Tennessee volleyball coach Rob Patrick, right, speaks during a news conference Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2016, in Knoxville, Tenn. The school’s coaches held a news conference two weeks after a group of unidentified women sued the school over its handling of sexual assault complaints made against student-athletes. (AP Photo/Patrick Murphy-Racey)KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Tennessee’s $2.48 million settlement of a Title IX lawsuit regarding its handling of assault complaints against athletes includes steps on how the school must improve the way it addresses incidents involving sexual misconduct.
A copy of the settlement filed Wednesday in federal court and obtained through a public records request said the school will change its rules regarding student disciplinary hearings and will appoint an independent commission made up of individuals with expertise on establishing or maintaining federal law compliance programs.
The primary change in the hearing process would be that “students will not be appointed to serve on student disciplinary hearing boards in cases involving allegations of sexual misconduct” unless both sides agree.
The independent commission would recommend changes in the school’s policies and programs related to preventing, investigating and resolving incidents of sexual misconduct.
The settlement also calls for Tennessee to use “its best efforts to enforce mandatory sexual assault training” for school employees reasonably likely to be among the first to learn about potential incidents.