BOARD POLICY HANDBOOK: APPENDICES
APPENDIX 1: HUMAN RIGHTS

Human Rights Policy

Introduction

Rogue Community College (RCC or the College) values and respects diversity as a foundation for a healthy learning and working community. This policy provides a statement of non-discrimination and an affirmation of the rights and dignity of all individuals at RCC. Included is a procedure for the prompt resolution of complaints of discrimination or harassment, including sexual harassment, which may be brought by any person who believes he or she has been subjected to discrimination or harassment by RCC employees, students, Board of Education (Board) members or third parties.

“Third parties” include, but are not limited to volunteers, visitors, service contractors or others engaged in college business, such as employees of businesses or organizations participating in cooperative programs with RCC and others not directly subject to college control at college events.  “College” includes college facilities, premises and non-college property if the student or employee is at any college-sponsored, college-approved or college-related activity or function where students are under the control of the College or where the employee is engaged in College business. 

Policy

It is RCC policy that all employees and students will be able to work and learn in an environment free of discrimination, including harassment. Therefore, it is a violation of College policy for any employee or student to engage in harassment, including sexual harassment, or to subject any person to discrimination. Sexual harassment is strictly prohibited and shall not be tolerated.  Further, no person shall be discriminated against in any terms or conditions of employment, in hiring, or in the provision of any college program, service or activity.

In order to maintain an atmosphere that is free of any form of harassment, all employees must take reasonable action to maintain work and educational environments which are free from conduct that causes, or reasonably could be considered to cause, intimidation or hostility.

It is the intent of the Board that appropriate corrective action will be taken by the College to stop harassment, prevent its recurrence and address negative consequences.  Appropriate disciplinary measures for all substantiated incidents of harassment will be taken seriously, including counseling and/or training up to the possibility of dismissal (suspension for students, or termination for employees) from the College.  Third parties whose behavior is found to be in violation of this policy shall be subject to appropriate sanctions as determined and imposed by the college president and/or his or her designee. 

For the purposes of this policy, discrimination is defined in the context of:

  1. Exclusionary Forms of Conduct
  2. Creation of an Intolerant Environment
  3. Malicious Harassment
  4. Sexual Harassment
  5. Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Grievance
  6. Violations of Student Rights and Freedoms

For explanation of these categories, refer to the “Definitions” on pages 6-7. 

Non-retaliation:  The initiation of a complaint in good faith about behavior that may violate this policy will not adversely affect the educational assignments or study environment of a student complainant or any terms or conditions of employment or work environment of a staff complainant.  There shall be no retaliation by the College against any person who, in good faith, reports, files a complaint or otherwise participates in an investigation or inquiry about harassment, including sexual harassment.  Because of the impact this policy may have on careers or academic success, RCC will seriously address any misuse of this policy. 

Consensual relations:  RCC strongly discourages intimate relationships between RCC staff and students or between supervisory staff and supervisees. The respect and trust accorded an instructor, supervisor, advisor, or counselor by a student or supervisee, as well as the unequal power exercised in giving praise or blame, grades, evaluations, and recommendations may be construed as a source of harassment or coercion in what was originally a consensual relationship.

Even if an employee, student or third party does not intend sexual harassment toward another, his or her behavior can be perceived as sexual harassment by the student, staff, colleague or third party.  And, any reports of such behavior will be taken seriously and promptly investigated. 

Representatives: The College has identified a number of representatives trained to deal with complaints of discrimination or harassment, including members of the Human Rights Network (HRN). Complaints may be directed to any of these representatives, an RCC counselor, the Affirmative Action Officer, or the ADA Compliance Officer. A list of representatives is available in the President’s Office, Human Resources, and Counseling.  The information is also posted on the RCC website at www.roguecc.edu/HumanRights/NetworkReps.asp.  The list will be updated and maintained by the HRN chair.  All procedures will adhere to due process, student and employee rights and responsibilities, and other applicable RCC policies and procedures.

Filing a Complaint

Informal Complaint Process

Any person (employee, student or third party) who believes he or she has been subjected to discrimination or harassment at RCC locations or at any RCC-sponsored event is encouraged to bring such incidents to the attention of one or more of the above-mentioned representatives.  Concerns will be treated with respect.  Recommendations on available options will be provided. 

