compliance and Student Rights
December 11, 2025 • 5 mins
How do you maintain Title IX compliance while fully upholding the rights of students protected under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)? This episode tackles the crucial, complex intersection of these two legal frameworks. School leaders must prioritize conducting a Manifestation Determination Meeting (MDM) before imposing disciplinary sanctions on any student with a disability to ensure the preservation of their Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE). We emphasize that the goal is not choosing one law over the other, but ensuring equitable education through rigorous procedural due process. Discover why seamless collaboration between your Title IX coordinator, special education director, and legal counsel is absolutely essential, especially when reviewing supportive measures to avoid inadvertently denying FAPE. Embrace these legal complexities as opportunities to demonstrate excellence and a commitment to equity in your school system. Find out more about what we do: AWB Education - awbeducation.org Grundmeyer Leader Services - grundmeyerleadersearch.com Got a mailbag question? Reach out to us at adam@awbeducation.org
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Thank You for Listening!This has been an episode from The Edify Network—Where the Whole Education Community Listens and Learns. We are dedicated to supporting everyone invested in K-12 success: teachers, leaders, parents, and community advocates.Want to keep the conversation going?
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This episode includes AI-generated content.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to your Morning Boost, brought to you by AWB Education.
Here we amplify knowledge, widen reach, and broaden impact in education,
delivering your daily dose of professional development. This program is
sponsored by Grundmeyer Leader Services, where together we are transforming education,
one leader at a time. Now get ready to amplify
(00:25):
your day with your Morning Boost.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Hello, and welcome back to your Morning Boost, your daily
microdose of leadership strategy designed just for you our incredible
school leaders. Happy Thursday, everybody. We wish you a happy
Thursday and thank you for taking these few moments to
invest in your administrative readiness. Today, we're going to continue
to dive deep into those to one of the most
procedurally sensitive areas of educational compliance, and that is that
(00:55):
challenging intersection of Title nine and the individuals with disabilities
that youcation actor IDA. When a student involved in a
Title nine matter is also protected by an IEP or
a five H four plan. The requirements of dual compliance
can feel like a navigating a legal tightrope, but they
don't have to be paralyzing. We are going to impact
(01:17):
the critical procedural safeguard known as that manifestation determination meeting
and give you a few non negotiable checks to ensure
that your response maintains equity and integrity for all students.
So stay with us. This is a central knowledge for
mitigating liability and ensuring fate is preserved. Now, I know
(01:42):
that you know the tension between these two legal frameworks
Title nine, which focuses on eliminating discrimination, and idea which
guarantees individualized educational services. It's very real for leaders. The
goal isn't choosing one or the other. It's about crafting
a seamless administrative protocol. The pivotal moment where these laws
(02:05):
collide is often where disciplinary sanction following a Title nine
determination may result in a change of placement for a
student who is also disabled. This is where that manifestation
determination meeting. Steps in Your team must be disciplined about
procedural due process and ensure that the integrity of special
(02:25):
education safeguards remain intact throughout the Title nine investigation. Our
first essential step is ensuring a mandatory manifestation determination meeting
before sanctions. If the Title nine investigation finds a student
with the disability is responsible for harassment, and the potential
consequence like a suspension or expulsion, constitutes a change in placement.
(02:50):
When that happens, we must conduct an MDM before imposing
the final sanction. The consequence is entirely conditional upon this
meeting's outcome. Furthermore, always perform a fate preservation check. If
the student's behavior is determined through that manifestation determination to
be a manifestation of their disability, the school cannot impose
(03:14):
the same punitive consequence as a non disabled student. Instead,
the team must address the behavior by reviewing and revising
the student's IEP or don't forget five oh four plan
also falls under the manifestation of determination statute, but we
must do so to ensure the continuation of free, inappropriate
public education. Finally, remember to conduct an IP five oh
(03:39):
four review of supportive measures. Even nonputative supportive measures like
a long term class schedule modification. These things must be
reviewed by the IEP five oh four team. This ensures
the supportive measure doesn't inadvertently become a denial of fate
or constitute a change in placement. The Title nine team
(04:00):
and the special education director they want to collaborate on
a written protocol for this review process, because ultimately, the
success here is all about inter disciplinary collaboration, Avoid siloed
administrative functions at all costs. Your timeline coordinator, special education director,
and frankly, your legal counsel must be in constant open communication,
(04:22):
especially during these complex cases. Now here's an inspiring thought
on leadership to guide your day. Think of the intersection
of these complex laws not as a headache, but as
an opportunity for excellence. A leader strength is defined by
(04:45):
their commitment to protect the rights of every student, both
under Title nine and under IDA and ADA. When you
get this procedural due process right, you demonstrate the absolute
highest level of commitment to equitable education. You are ensuring
justice for all parties while actively building a stronger, fairer
(05:06):
education system. Thanks for listening, everybody. We will be back
again tomorrow with our last day on Title nine for
this week. But until that time, have an awesome day.
