An Inside Higher Ed report shares the story of Lee University's move to adopt a policy requiring students to conform their dress, restroom use, and forms of address to their biological sex. The Lee policy prohibits students from demanding that others address them by their preferred gender identity or from using a restroom reserved for the opposite biological sex. Lee University had previously suspended a student who claimed the identity of the opposite sex while criticizing the university's religious commitment. Presumably, the university may now discipline other students violating its new policy.

Public Versus Private Schools

Lee University is a private Christian school in Tennessee committed to educating its students in the tenets of the Pentecostal Church of God. Inside Higher Ed's Lee University story highlights that private schools that don't receive federal funding avoid federal Title IX obligations to conform student policies to federal administrative regulations. Current Title IX enforcement interpretations say that Title IX protections extend to “lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, asexual, intersex, nonbinary, and individuals who identify their sexual orientation or gender identity in other ways (LGBTQI+).” Private schools foregoing federal funding need not meet those requirements, especially if those requirements contradict their fundamental educational commitments and mission.

Disciplinary Charges for Morality Offenses

Inside Higher Ed's Lee University story, though, also highlights a risk that students face at religious schools, military schools, or other schools valuing moral character and commitments. Students at those schools may commit offenses that other schools eschewing such moral commitments would not regard or seek to punish as offenses. Public schools may, for instance, pay no attention to their students' sexual hookup culture, whereas a private religious school may seek to discourage students from casual sex and discipline students engaging in it. Religious schools tend to also favor dry college campuses, whereas public schools, particularly the popular party schools, may permit or even authorize and support alcohol possession and consumption among students. Morality offenses can include other social subjects and behaviors.

Defending Morality Offenses

Strategic defense of morality offenses charged at religious schools takes a different approach than defense of academic misconduct cases and other code of conduct disciplinary charges. A highly qualified, skilled, and experienced school discipline defense attorney would help you identify your school's moral and religious commitments, the exonerating evidence proving that your conduct respected those commitments, and the mitigating evidence proving your desire and intent to further respect those commitments moving forward. Winning defense of morality charges is possible with the right representation.

School Discipline Defense Services Available

National school discipline defense attorney Joseph D. Lento and the Lento Law Firm's Student Defense Team are available nationwide to help students at religious and other schools defend and defeat disciplinary charges for morality offenses. Attorney Lento has successfully defended hundreds of students at all kinds of schools across the country against all kinds of charges. Call 888.535.3686 or go online now to retain a winning school discipline defense attorney and expert team.