This informal complaint process is designed to resolve a complaint at any point when the parties involved can agree on a solution, by working directly and confidentially with the parties involved.

Action Steps

  1. Any person may discuss a complaint with any HRN representative, RCC counselor or administrator.

  2. The informal process may have several outcomes, including but not limited to talking to the alleged source of the discrimination or harassment and/or his or her supervisor with or without mediation by a HRN representative or counselor.   
                                            
  3. If resolution is reached, no further action is taken; and, the matter is considered closed. 

  4. If a resolution is not reached, the formal complaint procedure may be considered. 

It is recommended the individual presenting an informal complaint and the interviewer keep a personal record of what happened, when, and a list of witnesses (if any).  The HRN representative will submit a confidential Incident Report to the chair of the HRN.  This confidential report is the only college record that will be kept. 

From time to time, a summary of incident(s) will be forwarded to the RCC President and Affirmative Action Officer and may be reviewed with the HRN on a periodic basis, for training purposes. 

Formal Complaint Process

This formal complaint procedure is designed to resolve a complaint that cannot be settled through the informal complaint process. The completion of this procedure is designed to take no more than 12 weeks. 

Complainants are encouraged to promptly file the Formal Harassment/Discrimination Complaint form regarding incidents of discrimination or harassment. Initial response to the complainant will be made by the college president within three working days.  The Director of Human Resources will also receive a copy of the Formal Harassment/Discrimination Complaint. 

ADA complaints may be filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) or the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries (BOLI) any time within one year of identification of a disciplinary action. 

All documentation related to harassment and/or discrimination complaints may become part of the student’s education record or employee’s personnel file, if appropriate. 

Additionally, a copy of all formal sexual harassment complaints and documentation will be maintained as a confidential file in Human Resources or Students Services, as applicable.

All complaints about behavior that may violate this policy shall be promptly investigated. Any student or employee who has knowledge of conduct in violation of this policy or believes he or she is a victim of sexual harassment must immediately report his or her concerns to a supervisor or HRN representative.  A student may also report concerns to a college instructor or counselor.  In either case, a HRN representative, the Affirmative Action Officer or college administrator will be promptly notified. 

Action Steps:

  1. Complete and return the Formal Harassment/Discrimination Complaint form to the President’s Office.  (Forms are available from any HRN representative, the Affirmative Action Officer, Human Resources or Counseling or on the RCC intranet at www.roguecc.edu/Human Rights/ or on the HRN J: drive, J:/HRN/Forms/Formal Complaint.doc. 

  2. Upon receipt of a Formal Harassment/Discrimination Complaint, the RCC President or the President's designee will appoint an investigating committee.  The chair of the HRN will carry out the review process.  At a minimum, the investigating committee will consist of the Affirmative Action Officer, the appropriate associate dean or dean and at least one trained HRN representative.  The investigator(s) shall be neutral party(ies) having had no involvement in the complaint presented. 

    Relevant factors to be considered in the investigation will include, but not be limited to, did the individual view the environment as hostile; was it reasonable to view the environment as hostile; the nature of the conduct; how often the conduct occurred and how long it continued; age and sex of the complainant; whether the alleged harasser was in a position of power over the student or staff member subjected to the harassment; number of individuals involved; age of the alleged harasser; where the harassment occurred; and other incidents of sexual harassment at the college involving the same or other students or staff. 

    If the college president is the alleged source of the discrimination or harassment complaint, the Affirmative Action Officer will appoint the investigating committee and select an impartial replacement. In the event the Affirmative Action Officer or HRN chair is the alleged source of a discrimination or harassment complaint, an impartial replacement will be selected by the college president.

  3. The chair of the investigating committee will inform all parties involved of the discrimination or harassment complaint and subsequent investigation. 

    Any RCC employee who is the subject of an investigation that may result in disciplinary action and/or termination is entitled to representation and should refer to their respective bargaining agreements – Article 24.A. of the faculty agreement and Article 12.C of the classified employees’ agreement. 

  4. The committee will carry out an inquiry into the incident(s) reported in the Formal Harassment/Discrimination Complaint, including interviews with the complainant and respondent and any witness(es) or other parties with knowledge or access to knowledge of the reported incident(s).

  5. A written report, Notice of Findings and Recommendations on Formal Harassment/ Discrimination Complaint (J:/HRN/Forms/Findings &Recommendations.doc) will be submitted to the college president for review and disposition. 

    The president and/or his or her designee will provide complainant and respondent with a letter regarding the Committee’s findings forthwith.  A copy of the letter will be provided to Human Resources. 

  6. If the complainant is satisfied with the results, the matter is closed; if not satisfied, the process continues.

If the complainant is dissatisfied with the findings of the investigating committee and/or the RCC president's decision:

  1. The complainant may request a meeting with the president. The request must be made in writing within 10 working days of the president's decision.

  2. The president and/or his or her designee will meet with the complainant and the complainant's advocate (if the complainant so chooses) within 10 working days of receipt of the complainant's written request.

  3. The president will provide a written report to the complainant of findings and recommendations within 15 working days of the date of that meeting.

  4. The complainant will review the written decision of the president.  If satisfied, the matter is concluded. If not satisfied, the complainant may submit a written appeal to be discussed at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the RCC Board of Education.   

  5. After exhausting this complaint resolution procedure, or after 12 weeks,  if no final decision has been made, an appeal may be made in writing to the Commissioner of Community Colleges for the State of Oregon in Salem and will be reviewed according to Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) 589-010-0100(11).

            ADA complaints may be filed with the EEOC or Department of Justice anytime within 360 days of identification of a discriminatory action.

Documentation

All records, reports, and findings resulting from this formal process will be compiled and filed confidentially in the RCC Human Rights Network files in the President’s Office.  The Human Resources Department will also maintain a copy of the Formal Harassment/Discrimination Complaint, the investigating committee’s Findings and Recommendations Report and the president’s and/or Board’s letter(s) to complainant and respondent. 

This documentation will be maintained for a minimum of three years after final decision has been made pursuant to Archives Division, OAR, Chapter 166, Personnel Records, 166-450-0090. 

Definitions

Exclusionary Form of Conduct - Any differential treatment of, or adverse impact on, an individual(s) by a person(s) or a structure(s) that excludes or denies access to participation in services, programs, or activities of RCC.  Some types of differential treatment, including, but not limited to, separate toilets and locker room facilities for men and women, designated non-smoking areas, personnel meetings, or removal for violation of college policy, would not be construed as exclusionary.

Creation of an Intolerant Environment - Results from intentional conduct of an individual or group of individuals who engage in threats, physical abuse, or harassment that threaten or endanger the health, safety, or welfare of a member of the RCC community, or which interferes with the ability to effectively pursue an education or participate fully in RCC programs and activities.

Malicious Harassment - Behavior that is maliciously and intentionally committed because of an individual's race, marital/parental status, sexual orientation, age, religion, or mental or physical disability. This may include injury to the individual or another person, damage or destruction of the property of the individual or another person, or threats to an individual or group.

Sexual Harassment - Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute sexual harassment when:

  1. Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment (or academic success),
  2. Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as a basis for employment (or academic) decisions affecting such individuals, or
  3. The conduct or communication is so severe, persistent or pervasive that it has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with a student’s educational performance or with an employee’s ability to perform his/her job; or creates an intimidating, offensive or hostile educational or working environment. 

ADA Grievance - Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act states, in part, that "no qualified individual with a disability shall, on the basis of disability, be excluded from participation in or be denied the services, programs, or activities of a public entity, or be subjected to discrimination by any such entity."  These standards apply to services, programs, or activities sponsored by RCC.  Complaints should be addressed to the ADA Compliance Officer.

Student Academic Grievance - As students pursue their educational goals, they shall be free from unfair and/or improper behaviors by members of the college community which are violations of student rights and freedoms as identified in the Student Rights, Freedoms, and Responsibilities Statement, available from a Human Rights Network representative, the Affirmative Action Officer, ADA Compliance Officer, Counseling, Student Services and Human Resources, or on-line at www.roguecc.edu/BoardPolicies/Appendix_3.htm. 

Amended:  March 16, 1983
Approved:  June 14, 1997
Amended/Approved:  June 16, 1999
E-Team Approved:  July 14, 2008
HRN Approved:  August 7, 2008
Approved:  September 16, 2008