Office of Human Resources
Harassment and Non-Discrimination
Policy and Complaint Procedures
Introduction
Meredith College is committed to providing a work and study environment that is safe, fair and free from discrimination and harassment for all members of its campus community. Meredith College prohibits and does not engage in discrimination or harassment that is based on a person's religion, race, color, national origin, age (as defined in the Age Discrimination in Employment Act), sex, disability, veteran’s status, sexual orientation or any other category protected by law The College views this conduct as a very serious matter and any student or employee who violates this policy will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal (please see disciplinary information in appropriate handbook), whether such conduct occurred on or off campus.
Definitions and Descriptions
I. Discrimination. Meredith College is dedicated to equality of opportunity within its community. The College does not discriminate against its students, employees or applicants for employment because of race, color, national origin, age (as defined by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act), religion, sex, disability, veteran’s status, or sexual orientation.
II. Harassment. Harassment is any action, oral or written expression, repeated or persistent series of actions, or expressions that are reasonably perceived as creating an intimidating, offensive, hostile, or demeaning educational, employment, or College living environment for a student or College employee. A hostile environment is one that interferes with an individual's ability to participate in all and any aspects of academic, professional, or residential life.
III. Sexual harassment is a particular form of harassment also prohibited by the College. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has defined sexual harassment with regards to employment as follows:
“Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when:
1. Condition of an individual’s employment;
2. Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as a basis for employment decisions affecting such individual; or
3. Such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating hostile or offensive working environment.”
By way of example, verbal sexual harassment can include sexual innuendoes, offensive remarks about another person’s clothing or body, suggestive or insulting sounds, implied or overt sexual propositions, or pressure for sex. Examples of physical sexual harassment can include leering or ogling, obscene gestures, inappropriate touching, fondling or kissing, and coerced sexual contact. Sexual harassment can be perpetrated upon members of the opposite gender or one’s own gender. Occasional compliments of a socially acceptable nature do not normally constitute sexual harassment. Similarly, depending upon the circumstances (including the nature of course materials or the context of an action), not all verbal or physical conduct will be considered sexual in nature.
The academic setting is distinct in the workplace, and the College will maintain and encourage academic freedom. The academic setting will be considered in regard to complaints and to be harassment such behavior must be persistent, pervasive and not germane to the subject matter.
IV. Retaliation. It is a violation of this policy to retaliate against a person who has complained about discrimination or harassment, or for assisting, participating, or cooperating in an investigation or grievance of a complaint hereunder.
V. Wrongful Allegations. It is a violation of this policy to bring a knowingly false complaint under this policy. However, failure to prove a claim of sexual harassment does not alone constitute proof of a false and/or malicious accusation.
VI. Confidentiality. The College will make reasonable efforts to keep all information relating to complaints under this policy confidential on a “need-to-know” basis, to the extent consistent with the College’s legal obligations, its need to investigate allegations, and its need to take corrective and/or disciplinary actions. All participants in the grievance process or any investigation of any allegation hereunder shall respect the confidentiality of the process and violation of confidentiality on a need-to-know basis is a violation of this policy.
VII. Corrective and/or Disciplinary Action. Violations of this policy subject the violators to corrective and/or disciplinary action, up to and including termination or expulsion in accordance with College procedures.
Harassment or Discrimination By Students: Methods of Resolution
At any point in the grievance process, the Dean of Students may be contacted and will receive a complaint or provide assistance as appropriate. In the event of employee involvement, the Office of Human Resources may be contacted. Discussing a complaint does not commit one to making a formal charge. Complaints should be presented within a timely manner.
I. Individual Resolution. Either directly, or with the assistance of a third party chosen by the complainant, complainants are encouraged to make their discomfort known to perceived harassers. Perceived harassers have a responsibility to attempt to understand both the intentional and unintentional effects of their behavior and to respond in a thoughtful, sensitive manner to those perceived effects. In the most serious instances of sexual harassment, it is unreasonable to expect complainants to confront their perceived harassers.
II. Informal Resolution. If appropriate, the Dean of Students may arrange a meeting between the two parties to facilitate discussion of the complaint. Mediation is designed to encourage each person to be honest and direct with the other and to accept personal responsibility where appropriate. Its goal is to facilitate the resolution of the incident to the satisfaction of both persons involved, and to reach an agreement that is binding on both parties. If the complainant is satisfied with the outcome, the matter will be considered resolved. If the outcome of mediation is unsatisfactory to the complainant, the complaint will be returned to the Dean of Students, and the formal process may be enacted.
