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A student or employee may file a formal complaint of Prohibited Conduct by a student or a third party by contacting the Title IX Coordinator (or in the case of a complaint against the Title IX Coordinator, by contacting the President of the College, who will designate an alternate contact person). A student or employee may file a formal complaint of Prohibited Conduct by an employee or a covered third party by contacting the Director of Human Resources (or in the case of a complaint against the Director of Human Resources, by contacting the President of the College, who will designate an alternate contact person). A student who is filing a complaint against an employee or covered third party may also seek assistance from the Title IX Coordinator, who will provide support to the student in making contact with the Director of Human Resources. Relevant contact information is provided above.

The College’s procedures for handling formal complaints will be prompt, fair and impartial from the initial investigation to the final result, in that they will be:

  • Completed within reasonably prompt time frames as designated in the College’s policies, which time frames may be extended for good cause and/or due to extenuating circumstances, with written notice to the complainant and the respondent of the delay and the reason for the delay;

  • Conducted in a manner that is consistent with the College’s policies and transparent to the complainant and the respondent, including timely notice of meetings at which the complainant or respondent may be present, and providing the complainant, the 20 respondent, and appropriate College officials timely and equal access to any information that will be used during the College’s process in accordance with the policies herein; and

  • Conducted by officials who do not have a conflict of interest or bias for or against complainants or respondents generally, or the individual complainant or respondent in a particular case. If either party is concerned that an official involved in an investigation or adjudication may be biased or have a conflict of interest, the party should share their concerns with the Title IX Coordinator immediately. If their concern is about the Title IX Coordinator, the party should contact the President of the College.

A formal complaint under these procedures is a document filed by a complainant, signed personally or electronically by the complainant (or signed by the Title IX Coordinator under circumstances outlined below), and must request that the College investigate reported Prohibited Conduct. The formal complaint may be prepared by the complainant and submitted in writing to the Title IX Coordinator, or may be written by the Title IX Coordinator based upon the complainant’s verbal description of the alleged conduct, then submitted to the complainant for their review, editing and signature.

Determinations of Applicable Procedures, Dismissals, Transfers and Appeals of Such Determinations

When a complainant requests an investigation, the Title IX Coordinator will promptly upon receipt of a formal complaint:

  1. determine whether the conduct alleged would, if proved, constitute Title IX Sexual Harassment (i.e., Title IX Quid Pro Quo Sexual Harassment, Title IX Severe, Pervasive and Objectively Offensive Sexual Harassment, Title IX Sexual Assault, or sex-based Title IX Domestic Violence, Dating Violence or Stalking) as defined in the Title IX Sexual Harassment definition stated above;

  2. determine whether the conduct allegedly occurred in College’s education program or activity;

  3. determine whether the conduct allegedly occurred in the United States on or after August 14, 2020; and

  4. determine whether at the time the formal complaint was made, the complainant was participating or attempting to participate in a College education program or activity.

If a formal complaint of conduct that would, if proved, satisfy all 4 of these elements and constitute Title IX Sexual Harassment as defined in this Policy is filed by a complainant or signed by the Title IX Coordinator, it will be investigated and resolved through the procedures applicable to Title IX Sexual Harassment matters as outlined below.

The College will, as noted above, investigate alleged Title IX Sexual Harassment when a complainant submits a signed or electronically-submitted formal complaint to the Title IX Coordinator and requests an investigation. The Title IX Coordinator may also choose at their discretion to sign a formal complaint and initiate an investigation, even if the complainant chooses not to do so. In cases where the complainant does not wish to submit a formal complaint but the Title IX Coordinator decides in their discretion to sign a complaint and initiate an investigation and resolution process, the Title IX Coordinator will not be a complainant or otherwise a party to the matter.

