"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."

Title IX is federal civil rights law that was passed as part of the Education Amendments of 1972 that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any federally funded education program or activity. Secretary of Education Betsey DeVos has proposed new rules on sexual harassment and violence. Ashley Sawyer of Girls for Gender Equity joins L. Joy, June and Lurie to discuss the proposed changes and how you can #TakeCivicAction on the issue.

Show GuestA proud HBCU alum, Ashley has done systemic policy work to improve education outcomes for all children in juvenile justice facilities, with a particular emphasis on the education rights of youth with special needs/disabilities who have been adjudicated delinquent as a Stoneleigh Emerging Leader Fellow and has provided legal representation for youth ages 16-24 who have been affected by the criminal legal system as an attorney for Youth Represent.

"Title IX is just really about the barriers that prevent girls and people from accessing education are removed and really think about what are those gender-based barriers."

Ashley Sawyer

Director of Policy and Government Relations

Girls for Gender Equity

Currently, Ashley is the Director of Policy and Government Relations of Girls for Gender Equality whose mission as an intergenerational organization, committed to the physical, psychological, social, and economic development of girls and women - through education, organizing and physical fitness, encourages communities to remove barriers and create opportunities for girls and women to live self-determined lives.

#TakeCivicAction

* View the full proposed Title IX rule here

* Watch this quick video to help you draft a comment on the proposed changes.

* Submit your comment here before January 28th, 2019 at 11:59pm