Katie Meyer’s Law Mandates Adviser Option for Students Facing Campus Conduct Charges, Boosts Suicide Reporting

This new piece of legislation, officially called Katie Meyer’s Law, sets up two important requirements for colleges and universities that take federal funding. First, it beefs up the due process rights for students accused of breaking school rules. Second, it changes how schools report campus safety statistics, specifically requiring them to include reports of suicide incidents known to campus security or local police.

Due Process Upgrade: Getting an Adviser in the Room

The biggest change here is that if a student is accused of violating the school’s code of conduct, the university must now offer them the option to have an adviser help them through the process. Think of this as making sure no student has to navigate a complex, confusing campus disciplinary hearing alone. The official notice of the violation must clearly tell the student about this right.

Students get two paths for support. They can pick their own adviser from outside the school—maybe a family friend or a lawyer—or they can ask the school to provide an independent adviser. The bill even suggests ways schools can provide this independent help, like setting up agreements with peer support or alumni groups. This is a big win for fairness, especially for students who might not have the resources or family network to find outside counsel quickly.

The Fine Print on Advocacy

Now, here’s where the policy gets a little tricky. Whoever the student chooses—the outside expert or the school-provided independent adviser—that person must be trained by the school on its specific disciplinary procedures. Once trained, the adviser can participate in the hearing process. The bill states they can act as an advocate for the student or participate “in whatever way state law and Title IX allow.” This is the part to watch. Depending on existing state laws or how the school interprets Title IX guidelines, the adviser’s role might be limited. They could be fully engaged advocates, or they might be restricted to silent support, essentially just whispering advice. The effectiveness of this new right will hinge on how much actual advocacy the school permits.

Transparency in Campus Safety Data

Beyond student conduct, Katie Meyer’s Law also makes a key change to campus security reporting. Under the federal Higher Education Act, schools already have to disclose crime statistics. This bill expands that requirement (specifically Section 485(f)(1)(F) of the HEA) to mandate that schools include reports of suicide incidents that campus security or local police were notified about. For parents and students researching colleges, this means the annual campus crime reports will now offer a more complete picture of the mental health crisis and tragedies impacting the student body, pushing transparency on a critical issue that often goes unaddressed in official statistics.