We will talk with you again tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
That concludes another episode of your Morning Boost. We hope
today's daily dose of professional development helps you amplify knowledge,
wide in reach and broaden impact. Your Morning Boost is
an awb education production brought to you with the generous
support of Grundmeier Leader Services. Join us again tomorrow for more.
(05:42):
Until then, keep boosting your impact
Welcome to your Morning Boost, brought to you by AWB Education.
Here we amplify knowledge, widen reach, and broaden impact in education,
delivering your daily dose of professional development. This program is
sponsored by Grundmeyer Leader Services, where together we are transforming education,
one leader at a time. Now get ready to amplify
(00:25):
your day with your Morning Boost.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
Hello, and welcome back to your Morning Boost, your daily
microdose of leadership strategy designed just for you our incredible
school leaders. Happy Thursday, everybody. We wish you a happy
Thursday and thank you for taking these few moments to
invest in your administrative readiness. Today, we're going to continue
to dive deep into those to one of the most
procedurally sensitive areas of educational compliance, and that is that
(00:55):
challenging intersection of Title nine and the individuals with disabilities
that youcation actor IDA. When a student involved in a
Title nine matter is also protected by an IEP or
a five H four plan. The requirements of dual compliance
can feel like a navigating a legal tightrope, but they
don't have to be paralyzing. We are going to impact
(01:17):
the critical procedural safeguard known as that manifestation determination meeting
and give you a few non negotiable checks to ensure
that your response maintains equity and integrity for all students.
So stay with us. This is a central knowledge for
mitigating liability and ensuring fate is preserved. Now, I know
(01:42):
that you know the tension between these two legal frameworks
Title nine, which focuses on eliminating discrimination, and idea which
guarantees individualized educational services. It's very real for leaders. The
goal isn't choosing one or the other. It's about crafting
a seamless administrative protocol. The pivotal moment where these laws
(02:05):
collide is often where disciplinary sanction following a Title nine
determination may result in a change of placement for a
student who is also disabled. This is where that manifestation
determination meeting. Steps in Your team must be disciplined about
procedural due process and ensure that the integrity of special
(02:25):
education safeguards remain intact throughout the Title nine investigation. Our
first essential step is ensuring a mandatory manifestation determination meeting
before sanctions. If the Title nine investigation finds a student
with the disability is responsible for harassment, and the potential
consequence like a suspension or expulsion, constitutes a change in placement.
(02:50):
When that happens, we must conduct an MDM before imposing
the final sanction. The consequence is entirely conditional upon this
meeting's outcome. Furthermore, always perform a fate preservation check. If
the student's behavior is determined through that manifestation determination to
be a manifestation of their disability, the school cannot impose
(03:14):
the same punitive consequence as a non disabled student. Instead,
the team must address the behavior by reviewing and revising
the student's IEP or don't forget five oh four plan
also falls under the manifestation of determination statute, but we
must do so to ensure the continuation of free, inappropriate
public education. Finally, remember to conduct an IP five oh
(03:39):
four review of supportive measures. Even nonputative supportive measures like
a long term class schedule modification. These things must be
reviewed by the IEP five oh four team. This ensures
the supportive measure doesn't inadvertently become a denial of fate
or constitute a change in placement. The Title nine team
(04:00):
and the special education director they want to collaborate on
a written protocol for this review process, because ultimately, the
success here is all about inter disciplinary collaboration, Avoid siloed
administrative functions at all costs. Your timeline coordinator, special education director,
and frankly, your legal counsel must be in constant open communication,
(04:22):
especially during these complex cases. Now here's an inspiring thought
on leadership to guide your day. Think of the intersection
of these complex laws not as a headache, but as
an opportunity for excellence. A leader strength is defined by
(04:45):
their commitment to protect the rights of every student, both
under Title nine and under IDA and ADA. When you
get this procedural due process right, you demonstrate the absolute
highest level of commitment to equitable education. You are ensuring
justice for all parties while actively building a stronger, fairer
(05:06):
education system. Thanks for listening, everybody. We will be back
again tomorrow with our last day on Title nine for
this week. But until that time, have an awesome day.
We will talk with you again tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (05:22):
That concludes another episode of your Morning Boost. We hope
today's daily dose of professional development helps you amplify knowledge,
wide in reach and broaden impact. Your Morning Boost is
an awb education production brought to you with the generous
support of Grundmeier Leader Services. Join us again tomorrow for more.
(05:42):
Until then, keep boosting your impact
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