Sexual Harassment Information

The University is committed to equal access to programs, facilities, admission and employment for all persons. It is the policy of the University to maintain an environment free of harassment and free of discrimination against any person because of age, race, color, ancestry, national origin, sex, sexual orientation,  gender, perceived gender, gender identity, physical or mental disability, religion, creed, service in the uniformed services (as defined in state and federal law), veteran status, marital or family status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information or political ideas. Discriminatory conduct and harassment violates the dignity of individuals, impedes the realization of the University’s educational mission, and will not be tolerated.

This policy shall not be construed to restrict academic freedom at the University, nor shall it be construed to restrict constitutionally protected expression.

POLICY AD91 Discrimination and Harassment and Related Inappropriate Conduct

This policy is a companion to University Policy AD85, which sets forth the University’s policy on sexual harassment under Title IX.  The new Title IX regulations, effective August 14, 2020, and addressed in University Policy AD85, defines Sexual Harassment as:  (1) quid pro quo (“this for that”) behavior; (2) unwelcome conduct determined by a reasonable person to be so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it effectively denies a person equal access to the recipient’s education program or activity; and (3) Clery Act crimes, including sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, or stalking (commonly known as Violence Against Women Act or VAWA crimes).  In addition, the conduct must have occurred within the United States, either on Penn State property or off campus in a Penn State-sanctioned educational program or activity, which includes only those locations, events, or circumstances over which the University exercises substantial control over both the accused and the context in which the sexual harassment occurs.

Reports or formal complaints of sexual harassment that fall outside the guidelines of the new Title IX regulations will be addressed under this Policy, in addition to gender-based discrimination and harassment, and related inappropriate conduct. For resources and reporting information on Title IX sexual harassment, please refer to Policy AD85.

Conduct prohibited by this policy may also violate Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as well as other applicable federal and state laws. Amber Grove​ is the Title IX Coordinator.

Pursuant to this policy and Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, the University will identify Responsible and Confidential Employees on a regular, ongoing basis, and notify these individuals of their obligations to report (or not report) potential violations.

Conduct that is Prohibited by AD91 Policy (“Prohibited Conduct”)

Sex-based harassment is unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature, including unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal, nonverbal, graphic, or physical conduct of a sexual nature, when: (1) submission to or rejection of such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a condition of an individual’s employment or academic standing or is used as the basis for employment decisions or for academic evaluation, grades, or advancement (quid pro quo); or (2) such conduct is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive that it interferes with or limits a person’s ability to participate in or benefit from the University’s education or work programs or activities (hostile environment).

Information regarding issues of sex-based harassment specifically, including definitions and information about the University’s procedures for reporting and processing such incidents, can be found in University Policy AD85.  After an initial assessment of the facts, the Title IX Coordinator will determine if the alleged Prohibited Conduct falls under the guidelines of Title IX (Policy AD85). If not, the case will be managed subject to the procedures set forth in this Policy.

Gender-Based Harassment

is verbal, nonverbal, graphic, or physical aggression, intimidation, or hostile conduct based on sex, sex-stereotyping, sexual orientation or gender identity, but not involving conduct of a sexual nature, when such conduct is sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive that it interferes with or limits a person’s ability to participate in or benefit from the University’s education or work programs or activities. For example, persistent disparagement of a person based on a perceived lack of stereotypical masculinity or femininity or exclusion from an activity based on sexual orientation or gender identity also may violate this Policy.

(Note: Policy AD91 defines Sex and/or Gender-based Discrimination as conduct of any nature that denies an individual the opportunity to participate in or benefit from a University program or activity, or otherwise adversely affects a term or condition of an individual’s employment, education, or living environment, because of the individual’s sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy, pregnancy-related condition, gender, perceived gender, or gender identity. Conduct that may constitute Sex and/or Gender-based Discrimination but does not fall within the conduct defined in Policy AD85 is excluded from the definition of Prohibited Conduct in Policy AD85 and is addressed in Policy AD91).

Retaliation

as defined in University Policy AD67, is also prohibited by this policy and may subject the individual who retaliates in violation of this or other University policy to discipline or sanctions.

In addition to the above, in the case of off-campus Prohibited Conduct that did not occur in the context of a University program or activity, the University will consider the effects of such off-campus conduct when evaluating whether there is a hostile environment on campus and/or in an off-campus education program or activity.