III. Formal Resolution. If mediation is unsatisfactory or undesired or if complainant prefers and/or sufficient evidence of wrongful discrimination or harassment exists, the incident should then be reported to the Solicitor General or the Dean of Students as a violation of the Honor Code. The accused student will be asked to report to the Solicitor General of Honor Council or the Dean of Students. The accused student and the complainant will be afforded all rights outlined in the procedures of the Honor System, as described in the Constitution of the Student Government Association in the Student Handbook and Activities Calendar (Article III, Section II).
The College reserves the right to discipline, including immediate suspension or expulsion at any time, any student whose conduct is regarded by Meredith as undesirable or unacceptable.
Records pertaining to discrimination and/or harassment by students will be maintained in the Office of the Dean of Students. Official records are kept ten years after the completion of an Honor Council Hearing, with the exception of records regarding expulsion, which are kept permanently on file. In such case, a sanction of expulsion would also be reflected on the student’s academic transcript.
Harassment or Discrimination By Faculty or Staff: Methods of Resolution
At any point in the grievance process, the Office of Human Resources may be contacted and will receive a complaint or provide assistance as appropriate. In the event of student involvement, the Dean of Students may be contacted. Discussing a complaint does not commit one to making a formal charge. Complaints should be presented within a timely manner.
I. Individual Resolution. Either directly, or with the assistance of a third party chosen by the complainant, complainants are encouraged to make their discomfort known to perceived harassers. Perceived harassers have a responsibility to attempt to understand both the intentional and unintentional effects of their behavior and to respond in a thoughtful, sensitive manner to those perceived effects. In the most serious instances of sexual harassment, it is unreasonable to expect complainants to confront their perceived harassers.
II. Informal Resolution. Complainants are encouraged to report acts of harassment or discrimination to the immediate supervisor of the alleged harasser/discriminator or the Office of Human Resources/Dean of Students, as appropriate. The supervisor should contact Office of Human Resources to assist/coordinate the investigation (depending on the nature of the allegation). The supervisor is obligated to investigate the complaint and take appropriate actions. The supervisor should respond verbally to the complainant as to the findings and outcome within ten working days of notification of the complaint.
In some situations, mediation may be an appropriate option for resolution. Mediation is designed to encourage each person to be honest and direct with the other and to accept personal responsibility where appropriate. If the complainant is satisfied with the outcome, the matter will be considered resolved.
III. Formal Resolution. If step II does not resolve the situation to the satisfaction of the complainant or if complainant desires to proceed directly to step III, the complainant may submit a Formal Grievance Form. This form is available from the Office of Human Resources, Dean of Student’s Office or on-line at the Meredith web site. A representative from HR/Dean of Students will assist with completion of forms or explanation of process as requested. The alleged harasser/discriminator will be notified by HR that a complaint has been filed, will receive a copy of the written complaint, and will be allowed an opportunity to present information in the same manner the complainant presents information. The supervisor the next level up and a representative from HR/Dean of Students, will meet with both parties to review the complaint and be given copies of the policy and process. HR will coordinate the investigation of the claim. The supervisor at this level then has ten working days to provide a written response to the employee and the complainant.
Vice Presidents of the College who wish to bring a complaint should communicate it to the President of the College or the President’s designee; likewise, complaints about Vice Presidents should be taken to the President of the College. When a complaint concerns a Vice President, the President shall act as the grievance officer for the College. Complaints about the President of the College should be communicated to the Chairperson of the Board of Trustees. In such a case, the Trustees shall devise an appropriate procedure for handling the complaint. Any individual who needs assistance initiating contact with the Board of Trustees may contact the Office of Human Resources.
Complaints regarding vendors, contract workers, guests or others who may be visiting the campus should be brought to the attention of the appropriate Vice President or Office of Human Resources.
IV. Grievance Committee. If the situation is still not resolved to the satisfaction of the complainant, they will notify the Office of Human Resources. An HR Representative will meet with the complainant and gather additional information beyond what is stated on the formal grievance form and inform the complainant about the grievance committee process. HR will notify the appropriate Vice President that a grievance has been filed and assemble a grievance hearing subcommittee from the larger Grievance Committee (see Grievance Committee).
