‘D’ FOR PRINCETON: Title IX Proceedings Immensely Less Fair than the Honor Code
Princeton’s Title IX proceedings offer less procedural fairness and fewer due process protections than the Honor system does. The Honor Committee utilizes a higher burden of proof to determine if a violation has occurred than does the Title IX panel. The Honor Committee also requires that a higher percentage of its members vote to find a student responsible for the student to be convicted than does Title IX. FIRE recently issued a report on due process that gave Princeton a ‘D’ rating for the lack of due process and fairness in its handling of sexual misconduct cases. For all of the same arguments about fairness, justice, and the possibility of disparate impacts on different University populations that students made in favor of Honor Code reform, the fundamental unfairness of Princeton’s Title IX proceedings is deeply troubling.
