TTU Sexual or Racial Harassment Brochure

Recognizing, Preventing, and Taking Action Against Sexual or Racial Harassment

Recognizing Sexual Harassment

Consensual Relationships

Recognizing Racial Harassment

Preventing Sexual and Racial Harassment

Taking Action Against Sexual and Racial Harassment

 

Recognizing Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment can take many forms, but most sexual harassment is created by speech, conduct, or a combination thereof. Not every act that might be considered offensive to an individual or a group will be considered harassment. Whether the alleged conduct constitutes sexual harassment depends upon the record as a whole and the totality of the circumstances, such as the nature of the sexual advances considered in the context within which the alleged incident occurs. The conduct must be unwelcome and must be such that a reasonable person would find it offensive or hostile. The following examples are not exclusive, but represent types of conduct that may constitute sexual harassment.

• Solicitation of sexual activity by promising a work-related benefit or a grade
• Refusing to hire, promote, or grant or deny certain privileges because of acceptance or rejection of sexual advances
• Sexual innuendoes, comments, or remarks about a person’s clothing, body, or activities
• Suggestive or insulting sounds
• Whistling in a suggestive manner
• Humor or jokes about sex or females or males in general
• Sexual propositions, invitations, or pressure for sexual activity
• Suggestive or inappropriate communications, e-mail, notes, letters, or other written materials displaying objects or pictures which are sexual in nature that would create hostile or offensive working or living environments
• Use in the classroom of sexual jokes, stories, remarks, or images in no way germane to the subject matter of the class (However, harassment does not include verbal expressions or written material that is relevant and appropriately related to course subject matter or curriculum.)
• Ogling or leering
• Stalking
• Suggestive or obscene gestures
• Patting, pinching, and other inappropriate touching
• Unnecessary touching or brushing against the body
• Attempted or actual kissing or fondling
• Coerced sexual intercourse
• Sexual assault (Sexual assaults may be criminal acts, and as such, investigation and processing by the criminal justice system, local police, campus police, and crisis intervention centers may supersede or occur in addition to the process of the TTU and TBR Sexual or Racial Harassment policies.)

Consensual Relationships

Intimate relationships between supervisors and their subordinates or between faculty members and students are strongly discouraged due to the inherent inequality of power in such situations. These relationships could lead to undue favoritism or the perception of undue favoritism, abuse of power, compromised judgment, or impaired objectivity.

Engaging in a consensual relationship with a student over whom the faculty member has either grading, supervisory, or other evaluative authority constitutes a conflict of interest. The faculty member must take steps to remove the conflict by assigning a different supervisor to the student, resigning from the student’s academic committees, or terminating the relationship at least while the student is in his/her class.

It is also a conflict of interest for a supervisor to engage in a consensual relationship with a subordinate over whom he/she has evaluative or supervisory authority. The supervisor must take action to resolve the conflict of interest by, for example, assigning another individual to supervise and/or evaluate the subordinate.

Recognizing Racial Harassment

Generally, racial harassment is defined as any person’s conduct which unreasonably interferes with an employee’s or student’s status or performance by creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work or educational environment. Harassment on the basis of race, color, or national origin includes offensive or demeaning treatment of an individual where such treatment is based on prejudiced stereotypes of a group to which that individual may belong. It includes, but is not limited to, objectionable epithets, threatened or actual physical harm or abuse, or other intimidating or insulting conduct directed against the individual because of his/her race, color, or national origin.

Preventing Sexual and Racial Harassment

Prevention is the best tool to eliminate sexual or racial harassment. Tennessee Technological University will not tolerate sexual or racial harassment in the academic, residential, or work environment. TTU recognizes that all individuals have the right to study, reside, and work in an environment free from sexual or racial harassment. No individual shall retaliate or discriminate against another individual because of the latter’s filing of a sexual or racial harassment complaint.

All faculty members, students, and staff are subject to TTU’s Sexual or Racial Harassment Policy. Any faculty member, student, or staff member found to have violated the policy by engaging in behavior constituting sexual or racial harassment will be subject to disciplinary action which may include dismissal, expulsion, termination, or other appropriate sanction. Any individual who is found to have filed an intentionally false and maliciously made complaint will be subject to appropriate disciplinary action.

Taking Action Against Sexual and Racial Harassment

All faculty members, students, and staff, particularly management and supervisory personnel, are responsible for taking reasonable and necessary action to prevent and discourage sexual or racial harassment and are required to promptly report conduct that could be in violation of Tennessee Board of Regents and Tennessee Tech Sexual or Racial Harassment policies. Such reporting should occur when information concerning a complaint is received either formally or informally. Absent extraordinary circumstances, complaints must be brought within 365 days of the last incident of harassment.

It is helpful for the victim of sexual or racial harassment to directly inform the harasser that the conduct is unwelcome and must stop. Any current or former student, applicant for employment, or current or former employee who believes that he/she has been subjected to sexual or racial harassment at TTU or who believes that he/she has observed harassment taking place should report the complaint to the Affirmative Action Officer, Derryberry Hall, 372-3016. Allegations of sexual or racial harassment by one student against another student must be referred to the Dean of Students, 221 Roaden University Center, 372-3237

Confidentiality is respected; however, TTU has an obligation to address harassment and in order to conduct an effective investigation, complete confidentiality cannot be guaranteed.

The Tennessee Tech Sexual or Racial Harassment Policy may be found at:
http://www.tntech.edu/adminpandp/perspay/pp2.htm

The Tennessee Board of Regents Sexual or Racial Harassment Guideline P-080 may be found at: http://www.tbr.state.tn.us/policies_guidelines/personnel_guidelines/P-080.htm

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Phone: (931) 372-3016 FAX: (931) 372-6296
Questions or Comments, please E-mail affirmact@tntech.edu