If some but not all of the conduct alleged in the complaint satisfies all 4 of these elements and a formal complaint is received from a complainant or signed by the Title IX Coordinator, the College has the discretion to address the entire matter through the procedures applicable to Title IX Sexual Harassment matters as outlined below (that is, it will as required by federal regulations follow Title IX Sexual Harassment procedures to address the alleged Title IX Sexual Harassment, and it may choose, to promote efficiency, to follow Title IX Sexual Harassment procedures to address Non-Title IX Misconduct and other non-Title IX alleged misconduct in such mixed cases, so that all related misconduct may be addressed through one investigation and resolution process). The College will make such decisions in the exercise of its best judgment to promote efficiency, and in accordance with applicable law, regulation and U.S. Department of Education guidance.

If it appears based upon initial review or upon information gathered during an investigation that the matter does not satisfy and/or no longer satisfies all 4 of these elements, the College will, as required by the May 2020 Title IX regulations, dismiss the matter for purposes of the Title IX Sexual Harassment process, and will transfer it for handling under the Non-Title IX Misconduct procedures outlined here or in other College procedures, as deemed appropriate by the College. Investigation and resolution of a matter that does not fall within Title IX may be pursued, dismissed altogether, or transferred to another College process, as deemed appropriate in the College’s discretion and/or as appropriate under applicable law.

Even if the initial allegations of a matter fall within the definition of Title IX Sexual Harassment, the College may (but is not required to) dismiss a formal complaint or any allegations therein if at any time during the investigation or resolution process:

  • A complainant notifies the Title IX Coordinator in writing that the complainant would like to withdraw the formal complaint or any allegations therein;

  • The respondent is no longer enrolled at or employed by the College; or

  • Specific circumstances prevent the College from gathering evidence sufficient to reach a determination as to the formal complaint or allegations therein.

If a formal complaint is dismissed by the College under the circumstances described above, the College will simultaneously provide to the parties written notice (by electronic or other means) of the dismissal and the reasons for the dismissal, and notice of the parties’ opportunity to appeal such dismissal through the appeal procedures outlined below.

If the respondent is a student and an employee, the Title IX Coordinator will determine which procedures apply based upon the facts and circumstances, such as whether the respondent’s status as a student or an employee predominates in the context of the Prohibited Conduct. If a student-employee is found to have engaged in Prohibited Conduct, the student-employee may be 22 subject to sanctions both in connection with their employment, and in connection with their student status, as appropriate under these and other applicable procedures.

Notice

If the College initiates an investigation of Title IX Sexual Harassment or Non-Title IX Misconduct it will provide to the parties a written notice (by electronic or other means) that includes:

Information about the College’s formal and informal resolution processes;

  • A statement of the allegations of behavior potentially constituting Prohibited Conduct, including sufficient details known at the time and with sufficient time to prepare a response before any initial post-intake interview. Sufficient details include the identities of the parties involved in the incident, if known, the conduct allegedly constituting Prohibited Conduct, and the date and location of the alleged incident, if known;

  • A statement that the Respondent is presumed not responsible for the alleged conduct and that a determination regarding responsibility is made at the conclusion of the grievance process;

  • Information regarding the College’s presumption of good faith reporting and a summary of the College’s false information policy (see Student Code of Conduct, Disrespect for Persons; Employee Code of Conduct & Whistleblower policy, Employee Handbook);

  • Notification that parties may have an advisor of their choice, who may be, but is not required to be, an attorney;

  • Notification of existing counseling, health and mental health services available on campus and/or in the community; and

  • Notification that taking any retaliatory action (directly or through others) against any person involved in the investigation is prohibited and will be considered a separate violation of College policy.

In Title IX Sexual Harassment cases, the notice will also notify parties that they may inspect and review evidence during the investigation and resolution process, as provided below.

If in the course of an investigation the College decides to investigate allegations about any party that are not included in the notice described above, it will provide notice of the additional allegations to the parties whose identities are known.

Consolidation of Formal Complaints

The College may consolidate formal complaints as to allegations of Title IX Sexual Harassment and/or Non-Title IX Misconduct against more than one respondent, or by more than one complainant against one or more respondents, or by one party against the other party, where the allegations of such Prohibited Conduct arise out of the same facts or circumstances. Where a 23 grievance process involves more than one complainant or more than one respondent, references in this section to the singular “party,” “complainant,” or “respondent” include the plural, as applicable.