Georgetown law student challenges school’s response to pregnancy accommodations

Georgetown University Law Center is facing scrutiny over its handling of a pregnant student’s request for exam accommodations. 

Brittany Lovely, a second-year law student, is expecting her first child during the upcoming exam period and sought to take her exams either early or remotely. The university initially denied these requests, citing concerns about fairness among students.

Lovely described the situation as "extremely disrespectful" and felt that the university’s suggestion to bring her newborn to campus during exams so she could breastfeed her baby, with minimal recovery time, was unreasonable and insensitive. 

A school leader also allegedly told her, "motherhood is not for the faint of heart."

"It was frustrating to me that this decision about choosing between my academic path and my well-being and the well-being of my baby was attributed to whether or not I was strong," Lovely told FOX 5. 

Support for Lovely has grown within the Georgetown community and beyond. 

Classmates argue that the university’s response violates her rights under Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, which prohibits discrimination based on sex, including pregnancy and parenting status. 

An online petition has been circulating, urging the university to honor her accommodation requests.

Lovely said that she did end up meeting with another Georgetown Law Dean at 5 p.m. on Friday, November 22nd, who was pleasant and narrowly accommodated her needs.

"I love my school and I love my community and I want it to do better," Lovely said.

In response to the public pressure, a university spokesperson stated, "Georgetown is committed to providing a caring, supportive environment for pregnant and parenting students. We have reached a mutually agreeable solution with the student who raised concerns. Georgetown offers academic and practical resources to assist in the completion of a student's degree while they are pregnant or parenting including pregnancy related adjustments from the Office of Title IX Compliance, and disability accommodations from our Academic Resource Center. Georgetown does not publicly comment on the specifics of individual student matters."

Lovely hopes that her experience will lead to broader changes at Georgetown, ensuring that future students facing similar challenges receive appropriate support. She emphasized her desire for the university to align its actions with its stated values.

"They do have great values at the university, and so I would like to see them live into that," Lovely said. 

She continued to mention this isn’t only about bringing her justice, but anyone who may face similar challenges.