Continuing Education Noncredit
LocationsView All
Glendale Community College Verdugo CampusGarfield Campus Continuing EducationMontrose CampusProfessional Development Center

Title IX for Pregnant and Parenting Students

Title IX protects students who are pregnant or related conditions. Title IX guarantees excused absences when medically necessary for these conditions and the opportunity to make up work missed during those absences.

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (“Title IX”), 20 U.S.C. §1681 et seq., is a Federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in educational programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance. This includes discrimination based on pregnancy and related conditions.

Get Help at GCC

For pregnancy-related academic adjustments, leave, lactation support, or concerns about discrimination, please make a request here. You could also contact the Title IX Office. You may ask for support without filing a discrimination complaint.

Title IX OfficeEmail: titleix@glendale.edu 
Title IX Coordinator: Meng “May” Zhang

We encourage you to use the online pregnancy and parenting support form to request for pregnancy-related adjustments.

You are not required to use the form to contact us, and you can use the contact information above to tell us which classes and/or activities are affected and whether you need help urgently. The Title IX Office will discuss your needs with you, explain next steps, and coordinate with the appropriate college staff. 

Read "Know Your Rights: Pregnant or Parenting? Title IX Protects You From Discrimination at School" from the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights for more information.

Here are some things you should know about your rights at GCC. The protections below apply to your participation in GCC programs and activities, including online courses.

Classes and College Activities:

  • GCC must allow you to continue participating in classes and extracurricular activities even though you are pregnant. This includes classes, laboratories, GCC-sponsored internships and/or clinical placements, school clubs, sports, honor societies, student leadership opportunities, and other college activities. You cannot be required to withdraw or take leave solely because you are pregnant.
  • GCC must allow you to choose whether you want to participate in special instructional programs or classes for pregnant students, if offered. You can participate if you want to, but GCC cannot pressure you to do so. The alternative program must provide the same types of academic, extracurricular and enrichment opportunities as your school’s regular program.
  • GCC must allow you to participate in classes and extracurricular activities even though you are pregnant and must not require a physician’s medical clearance unless GCC requires comparable certification from all students with other physical or emotional conditions requiring a physician’s attention. GCC also must not require medical clearance after hospitalization for childbirth unless it requires comparable clearance after hospitalization for other conditions.
  • GCC must provide you with reasonable adjustments, like a larger desk, elevator access, or allowing you to make frequent trips to the restroom, when necessary, because of your pregnancy. Pregnancy related support offered under Title IX does not require a disability diagnosis or registration with DSPS. If a related condition also qualifies as a disability, DSPS can discuss additional accommodations with you.
  • You may qualify for a short-term disability through the Disabled Students Programs Services (DSPS) Office if you are experiencing medical complications while pregnant which impact one or more of your major life functions. Your request made to the Title IX Office would be referred to DSPS for the disability-based interactive process.

Excused Absences and Medical Leave

  • GCC must excuse absences due to pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, loss of pregnancy, or recovery from these conditions for as long as your physician determines medically necessary. This includes medically necessary recovery following pregnancy loss. Medically necessary leave is available even if GCC has no applicable leave policy, or you do not otherwise qualify under its policy.
  • GCC must allow you to return to the same academic and extracurricular status as before your medical leave began and give you the opportunity to make up work missed during the leave.
  • GCC must ensure that instructors understand the Title IX requirements related to excused absences and medical leave. Your instructor may not refuse to allow you to submit work after a deadline you missed because of a medically necessary pregnancy-related absence. If grading is based in part on class participation or attendance, you must have an opportunity to make up the participation or attendance credits you missed.
  • GCC must provide pregnant students with the same special services it provides to students with temporary medical conditions. This includes homebound at home instruction, or independent study if GCC provides those services to students with comparable temporary medical conditions.

You are not required to complete coursework during medically necessary leave. Contact the Title IX Office to arrange a reasonable plan for making up missed work after your return. Required learning outcomes still apply; attendance rules and deadlines must be applied consistently with your rights.

Lactation and Breastfeeding

California Education Code section 66271.9 provides lactation rights at covered campuses. These include:

  • A private, secure space other than a restroom, with a comfortable seat, a table or shelf, and access to power for pumping equipment.
  • Permission to bring a breast pump and related equipment, and reasonable time to express milk or breastfeed.
  • No academic penalty for using these accommodations and an opportunity to make up work missed because of their use.
  • Access to the accommodation whenever you are required to be on campus.

Use the GCC lactation room access page or call Student Affairs at (818) 240-1000, ext. 5595. If you need space today or cannot access a room, contact Student Affairs. Contact Student Affairs for lactation needs at any GCC location.

You may breastfeed in campus locations where you and your child are otherwise authorized to be. Using a lactation room is optional. Concerns about denied lactation accommodation may be raised through GCC's discrimination complaint procedures or by submitting a Discrimination, Harassment, and Title IX Incidents Reporting Form online. Your submission will be routed to the Title IX Office.

Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation

GCC must respond to reports of sex discrimination and harassment, including harassment because of pregnancy or related conditions, under applicable law and District procedures. Examples of conduct to report include sexual comments or jokes about your pregnancy, sexually charged names, rumors about your sexual activity, or sexual propositions or gestures. You do not need to decide whether conduct meets a legal definition before asking for help or reporting it. Retaliation is prohibited. No one may intimidate, threaten, coerce, or discriminate against you to interfere with your Title IX rights or because you reported a concern, requested protected support, or participated or declined to participate in a Title IX investigation or proceeding. Report possible retaliation to the Title IX Office (Email: titleix@glendale.edu) or via the online reporting form.

Policies and Complaint Procedures

  • GCC does not discriminate on the basis of sex in its education programs and activities, including admission and employment, and Title IX requires GCC not to discriminate in this way. Questions about Title IX may be directed to GCC’s Title IX Office (Email: titleix@glendale.edu ), the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights, or both. GCC must provide prompt and equitable procedures for complaints of sex discrimination. For pregnancy discrimination and related concerns, see GCC Title IX policies and procedures. The Title IX Office will explain which procedure applies.
  • GCC’s Title IX Coordinator coordinates GCC's Title IX responsibilities, including concerns involving pregnancy and sex discrimination related to parental status. Any person may report discrimination via the online reporting form, in person, by mail, by telephone, or by email (titleix@glendale.edu). Reports may be submitted at any time, including outside business hours; immediate staff response is not guaranteed.

Helpful Tips for Pregnant and Parenting Students

  • Ask GCC for help. Meet with the Title IX Office (Email: titleix@glendale.edu) or a counselor regarding what GCC can do to support you in continuing your education. Before changing your enrollment or taking leave, ask Financial Aid and Admissions & Records about any effects on aid, enrollment, and return arrangements.
  • Keep notes, if you can, about your pregnancy-related absences, any instances of harassment, and your interactions with college staff. Report problems to the Title IX Office (Email: titleix@glendale.edu ) or ask a counselor or other staff member to help you connect with someone who can assist you. You may seek help or report a concern even if you do not have written documentation.
  • If you believe GCC has discriminated against you because of pregnancy or related conditions, treated you differently based on sex in connection with parenting, or retaliated against you, you may file a complaint: