Title IX Sexual Misconduct FAQs
You know when something’s not right. When someone’s in trouble—or about to be. You can be the one to help. Say something. Cause a distraction. Be the one to step into a situation to help someone out of it.
Reporting
How many people am I going to have to talk to?
We make every effort to minimize the amount of times that a reporting party and/or
complainant needs to describe what took place. Our process strives to identify a single
point of contact from the Equal Opportunity team that upon receipt of a report/complaint,
serves as the initial point of contact and will likely be the individual to conduct
any review, assessment and/or investigation. Complainants who proceed through a Title
IX Hearing will be required to also engage in the hearing, which means providing information
to the Title IX Hearing Officer and responding to questions asked through the respondent’s
Title IX Advisor.
What if I don’t know who did this?
You are still encouraged to report the misconduct and share any relevant information
with the College and/or local law enforcement. The College will follow up with you,
make sure that you are aware of appropriate on- and off-campus resources, and what
processes may be available to you based on the information you have provided.
What if I don’t want the person to get in trouble?
The College’s goal is not to get someone in trouble, but to respond to reports of
Title IX Sexual Misconduct, eliminate the behavior, prevent its recurrence and address
its effects. In all cases where a complainant reports alleged misconduct, we will
review the information available and work with the complainant to discuss options.
In certain situations, which may include, but not limited to, instances where a formal
complaint is submitted by a complainant, the college may need to take action that
goes beyond the complainant's request. Part of this action may include disciplinary
action taken against another individual, which will involve holding the individual
accountable for their behavior and taking steps to prevent this from happening again.
In these limited circumstances, the College will notify the complainant of this action
and discuss the process which will be followed.
Can I report information on behalf of someone else?
You may report information for someone else. The College, however, may be limited
in the support we are able to provide without speaking directly to the complainant,
who is the person directly affected by the incident.
What if the incident occurred off campus?
The Discrimination, Harassment and Related Misconduct policy applies to all Prohibited
Conduct that occurs on campus (including the District Office, centers, and other property
owned or leased by the College). Title IX Sexual Misconduct specifically must occur
as part of the College’s educational program or activity within the United States.
This includes locations, events or circumstances over which the school exercises substantial
control over the respondent and the context in which the alleged sexual harassment
has occurred. This includes any building owned or controlled by a student organization
that is officially recognized by the College. These situations may be addressed through
the procedures outlined in College Policy 6Hx28:2-01, Discrimination, Harassment &
Related Misconduct or other applicable policies.
Resources
What protective supportive measures are available?
Depending on the specific circumstances surrounding the concern, the college may apply
supportive and/or interim protective measures that involve connection to external
resources, assistance with academic classes, no-contact orders and transportation
accommodation requests from the complainant. These requests should be made through
the Equal Opportunity Office, Title IX Coordinator, or a deputy coordinator. Efforts
will be made to honor these requests, whenever possible.
What if I need a Title IX Advisor?
You may select an advisor of your choice for any Title IX related meeting or hearing.
If you do not select one, the college will provide a Title IX Advisor to you at no
cost. Both the complainant and respondent are required to be accompanied by a Title
IX Advisor to participate in a Title IX Hearing. Please reach out to the Title IX coordinator for additional information regarding this process.
What is the role of an advisor?
You can have an advisor with you during any meeting. This person may or may not be
the same person who will be there during the Title IX Hearing process. A Title IX
Advisor is an individual, who may be an attorney, who is selected by either the Complainant
or Respondent and is permitted to participate in the Title IX Misconduct process,
including conducting cross-examination during a live hearing. Apart from their role
in cross-examination, this person will be a silent and nonparticipating presence who
solely observes and provides support during the investigation process. If a party
does not have an advisor present at the live hearing, the school must provide, without
fee or charge to that party, an advisor of the school’s choice who may be, but is
not required to be, an attorney to conduct cross-examination on behalf of that party.
Confidentiality
Who is going to find out?
The staff in the Equal Opportunity Office (including the Title IX Coordinator in cases
involving allegations of Title IX Sexual Misconduct) who will be involved in the response
to the report, will be notified. Should the complainant decide to pursue a formal
complaint through the college’s process to respond to reports of Title IX Sexual Misconduct,
it is likely that a Title IX Investigator, Title IX Advisors, and the Title IX Hearing
Officer may be involved in the process. Should a request be made for classroom, employment
and/or transportation accommodations, the appropriate offices will be notified of
the accommodation request, but not informed of the details of the complaint. Other
students who are not involved and other faculty/staff without a “need to know” role
are not informed of the complaint. Additionally, the college does not inform the media/press
of the identity of students; however, faculty and staff identities may be revealed
in a public records request.
The Title IX Coordinator/deputy Title IX coordinator can discuss any request for confidentiality with the complainant at any time.
What happens if the complainant requests that their name be anonymous or ask that
the college not take any action?
If a complainant requests that his/her name not be revealed to the respondent, or
asks that the college not investigate or seek action against the respondent, the college
will inform the complainant that honoring the request may limit its ability to respond
fully to the incident, including pursuing disciplinary action against the respondent.
The complainant may still utilize supportive measures.
The college will also explain that Valencia College Policy 6Hx28:2-01 includes protections against retaliation and that college officials will not only take steps to prevent retaliation, but will also take responsive action if it occurs. If the complainant still requests that their name is not disclosed to the respondent or that the college not investigate or seek action against the respondent, the college will consider the request and may have to dismiss the formal complaint. Supportive measures are still available to the complainant.
Processes and Procedures
What is the difference between sexual misconduct and Title IX Sexual Misconduct?
For conduct to fall within the scope of Title IX Sexual Misconduct certain criteria
must be met. For example, the sexual misconduct must have occurred within the College’s
program or activity, and must involve individuals currently participating in the College’s
educational program or activity. Additional criteria can be found in Valencia College Policy 6Hx28:2-01. Should this criteria not be met, the college may still address the alleged misconduct
under applicable policies and procedures.
What are some examples of sexual misconduct?
Please visit our website for more information on definitions within the policy.
What if I don’t want to see the person during the College’s process to address the
misconduct?
Arrangements can be made during the process to allow for participants to participate
through remote access locations or by providing partitions separating parties should
both parties be required to be in the same location at the same time.
Can I have a friend come with me?
Yes, a friend can serve in the role of an advisor. Please review Valencia College Policy 6Hx28:2-01 for information regarding the criteria for an advisor.