After a search that began in Oct. 2024 and concluded in Dec., Carleton College has appointed Nathan Reil-Elness as its new Title IX Coordinator.
The Title IX Coordinator is a legally mandated position at any federally funded educational institution in the United States, responsible for preventing sexual misconduct, addressing sex-based discrimination, and ensuring compliance with state and federal law.
Carleton appointed its first full-time coordinator, Laura Riehle-Merrill, in 2017. Kari Hohn served as interim director in Fall Term 2024, while the search for a permanent coordinator began. Although a previous round of interviews in early 2025 did not lead to a hiring decision, the more recent round concluded at the end of Fall Term 2025. Reil-Elness was selected for the permanent position and officially began the role on Dec. 1.
The selection process was extensive and involved multiple parties across campus. According to Vivian Agugo ’26, president of the Carleton Student Association (CSA), job postings were made and an initial screening interview was conducted to create a shortlist for the final round.
Finalists were invited to visit campus and were interviewed by various parties including President Alison Byerly, Dean of Students Carolyn Livingston, Office of Health Promotion (OHP) peer leaders and student members of the Community Board on Sexual Misconduct, Agugo said. Candidates also held open forums on relevant topics, allowing community members to provide feedback that informed the final decision.
According to Agugo, Riel-Elness distinguished himself amongst the candidates.
“His attention to detail, ability to connect with various stakeholders…and knowledge of the Carleton community made him an excellent candidate for the position,” Agugo said.
Prior to this role, Riel-Elness worked in the Student Activities Office at Carleton for two and a half years, giving him familiarity with the Carleton community. Furthermore, he previously held positions at the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, including LGBTQ support orientation and student conduct in Title IX, which gave him experience in Title IX investigations.
“Ultimately, ensuring equity and support for students here on campus, regardless of gender, is what Title IX is really about,” Riel-Elness said.
Since formally starting the position during winter break, Riel-Elness said he has focused on “[meeting] with people and getting connected to campus partners and students.” Regarding the reporting process of Title IX-related issues, he said that students can either submit a Community Concern Form online, or visit his office in the Class of 1974 Center during drop-in hours.
Riel-Elness has been aware of concerns regarding the campus Title IX process in the past, mentioning, in particular, the student petition in fall 2025 that opposed the peer leader hiring procedure. The petition started in response to what organizers described as a lack of background investigation into past sexual misconduct during peer leader hiring.
Zack Shawn ’26, one of the student activists organizing the petition, said it has not led to the concrete changes previously hoped for. Shawn said student activists were able to meet with Hohn, Vice President for Inclusion, Equity, and Community Dina Zavala and Vice President of Student Life Carolyn Livingston.
“We had about an hour-long conversation,” Shawn said. “The main takeaway is the confirmation that what we’re asking for is legal.” Institutions like Carleton are legally permitted to restrict hiring based on an individual’s past misconduct record. The main reason they haven’t implemented it, however, “is a belief in second chances,” said Shawn.
Shawn worries that allowing individuals with past misconduct records to serve as peer leaders might put other students’ well-being at risk.
“I think, [the hiring procedure] reduces a lot of people’s faith in their being kept safe at Carleton,” he said.
Riel-Elness said the issue had been on his radar before he officially started the role and expressed willingness to engage with students.
“I’m scheduling some meetings with the students towards the end of January,” said Riel-Elness, “just to get more of their feedback and more of their insights.”
He is hoping to take practical steps to implement background checks for peer leader applicants, including updating internal software systems.
“One thing we are looking at is the software that we use to adjudicate cases between conduct and Title IX,” he suggests, “we need to expand the functionality of it to include more information specific to Title IX.”
To enhance transparency, Riel-Elness plans to hold regular office hours. “One thing I will be doing for Winter Term is hosting just open office hours, two hours a week… Wednesdays from 11:30 to 12:30 and Thursdays from 12:00 to 1:00.”
Shawn said that the Title IX office previously cited the absence of a permanent coordinator as a reason for limited action. Now that a permanent coordinator has been selected, he believes there is a greater potential for change regarding peer leader hiring procedures.
“To that,” Shawn said, “I’m cautiously optimistic.”