Your Rights

Title IX prohibits a school from discriminating against a student or employee (Human Rights and PDA) based on the student’s pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from any of these conditions. Title IX also prohibits a school from applying any rule related to a student’s parental, family, or marital status that treats students differently based on their sex.

As a pregnant or parenting student, we know you have a lot on your mind. In the weeks and months ahead, as you work with professors around specific needs and/or missed class, feel free to make use of the information on this page and to share it with faculty, advisors, etc.

It is important for all members of the Lake Forest College community to know that pregnant and parenting students have certain rights under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 – federal legislation that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex (including pregnancy and parental status) in educational programs and activities. Those rights include:

• Reasonable Adjustments: Should a pregnant student have specific classroom needs (e.g. larger desk, elevator access, ability to make frequent trips to restroom), faculty or other university personnel are required to comply.
• Excused Absences: Any absence related to pregnancy or childbirth must be excused for as long as medical personnel deem necessary. Students with children may need to be absent in order to care for a sick child, cover a gap in childcare/schooling, or other emergencies. Instructors are encouraged to accommodate such absences.
• Make-Up Work: Students returning to class must be allowed to return to the same academic status as before the medical leave began and given the opportunity to make up any work missed during the leave. This includes an opportunity to make-up "class participation" points that the student missed by virtue of not being in class. Further, any deadlines that were missed during the leave must be extended to allow submission of work.
• Stopping Out – Students who may be interested in taking a semester off should speak with the Title IX or Accessibility Services Office to discuss how the time off would affect the student's academic progress. Further, students who receive financial aid should meet with the Office of Financial Aid to learn what implications, if any, time away has on aid.

 It is important to note that pregnant or parenting students are held to the level of academic standards and must meet the learning objectives that have been set for the course. Students must work with their faculty to determine what accommodations are reasonable so to allow the student to complete all work while also achieving course outcomes.

Breastfeeding: Breast feeding, and lactation spaces are strongly encouraged by state legislature. If you require accommodations for breastfeeding while on campus, please contact Human Resources, Title IX or Accessibility Services.

If your rights have been violated, file a report here.