DEFINITIONS
Confidentiality – The substance and outcome of the investigation are to remain confidential and will only be shared with the accused, accuser and those directly involved in the investigation. Any violation of confidentiality of substance and/or outcome will be subject to disciplinary action under applicable policies, procedures, Student Standard of Conduct, and/or collective bargaining provisions.
Consent/Consensual – means clear communication given by words or actions that shows an active, knowing and voluntary agreement to engage in mutually agreed-upon sexual activity. Consent is given freely and voluntarily. Consent may not be inferred from silence, passivity or when an individual is incapacitated or otherwise prevented from giving consent as a result of impairment due to a mental or physical condition or age.
No consent exists when there is a threat of force or physical or psychological violence. Although consent may be given initially, it may be withdrawn at any point without regard to activity preceding the withdrawal of consent. The voluntary nature of consent will be subject to heightened scrutiny in circumstances in which a person engages in a sexual relationship with a person over whom he or she has any power or authority within the College.
Dating Violence– means a pattern of behavior where one person threatens to use, or actually uses physical, sexual, verbal or emotional abuse to control a dating partner. Whether there was such a relationship will be gauged by its length, type and frequency of interaction.
Discrimination- is prejudicial treatment based on an individual's membership in a particular category. Protected classes are race, creed, color, national origin, age, ancestry, nationality, marital or domestic partner or civil union status, sex, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, disability, liability for military service, affectional, or sexual orientation, atypical cellular or blood trait, genetic information (including refusal to submit to genetic testing).
Domestic Violence – includes asserted violent misdemeanor and felony offenses committed by the victim's current or former spouse, current or former cohabitant, person similarly situated under domestic or family violence law, or anyone else protected under domestic or family violence law.
Gender / Sex - Sex is the classification of people as male or female. At birth, infants are assigned a sex based on a combination of bodily characteristics, including chromosomes, hormones, internal reproductive organs and genitals. Gender is sometimes used interchangeably with sex. Discrimination based on a person's gender, including gender identity and sex stereotyping, is a form of sex discrimination.
Sexual Orientation describes an individual's enduring physical, romantic, emotional and/or spiritual attraction to others. Terms including lesbian, gay, bisexual (or "bi") and straight tend to be favored in many settings, though homosexual and heterosexual are preferred by some.
Gender Identity is frequently defined as an individual's internal, personal sense of being a man, a woman, a transgender person or a different gender entirely. Federal law, and many state and local laws, protect both transgender and non-transgender people by prohibiting discrimination based on gender expression and gender-related identity, appearance or behavior.
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LGBTQIA is one variation of LGBT (a shorthand way of describing a diverse community composed of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and other people).
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Lesbian refers to a woman attracted to members of the same gender.
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Gay means a man attracted to members of the same gender.
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Bisexual means a person who is attracted to men and women, though not necessarily in the same proportions or at the same time.
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Transgender is a broad, umbrella term that includes, among others, those whose assigned birth sex/gender does not match their gender identity. Some transgender people alter their bodies with surgery or hormones; some do not. Sometimes "genderqueer" is included with transgender, and it refers to people with a fluid, non-linear gender identity, and those whose identity is neither man nor woman, or some combination of the two.
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Q stands for both "queer" and "questioning." Frequently, the community describes itself as queer. This word has been leveled at members of the community with hatred in the past, but many have reclaimed use of the word. Questioning applies to people who are exploring or questioning their sexual orientation.
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I stands for "intersex," and its inclusion is deeply debated. Intersex (sometimes called "Differences of Sex Development") is an umbrella term describing a wide range of physical conditions where the sexual or reproductive organs do not directly correlate with traditional definitions of male or female organs. Intersex and transgender are often confused, but they are not the same.
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A stands for "asexual" and "ally."
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Asexual people generally do not experience sexual attraction. Not to be confused with celibacy, asexuality is not a choice, and some asexual people engage in romantic, non-sexual relationships. Romantic orientations are as varied as sexual orientations for sexual people, including homoromanticism, heteroromanticism, biromanticism and more.
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Allies are people who advocate for communities that they don't belong to, for example, a straight person who supports LGBT rights. Allies show their support in many ways, including educating themselves, educating others and participating in activism.
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Pansexual – a pansexual person is attracted to people of all sexes or genders.
Harassment All forms of employment and educational harassment and discrimination based on protected categories of race, creed, color, national origin, age, ancestry, nationality, marital or domestic partner or civil union status, sex, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, disability, liability for military service, affectional or sexual orientation, atypical cellular or blood trait, genetic information (including refusal to submit to genetic testing) are prohibited.
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Sexual Harassment is unwelcome advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal, physical or visual conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when:
- Submission to such conduct is made a condition of employment or participating fully in the educational experience; or
- Submission or rejection of such conduct is used as a basis for employment or educational decisions affecting the individual; or
- Such conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with the work performance of an employee or the educational performance of a student, or creating or maintaining an intimidating, hostile or offensive environment.
Sexual Harassment may include a wide range of obvious and/or subtle comments and conduct such as repeated offensive or unwelcome sexual advances; subtle or overt pressure for sexual favors; sexual jokes; verbal comments or innuendo of a sexual nature; propositions or advances; graphic commentary about an individual's body, sexual prowess or sexual deficiencies; leering, whistling, touching, pinching or other unwelcome physical touching; suggestive, insulting or obscene comments or gestures; and/or display of sexually suggestive objects or pictures. Sexual harassment includes harassment between individuals of the same gender.
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Other Forms of Protected Classification Harassment – Harassment also is verbal or physical conduct that denigrates or shows hostility or aversion toward any individual because of his or her race, creed, color, national origin, age, ancestry, nationality, marital or domestic partner or civil union status, sex, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, disability, liability for military service, affectional, or sexual orientation, atypical cellular or blood trait, genetic information (including refusal to submit to genetic testing).
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Bullying and Cyber Harassment may include but are not limited to the following:
- Repeated, unwanted/unsolicited contact that includes face-to-face contact, telephone calls, voice messages, text messages, online posts, blogging, electronic video and/or photography, electronic mail, instant messages, written letters, unwanted gifts; and/or
- Verbal or written abuse, threats, harassment, coercion or any other conduct that places another individual in reasonable fear of his or her safety through words or actions directed at that person, or substantially interferes with the working, educational or personal environment of the individual; and/or
- Threatening or persistent offensive communication through the internet, via email, chat rooms or other electronic devices.
Retaliation - No individual will be subject to retaliation, intimidation or discipline as a result of making a good faith complaint of sexual misconduct or harassment or providing information in connection with another's complaint (policy 7004 Conscientious Employee Protection and
policy 7003 Harassment and Discrimination).
Sexual Assault – includes both forcible and non-forcible acts of sexual assault. This includes any sexual act directed against another person, forcibly and/or against that person's will; or not forcibly against the person's will where the victim is incapable of giving consent. Additionally, non-forcible sexual offenses include incest and statutory rape.
Stalking – A course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for her, his or others' safety or to suffer emotional distress.
