“To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to provide for certain freedom of association protections, and for other purposes.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section states the purposes of the Act, which are (1) to protect students in single-sex social organizations and such organizations from adverse actions by institutions of higher education based solely on the organizations' practice of limiting membership to individuals of one sex; (2) to ensure such students and organizations are treated without bias compared to students not participating in single-sex social organizations or students in non-single-sex social organizations; and (3) to protect students' rights to freely associate with and participate in social organizations, including single-sex social organizations.
This section establishes freedom of association protections for students (or groups of students) at institutions of higher education receiving funds under the Higher Education Act of 1965, including title IV programs. It requires that such students be permitted to form or apply to join any recognized or unrecognized social organization—including single-sex social organizations (i.e., historically single-sex fraternities or sororities exempt from tax under IRC §501(c), or single-sex private clubs primarily comprising students or alumni of the institution)—and, if selected, to join and participate in the organization. It prohibits such institutions from (1) requiring or coercing students or prospective students who are members or prospective members of single-sex social organizations to waive these protections as an enrollment condition; (2) taking any adverse action (e.g., expulsion, denial of financial aid or housing, withdrawal of recognition, or recruitment restrictions not equally imposed on other organizations) against such students or organizations based solely on the organization's single-sex membership practices; or (3) imposing unequal recruitment restrictions on recognized single-sex organizations absent a mutually agreed written arrangement. Rules of construction clarify that the section does not require institutional recognition of such organizations, authorize adverse actions solely for other misconduct or harm, restrict organizations' membership autonomy, limit faculty academic freedom, or create new enforceable rights against organizations or institutions for membership denials. (Thus, the provision shields single-sex Greek life and similar groups from Title IX-related institutional penalties while preserving institutions' authority over non-sex-based issues.)