Baltimore • The U.S. Department of Education has added 12 colleges and universities to its growing list of educational institutions being investigated for their handling of sexual abuse allegations.
In May, the Department's Office for Civil Rights made public the names of schools under investigation for possible violations of Title IX, which prohibits gender discrimination at institutions receiving federal funds. It pledged to update the log on a weekly basis. The most recent version of the list was published Wednesday and includes 67 schools.
The schools on the list range from small colleges to large universities across 32 states.
Among the 12 newly added institutions are:
• Morgan State University in Baltimore;
• The University of Delaware; and
• Elmira College in Elmira, New York.
Some of the investigations came from complaints made to the department, while others were launched after compliance reviews.
The department has said just because a school is listed does not mean it has violated the law, only that it is under investigation. The list does not include any details about what prompted complaints.
Morgan State University spokesman Clinton Coleman said the complaint against the school, filed June 26, was over a sexual assault that occurred on campus during the spring semester. Coleman said the assault took place in February but was not reported until late March. The incident was referred to the Baltimore City Police Department, he said.
On May 28, Elmira College issued a statement online saying the college was fully cooperating with the Department's Office of Civil Rights regarding the inquiry and would have no further comment on the inquiry itself.
"Sexual offenses have no place in our community and will not be tolerated," the statement said.
A spokesman at the college said Wednesday that he could not comment further.
On Wednesday, a spokeswoman for the University of Delaware said only that the school is "committed to preventing and responding appropriately to sexual violence, and we believe this review will strengthen that effort."