Hendrix College
affirms the principle that its students, faculty, and staff have a right to be
free from harassment based on race, sex, ethnicity, national origin, age or
disability by any member of the academic community. All members of the
academic community should support the principle that any harassment represents
a failure in ethical behavior and a breach of trust. Individuals who feel
that they have been harassed may obtain redress by bringing a complaint, as
described below. Complaints about harassment will be responded to
promptly and equitably. The right to confidentiality of all of the
academic community will be respected in both informal and formal procedures,
insofar as possible. This policy explicitly prohibits retaliation against individuals
for bringing complaints of harassment. All employees of Hendrix College are
required to successfully complete sexual harassment, as well as Title IX &
Campus SaVE Act trainings. These training will be administered within the first
30 days of employment, and on an annual basis thereafter.
Sexual Harassment
Whether involving a student, another faculty member, or a staff person, sexual
harassment is defined as: gender-based verbal or physical conduct that has the
purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work or
academic performance or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working
or educational environment.
Sexual harassment is
understood to include a wide range of behaviors, from the actual coercing of
sexual relations to the unwelcome emphasizing of sexual identity. Any
definition will be interpreted and applied consistent with ‘reasonable person’
standards and with respect to academic freedom where applicable.
Sexual harassment may take several forms:
- The first type (“quid pro quo”) is where sexual activity is
explicitly or implicitly made a condition affecting employment or academic
decisions.
- The second type is “hostile environment” sexual harassment,
where there is not necessarily an effect on employment or academic decisions,
but where the conduct creates an environment that may impair another
individual’s academic or professional performance, or hinder his or her ability
to function within the community. The victim does not have to be the person
harassed but could be anyone affected by the offensive conduct.
- Retaliation is any action intended to punish or prevent an
individual reporting harassment.
Classroom
Conduct
Faculty members should be aware that students in their classes constitute, to
some extent, a “captive audience.” They should bear in mind that obscene
language, dirty jokes, and sexual innuendos may be deeply offensive to some of
these students. Students should be aware that sex is an important aspect
of the human condition, and as such is going to come up as a legitimate topic
in a number of their courses. Ordinarily, if questionable conduct takes
place in the teaching context, it must also be persistent, pervasive, and not
germane to the subject matter to be considered sexual harassment. The
academic setting is distinct from the workplace in that wide latitude is
required for professional judgment in determining the appropriate content and
presentation of academic material.
Student Faculty Relationships
There are inherent risks in any romantic or sexual relationship between
individuals in unequal positions (such as teacher and student, supervisor and
employee). These relationships may be less consensual than perceived by the
individual whose position confers power. The relationship also may be viewed in
different ways by each of the parties, particularly in retrospect. Furthermore,
circumstances may change, and conduct that was previously welcome may become
unwelcome. Even when both parties have consented at the outset to a romantic or
sexual involvement, this past consent may not remove grounds for a later charge
of a violation of applicable sections of the faculty/staff handbooks. The
College does not wish to interfere with private choices regarding personal
relationships when these relationships do not interfere with the goals and
policies of the College. For the personal protection of members of this
community, relationships in which power differentials are inherent
(faculty-student, staff-student) are very strongly discouraged.
Consensual romantic or sexual relationships in which one party
maintains a direct supervisory or evaluative role over the other party are
unethical. Therefore, persons with direct supervisory or evaluative
responsibilities who are involved in such relationships must bring those
relationships to the timely attention of their supervisor, and will likely
result in the necessity to remove the employee from the supervisory or
evaluative responsibilities, or make changes to prevent an individual from
being supervised or evaluated by someone with whom they have established a
consensual relationship. While no relationships are prohibited by this policy,
failure to self-report such relationships to a supervisor as required can
result in disciplinary action for an employee.
Reporting Sexual Misconduct or Harassment of Any Kind
The procedures below
are intended to create an atmosphere in which individuals who feel that they
are the victims of harassment are assured that their complaints will be dealt
ith fairly and effectively. Additionally these procedures are intended to
create an atmosphere in which instances of harassment are remedied.
Members of the community who feel that they are victims of harassment or have
witnessed harassment, as defined above, are strongly encouraged to report the
incident(s) to the Human Resources department or the Provost’s Office. All
complaints will be investigated and resolved in a timely manner. The
college is committed to the preservation of the rights of both the accuser and
the accused in question, including the right to confidentiality insofar as
legal requirements and issues of individual and community safety allow, the
right to the presumption of innocence, and the right to a fair and timely
process. While each investigation varies greatly based on the nature of
the accusation all parties involved can expect the case to be resolved within
60 days from the date it was reported.
Mandatory
Reporters
All full-time faculty of the College are defined as mandatory reporters for
Title IX issues. With this designation comes an obligation to report any
discrimination or harassment based on a protected class, any sexual assault you
become aware of, as well as any crimes that you witness on campus. As a
faculty member you are deemed a responsible reporter as a result of the
reasonable assumption that you have the ability to aid students in issues they
face on campus. Any complaint of harassment or discrimination that is
brought to you (formally or informally) must be communicated to the Human
Resources Department or Provost’s Office because your knowledge of any incident
(note this is knowledge of, not receipt of a formal complaint) constitutes
notice to the institution. To be respectful of students it is therefore important
that when any individual bring forward a complaint you are careful not to
promise confidentiality. The College will work hard to respect privacy,
but no mandatory reporter can guarantee complete confidentiality. The
Title IX Coordinator (listed below) will assist in the process of making a
report and specify which personal/confidential information is needed by whom at
what point in the investigation so as to aid any reporters in preserving
privacy to the greatest extent possible.
The accused has a right to know of accusations against them, however
investigators work extremely hard to maintain the privacy and confidentiality
of all those involved while still effectively determining the outcome of a
complaint. Investigations vary greatly based on the nature of the
complaint brought forward and therefore may, in some cases, be resolved with
minimal involvement by either party. During the investigation all parties
have the right to have an advisor/advocate from the Hendrix community present
during any questioning that may occur. All parties have the right to
present evidence, including the testimony of witnesses, should it be relevant
or necessary in an investigation. All parties involved will be notified
of the outcome of an investigation.
Grievances
An individual may wish to appeal the finding of a harassment or sexual
misconduct investigation. They may present an appeal to the Title IX
Coordinator if they feel that: the investigation was not equitable, new
information is readily available that was not considered by investigators in
determining responsibility or sanctions, or the sanction is not fairly suited
to the offense.
Sanctions
Sanctions for sexual misconduct by faculty members vary based on the nature of
the incident and can range from documentation in the faculty members file to
termination. Sexual misconduct cases are not eligible for appeal to the
Committee on Academic and Professional Concerns. Sanctions will be
recommended by the investigator of the case and reviewed by the Vice President
of Human Resources and the Provost. In the event that a grievance is
lodged regarding sanctions they will be reviewed by the Title IX Coordinator.
Victim Support
As part of Hendrix College commitment to maintaining a safe and healthy
community, victims of harassment or assault (whether it occurs on campus or
off) should request resources for support from the Human Resources
office. This includes those individuals that may need assistance with
incidents of intimate partner violence (aka “domestic violence”) or stalking.
Contact Information for Reporting
Human Resources Office: (501) 450-1494
Provost’s Office: (501) 450-1254
Title IX Coordinator: Shawn Goicoechea, (501) 450-1415
Title IX Investigator: Kesha Baoua, (501) 450-1222
Title IX Deputy Coordinators:
Vicki Lynn, (501) 450-1494
Jim Wiltgen, (501) 450-1222
Terri Bonebright, (501) 450-1273