These examples are not all-inclusive of the types of conduct that may constitute sexual harassment. Each situation must be considered in light of the specific facts and circumstances to determine if sexual harassment has occurred.

What About Consensual Relationship?

POLICY AD102 Consensual Relationships

The University fosters a culture of transparency regarding consensual relationships and believes that disclosure and management of such relationships is the soundest way to assist with ensuring that potential conflicts are adequately addressed.

The University community involves many diverse interactions among its members that enhance the academic and professional development of each member of the community. As a matter of sound judgement and professional ethics, those who are tasked with supervising, mentoring, teaching, evaluating, advising, and coaching responsibilities must avoid actual and perceived conflicts of interest within these relationships.  Romantic and/or sexual relationships between individuals within these contexts have the potential to pose risks to the individuals involved, third parties, and the University as a whole.  Such consensual relationships have the potential to lead to complaints of sexual harassment and other adverse consequences.  In addition, individuals not involved in the consensual relationship may have perceptions of favoritism, undue access or advantage, and other conflicts of interest. Such perceptions undermine the atmosphere of trust essential to the educational process or the employment relationship.

Given the asymmetric nature of consensual relationships where one party has the responsibility to evaluate the other—for instance in giving grades, thesis advice, evaluations, recommendations, promotions, salary increases, or performance evaluations—the consensual nature of the relationship is inherently unequal and will be carefully scrutinized if any complaint is filed.

For these reasons, the University prohibits evaluative or supervisory responsibilities at all levels among individuals who are in consensual relationships. Therefore, such relationships require immediate disclosure at the start of the consensual relationship so that the evaluative or supervisory responsibilities can be restructured to address the conflict of interest. Upon receipt of this disclosure, the relevant unit administrator will be responsible for ensuring the immediate and appropriate management of the procedures to address and remediate the conflict of interest. Additionally, all consensual relationships between faculty or staff and either undergraduate or graduate students within the same academic or work unit must be reported, regardless of whether there is evaluative or supervisory authority involved.  Such reporting is required to more easily implement the necessary arrangements in the event that evaluative or supervisory authority becomes a possibility between the parties involved at any point in the future.  Relationships can change over time and need to be reported and managed differently when such change includes a supervisory or evaluative arrangement.

Given the complex multi-campus structure of the University, note that this policy does not prohibit consensual relationships between faculty and larger, more general populations of students, with no evaluative or supervisory context involved, such as all Penn State undergraduate or graduate students.  The policy is expressly designed to address consensual relationships in which such a context is already present or there is some likelihood that it will develop in the future.

RESOURCES AND REPORTING

In situations involving danger to persons or property, individuals are strongly encouraged to first report the incident to the applicable police or public safety department.

A University employee who has the power to control or influence another person’s academic advancement, employment, or extracurricular participation, including but not limited to, admission, grades, assignments, evaluations, hiring, athletic participation, work conditions, compensation, promotion, discipline, supervision of dissertations/theses, recommendations, financial support, or participation in extracurricular programs, as defined by AD85 policy, are required to report Prohibited Conduct to the Title IX Coordinator.

Confidential Employee – A University employee who is exempt from reporting to the Title IX Coordinator incidents of gender-based harassment, sexual violence, sexual harassment, or any other sexual misconduct in a way that identifies the victim. This includes professional and pastoral counselors and non-professional counselors or advocates. The University designates confidential employees and those individuals are notified of their designation.

1. Professional and pastoral counselors- includes licensed mental health counselors, pastors, priests, or any other pastoral counselor whose official responsibilities include providing mental health counseling to the campus community. It also includes individuals who are supervised by these people.
2. Non-professional counselors or advocates- includes individuals who are not professional or pastoral counselors, but work or volunteer in on-campus sexual assault centers, victim advocacy offices, women’s centers, or health centers, including front desk staff and students, social workers, doctors, medical staff, or any other person with a professional license requiring confidentiality.

Employees who are designated as Confidential Employees are not required to report any information they learn about an incident involving Prohibited Conduct in a way that identifies the victim.  Some Confidential Employees, such as non-professional counselors or advocates, may be required to report aggregate data only.

For more information, including locations where a list of Confidential Employees may be found, please visit the following website.

