DOJ, Brown University settle case on readmitting students treated for mental issues

Brown University reached a settlement with the Department of Justice (DOJ) after federal authorities found that the institution did not allow students who took medical leave for mental health reasons to return to school despite being cleared by physicians.

The settlement between Brown, the DOJ and U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Rhode Island follows allegations that the school violated the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) by not allowing students back on campus who were ready to return to school. 

The agreement states that the investigation was prompted by a complaint over Brown’s policies and procedures between fall 2012 and spring 2017 relating “to readmission of undergraduate students seeking to return from a medical leave of absence for mental health reasons.” 

“These students met the requirements for returning to Brown, and each of the students’ treatment providers reported to Brown that the students were ready to resume their studies and participate in campus life,” the DOJ said in a statement announcing the settlement.

However, despite their recoveries, the department found that Brown denied these students’ applications. The DOJ stated that based on their findings, the university violated Title III of the ADA, which mandates that institutions such as colleges and universities provide people with disabilities with “an equal opportunity to participate in their programs and services.” 

This includes students with mental health disabilities. 

The ADA also requires these schools to make modifications to their policies for disabled students “when needed.”

The school “categorically denies that it ever violated Title III of the ADA in its handling of requests for readmission,” the settlement states, adding that it “is not an admission in whole or in part of any liability by Brown.”

As part of the settlement, Brown must pay more than $680,000 to compensate the “undergraduate students who were harmed,” revise their policies to reflect compliance with Title III of the ADA and provide staff and faculty with training on this section of law. 

“Students with disabilities deserve access to equal opportunity to help ensure that they can achieve their educational goals,” Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke with the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division said in the statement. 

“The Justice Department is committed to ensuring that colleges and universities do not exclude students on the basis of their disability or because they took time to receive the treatment they needed to thrive,” Clarke added. “We will keep fighting to ensure equal access for students with mental health disabilities at colleges and universities across our country.”

News of the latest settlement comes after a lawsuit was filed last week alleging that Brown failed to abide by the law in its handling of sexual misconduct complaints. 

The suit was filed by four plaintiffs — Chloe Burns, Taja Hirata-Epstein, Katiana Soenen and Carter Woodruff — who alleged that the university took retaliatory actions against those who made their complaints public or protested its response to sexual misconduct.

The Hill has reached out to assistant U.S. attorney Amy Romero for more information.