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Erin Clark, previously Harvard College’s Title IX resource coordinator, left her role midway through the fall semester.
In an email to the Title IX Student Advisory Board obtained by The Crimson, Clark announced the Title IX office is undergoing a staff transition process supported by the Office of Gender Equity. She thanked the board for their commitment and encouraged students to stay active members “to have an impact on the future of college Title IX.”
The Student Advisory Board, previously led by Clark, is a group of College students who provide feedback and ideas for College Title IX issues at Harvard. According to Clark’s email, Olivia Sevey and Rachel DiBella, who serve as education project manager and associate director of strategic prevention initiatives for the Office of Gender Equity, respectively, will temporarily lead the board.
Clark left the role to pursue another opportunity as a civil rights attorney for the U.S. Department of Education, according to her LinkedIn.
Clark did not respond to a request for comment.
Title IX coordinators work as advisers to individuals who have experienced harm or have been identified as causing harm. They can help individuals with accessing support, making a disclosure, implementing safety measures, or filing a formal complaint. There are more than 60 Title IX coordinators across the University with each school having a set of their own.
Then-Dean of Students Katherine G. O’Dair appointed Clark to the role in September 2019 after Emily Miller, the previous coordinator, stepped down at the beginning of the fall 2019 semester. Before joining Harvard, Clark served as the director of Title IX coordination for the Chicago Public Schools and as the director of the Center for Awareness, Response, and Education at Northwestern University.
When she was appointed, Clark shared the Title IX resource coordinator title with Brian Libby, who joined Harvard in 2016 as the assistant director of the Office of International Education and served as a Title IX coordinator simultaneously from 2017 to 2022.
Clark’s departure comes ahead of anticipated substantial changes to federal Title IX policy by the Biden administration, which is expected to substantially increase protections for LGBTQ+ students and survivors of sexual assault.
“Caysie Carter Harvey, Associate University Title IX Coordinator, is serving as the Acting Program Office for Title IX at Harvard College,” said Nicole Merhill, Director of the Office for Gender Equity and University Title IX Coordinator, in an emailed statement.
The Office for Gender Equity has yet to announce a new permanent College Title IX resource coordinator.
The office is currently recruiting two positions: a new College Title IX program officer and Title IX resource coordinator, as well as an assistant director of College Title IX.
—Staff writer Charlotte P. Ritz-Jack can be reached at charlotte.ritz-jack@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @charrittzjack.