One of the methods to report incidents of possible Prohibited Conduct to the Title IX Coordinator should be the following:

1. Fill out the form on the Title IX website
2. Contact the Title IX Coordinator directly, via telephone, or email

Amber Grove, Title IX Coordinator
Email:  titleix@psu.edu

Employee are not required to report information disclosed (1) at public awareness events (e.g., “Take Back the Night,” candlelight vigils, protests, or other public forums in which individuals may disclose incidents of Prohibited Conduct, collectively “Public Awareness Events”); or (2) during an individual’s participation as a subject in an Institutional Review Board (“IRB”)-approved human subjects research protocol.  The University may provide information about individuals’ rights under Title IX and about available University and Community resources and support at Public Awareness Events, however, and Institutional Review Boards may, in appropriate cases, require researchers to provide such information to all student subjects of IRB research.

In addition to the requirement for Responsible Employees to notify the Title IX Coordinator of incidents of Prohibited Conduct, any individual may also report Prohibited Conduct under this policy to the Title IX Coordinator or to the other offices listed in the table below, as follows:

For Conduct Committed by	Report To	Contact Information
Students or Student Organizations	Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response (OSACR).	(814) 863-0342 studentaccountability@psu.edu
Employees or third-parties	Suzanne Adair, Associate Vice President for Equal Opportunity and Access	(814 )863-0471 sca917@psu.edu
Students, employees, or third-parties at the Penn State College of Medicine	TBD	TBD

ANONYMOUS REPORTING

Anyone may make an anonymous report of Prohibited Conduct by contacting the Ethics and Compliance Hotline at 1-800-560-1637.

For more information on anonymous reporting, please see https://psuethicsandcompliance.tnwreports.com/ and hotline.psu.edu.

Employee and Third-Party Proceedings for Reports of Non-Title IX Sexual and Gender Harassment

The procedures for assessment, investigation, determination and appeal of non-Title IX reports of sexual and gender-based harassment and other forms of discrimination filed against employees and third parties are located on the Office of Equal Opportunity and Access website.

Student Proceedings for Reports of Non-Title IX Sexual and Gender Harassment

The procedures for assessment, investigation, determination and appeal of non-Title IX reports of sexual and gender-based harassment and other forms of discrimination filed against students are located in the Code of Conduct & Student Conduct Procedures Manual.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON REPORTING

In addition to the above, employees and other individuals are reminded that they may have other reporting obligations under other mandatory reporting policies.

If the apparent victim is under the age of 18 at the time of the offense and there is any potential of child abuse, University employees should also consult University Policy AD72, Reporting Suspected Child Abuse, which addresses the procedure for mandatory reporting of suspected child abuse.

Finally, certain individuals may also be Campus Security Authorities for Clery Act purposes, and must also take into account their reporting obligations as a CSA under University Policy AD74.

SANCTIONS

Against Students: Disciplinary sanctions for student violations of this policy will be imposed in accordance with the “Code of Conduct & Student Conduct Procedures Manual.” Sanctions range from conduct conversation, conduct warning, conduct probation, conduct suspension, and indefinite expulsion, and permanent expulsion. In addition, possible secondary administrative sanctions may include housing review, room reassignment, loss of housing, and loss of privilege. The University reserves the right to impose other sanctions in addition to those listed above in response to a specific circumstances of a case.

Against Employees: Disciplinary sanctions for employee violations of this policy, which may range from a disciplinary warning to termination from the University, will be imposed in accordance with applicable University policies. Disciplinary sanctions may include one or more of the following measures:

• Termination from the University
• Unpaid suspension
• Restrictions from all or portions of campus
• Change in working facility
• Mandated education
• Written reprimand in personnel file
• Removal from classroom teaching
• Tenure revocation
• Withhold salary increase (from one to several years)
• Removal of endowed chair
• Removal of emeritus status
• Removal of graduate school status
• Termination of research project funding
• Removal from administrative position

 

To file a complaint outside the University, contact:

Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission
Harrisburg Regional Office
Riverside Office Complex
1101-1125 S. Front Street, Harrisburg PA 17104
(717) 787-9780

Office for Civil Rights, Philadelphia Office
Wanamaker Building
100 Penn Square East, Suite 515
Philadelphia, PA 19107-3323
Phone: (215) 656-8541
Email: OCR.Philadelphia@ed.gov