U.S. Department of Education Proposes Amendments to Title IX Regulations

Susan D. Friedfel is a principal in the White Plains and New York, New York, offices of Jackson Lewis P.C. Susan collaborates with clients to find practical solutions to the variety of issues that arise in the workplace. She counsels clients in various industries, including law firms, financial institutions, educational institutions and not-for-profit organizations, on a wide array of issues. She provides advice and counsel on matters such as: employee recruiting and hiring practices family and medical leave reasonable accommodations for disabilities and religion preventing and investigating harassment, discrimination and whistleblower claims wage and hour compliance discipline and termination of employees designing and implementing reductions in force An experienced litigator, Susan represents employers and management in harassment, discrimination, failure to accommodate, and wage and hour claims before federal and state courts and administrative agencies. Having substantial experience with academic institutions, Susan understands the unique issues colleges and universities face. In addition to litigating on behalf of and advising Universities regarding the employment issues discussed above, she advises clients regarding student claims of sexual harassment, sexual assault, failure to accommodate disabilities, discrimination and retaliation, as well as Title IX athletics compliance. Susan represents universities in litigation brought by students and faculty and in OCR investigations. She also advises private k-12 schools, and other organizations that regularly deal with children, with respect to appropriate policies and procedures to avoid misconduct. Professional Associations and Activities National Association of College and University Attorneys Speeches “Use of External Investigators: Managing Cost and Control” NACUA 2017 Annual Conference (Chicago, Illinois June 2017) (speaker) “Walking the Tight Rope: Sexual Misconduct Involving Employees” NACUA CLE Workshop (March 2017) (speaker) “Mind over Matter: Managing Faculty and Staff Mental Health Disabilities,” NACUA Annual Meeting (San Francisco, California June 2016) (speaker) “Making Sense: Reconciling Obligations under Title VII, Title IX and Campus Save,” NACUA Discrimination Workshop (New Orleans, Louisiana March 2015) (speaker)

Monica H. Khetarpal is a principal in the Chicago, Illinois, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. She is an experienced litigator and advisor, providing skilled advocacy and thoughtful advice, training, and strategic planning for her clients. Her litigation experience includes cases involving claims for discrimination, harassment, wage and hour violations, FMLA violations, disability discrimination and requests for accommodation in both single plaintiff and class action matters. She regularly handles matters at all levels, from administrative agencies to jury trials to appeals in both state and federal courts. She also counsels clients through the mediation process, and provides advice regarding best practices to avoid litigation. Monica's advice and counsel practice focuses on diversity, equity and inclusion matters. She regularly conducts investigations and climate surveys, advises as to strategic DEI initiatives, and provides training in the areas of unconscious bias, inclusion, and equity. Monica focuses a significant portion of her practice on representing higher education clients and serves as co-leader of Jackson Lewis' Higher Education industry group. The group focuses on solving workplace law and other civil rights challenges facing higher education institutions. It represents both public and private universities in a range of matters including tenure cases, Title IX claims, strategic investigations, student claims, constitutional and state statutory issues and traditional labor matters. Monica has represented educational institutions throughout her career. She has experience defending denial of tenure cases, providing advice and counsel regarding high profile faculty and student matters, revising strategic policies and procedures, and conducting internal investigations and climate surveys. She has partnered with her clients in managing the student, faculty and media issues unique to the higher education setting. Monica also devotes a significant amount of time to encouraging diversity, equity and inclusion within the legal profession. She is a co-leader of Jackson Lewis' Asian American resource group and both D&I liaison and mentoring coordinator for the firm's Chicago office. She has also served on the Board of the South Asian Bar Association of Chicago, SABA's Foundation, and the Diversity Scholarship Foundation's Unity Dinner planning committee. She was the 2018 recipient of the Advocate for Diversity Award from Chicago's Diversity Scholarship Foundation. Monica also frequently speaks on topics related to women in the law and successful work-life balance, and founded the Chicago chapter of the firm's Practicing and Parenting group to support attorneys who balance their legal practice with raising children.

Carol is committed to serving the interests of businesses, educational institutions, and other complex organizations in their efforts to eliminate discrimination and harassment and foster diversity, equity, and inclusion. She specializes in complex sexual harassment and race discrimination investigations and litigation. She has supervised and conducted hundreds of investigations, including recent high-profile sexual misconduct and harassment investigations of systemic conduct. For example, she led high-visibility federal investigations to determine whether universities handled serious sexual misconduct and sexual harassment allegations in compliance with federal laws. Post-investigation, Carol worked with institutions to develop effective and sustainable changes to increase awareness and foster a positive climate to prevent sexual misconduct and harassment. Over the course of her work as Senior Executive Service career official with the last three presidential administrations, she has also provided expert policy and legal advice regarding a federal agency’s enforcement of anti-discrimination laws. In addition, Carol interfaced with national and local advocacy groups regarding the enforcement of federal civil rights and related policies, procedures, and guidance. Carol also chaired a law firm’s discrimination practice and handled matters involving federal and state claims, including sexual harassment and other discrimination matters. As lead counsel in federal class-action discrimination lawsuits involving sex and race, race, national origin, and other protected classes, she effectively managed and monitored post-settlement and court-ordered decree implementation of remedies; and achieved positive outcomes by establishing collaborative relationships and partnerships with court masters, monitors, and experts, community groups, businesses, and local government officials. In addition, Carol led a national nonprofit organization as the vice president of advocacy, committed to achieving economic and racial justice through litigation, policy development and training. As vice president, she oversaw advocates’ work in wide range of matters, including the areas of criminal justice, housing, healthcare, workforce matters, and a special project on women’s law and policy. Carol also collaborated with regional and state advocacy organizations on leadership and diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. Leveraging her regulatory oversight, investigation, and litigation experience and insight, Carol proactively advises clients on issues pertaining to sexual harassment, sexual misconduct, gender, LGBTQ+ identities, race, national origin, disability, and other equity-related matters. She approaches her work as a partnership with senior leadership and is mindful of engaging stakeholders. She also partners with clients to develop comprehensive compliance systems to ensure adherence to federal and state sexual harassment and discrimination laws. Carol works with a variety of clients, including corporations, nonprofits, and educational institutions, on compliance with Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended.

Laura Ahrens is an associate in the Greenville, South Carolina, office of Jackson Lewis P.C. Laura represents employers in workplace law matters, and enjoys collaborating with her clients to find practical solutions to the variety of issues that arise in the workplace. Laura is a member of the firm’s Litigation practice group. She represents employers in various employment and labor matters, including claims of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation brought under Title VII and the ADA. She also assists in defending clients against class and collective actions alleging various state and federal law violations. Laura focuses a significant portion of her practice on representing and providing advice and counsel to higher education clients. She has first-hand experience working with higher education administrators at the institution and state levels. As a result, she understands the unique legal issues colleges and universities face and has experience assisting educational clients with discrimination charges, sexual assault allegations and Title IX compliance, and high-profile matters involving faculty, students, and administrators. While attending Georgetown University for law school, Laura served as a student attorney for the Social Enterprise and Nonprofit Law Clinic. She also volunteered as a law clerk at Advocates for Justice and Education, a non-profit organization in Washington, D.C., which specializes in helping students navigate special education rights and school discipline policies. As an undergraduate, Laura was heavily involved in student organizations and served as the president of the Student Government Association. She received the Transformational Leader Award in recognition of her hard work and dedication to collaborating with students and administrators to improve campus life. Professional Associations and Activities Federal Bar Association Greenville Bar Association South Carolina Bar Association, Young Lawyers Division