The subcommittee will review the complaint, study all pertinent facts, carefully examine any policies involved, and may take statements or call witnesses to evaluate the complaint. Both parties will be given notice of the time and place of the hearing and may choose to be present during the hearing, except in extreme situations where the committee feels it would prohibit full disclosure of information. Both parties can provide questions to witnesses through committee. Both parties have the option of having another member of the Meredith Community present for moral support. The basis for a decision will be based on a preponderance of the evidence, with the decision reached by consensus of the subcommittee. The subcommittee may find that no discrimination or harassment has occurred or they may find in whole or in part for the complainant and recommend action to remedy the situation. The Chair will prepare a written report within 20 days with findings and recommendations to go to the Vice President.
The Vice President then has the option to accept the recommendations of the committee, return the case to the committee for further consideration or reject the findings after reviewing the case. The Vice President will then prepare a letter to both parties to notify them of the decision and any actions to be taken.
Upon receiving notice of the outcome, either party may appeal to the President for the following reasons: 1) whether there is a preponderance of evidence to support the outcome or decision; 2) whether the hearing was free of substantial error, prejudicial to either party, which would have affected the outcome; or 3) whether the penalty imposed is appropriate to the offense. Appeals may be filed with the Office of Human Resources within 10 working days and must state the reason for the appeal. The President then has 20 days to review the information and issue a finding. The President’s decision is final.
The President of the College, or her designee, may impose a summary suspension prior to the resolution of the informal or the formal proceedings. A summary suspension may be imposed when, in the judgment of the President, the accused individual’s presence on campus would constitute a threat to the safety and well-being of the members of the College community.
When the grievance proceedings are completed, all materials related to the case including statements, evidence and documents, and other materials examined shall be retained in a confidential file in the Office of Human Resources. Complaint information is not placed in personnel files; any sanctions taken against the employee will be placed in the personnel file.
Grievance Committee: The Grievance Committee shall be composed of the Faculty Council, the Staff Affairs Committee and six students to be selected based on student positions appointed for the year (Honor Council Chair, Student Life Chair, Residence Hall Association President, Association of Meredith Commuters President, WINGS President, and the Diversity Committee Chair). The committee will receive training on this policy on an annual basis to assist them in performing their responsibilities on the committee.
At the time a complaint is received, the complainant will select one person from the Grievance Committee, and the Office of Human Resources will randomly select four individuals and one alternate to complete the subcommittee which will hear the complaint, ensuring no member of the committee has a known conflict of interest. The subcommittee should include individuals from each segment of the campus community represented by the concerned parties. For example, if the complaint is from a student against a faculty member, HR should try to select two students and two faculty members to hear the case; the student would select either another student, or a faculty or staff member; and the alternative could be either a student, faculty or staff member. The Chair will be selected by committee vote.
A member of the human resources staff shall serve as an ex-officio, non-voting facilitator, to provide technical assistance on procedural and policy matters.
Consensual Relationships
Meredith College strives to maintain a safe and intellectually stimulating environment where students and employees can live, work and think without undue negative influences, concerns of favoritism, intimidation, and/or hostile working or learning environments. To that end, consensual romantic, intimate and/or sexual relationships are prohibited when they occur between faculty, staff and/or students when a professional power differential exists in these situations in terms of the influence and authority that the one can exercise over the other.
A “power differential” relationship is defined to include relations between a student and any faculty, staff member or student who 1) now supervises or would have a reasonable or usual expectation of supervising the student in the future; 2) now provides or would have a reasonable or usual expectation of providing the student with oral or written recommendations; 3) now grades and/or formally evaluates or would have a reasonable or usual expectation of grading and/or formally evaluating the student in the future; and/or 4) now makes significant decisions, or would have a reasonable or usual expectation of making significant decisions in the future affecting the student’s living space, financial aid, and/or access to essential College programs and services.
The College strongly discourages faculty or staff from engaging in any consensual sexual, intimate or romantic relationships with any student, even where a “power differential” is not present. Of course, non-consensual sexual, intimate or romantic relationships are unlawful and strictly prohibited by College policy.
Revised 08-22-05