Sexual Harassment
Title IX protects students from unlawful sexual harassment in all of a school s programs or activities, whether they take place in the facilities of the school, on a school bus, at a class or training program sponsored by the school at another location, or elsewhere. Title IX protects both male and female students from sexual harassment, regardless of who the harasser is.
Sexual Harassment includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal, visual, or physical behaviors related to a person’s gender, sexual identity, or sexuality when:
- Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s academic advancement or employment; or
- Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions or academic decisions affecting such individual; or
- Such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work or academic performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work or academic environment.
Sexual harassment contains these two elements:
- Sexual behavior that is unwanted and unwelcome
- Sexual behavior related to the gender, sexual identity, or sexuality of the person.
Sexual harassment often occurs in situations where one person is in a position of power or authority over another, but it can occur when there is no evident power differential. Both women and men can be harassed, and harassment can be same-sex harassment.
Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination prohibited by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and in Kentucky, by the Fair Employment Practices Act, KRS 344.010-500, 207, 170.
Berea College specifically prohibits sexual harassment of students, workers, or visitors. The College is committed to investigating and resolving all sexual harassment complaints. Offenses will result in disciplinary action up to and including dismissal, whether the offender is faculty, staff, administrator, student, or trustee. Retaliation through discrimination, intimidation, threat, coercion, or any other means against anyone who has reported sexual harassment is prohibited by College policy. Reports of sexual harassment should be directed to the Institutional Compliance Officer.