NEWS SEARCH

NEWS HOME

ARCHIVES

EXTRAS

	MEDIA RELATIONS
	Press Releases
	Image Downloads
	Contacts

Recent events have raised questions about sexual harassment policies and procedures at the University of California, Berkeley. This page consolidates information about the campus’s existing policies and mechanisms for responding to allegations of sexual harassment. The relevant policies are available through www.berkeley.edu; type“sexual harassment” in the Search field for a list of links.

Policies

The Title IX Compliance Office monitors and evaluates campus efforts to meet requirements of the 1972 federal legislation that prohibits all forms of sex discrimination in educational institutions that receive federal funding. Beyond meeting the complex legal requirements for resolving issues of sex discrimination, sexual harassment, sexual assault and rape, this office helps create and maintain a campus community committed to positive values of equal opportunity, and free from all forms of harassment, exploitation or intimidation.

The Title IX Compliance Officer:

• is the Campus Complaint Resolution Officer for faculty, staff and students in the investigation and resolution of sexual harassment complaints, pursuant to the Berkeley Campus Policy on Sexual Harassment and Complaint Resolution Procedures. The policy includes the definition of sexual harassment, sources of information on sexual harassment policies and programs, mediation and complaint resolution processes, formal complaint policies and disciplinary actions, and campus resources on sexual harassment.
• is the Complaint Resolution Officer for investigation and resolution of sex discrimination and sexual harassment complaints in accordance with the Berkeley Campus Student Grievance Procedure.
• may serve as Complaint Resolution Officer for student complaints alleging race discrimination.
• is responsible for coordination of the campus response to sexual assault and rape, pursuant to the Berkeley Campus Student Policy and Procedures Regarding Sexual Assault and Rape.
• works with the Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Equity in overseeing cases concerning faculty issues relating to gender discrimination.
• advises the Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost on cases concerning faculty charged with sexual harassment.
• is committed to balancing institutional, legal and individual concerns in the course of resolving these matters.

Procedures

The procedures for handling complaints are detailed in the Berkeley Campus Policy on Sexual Harassment and Complaint Resolution Procedures. Allegations of sexual harassment are investigated by the Title IX officer or an independent investigator. Under the policy, allegations are to be submitted within 90 days of the triggering incident; however, that time limit may be waived. The investigation of any complaint is to be completed within 90 working days.

Another avenue for pursuing complaints is under the systemwide Faculty Code of Conduct, whose sexual harassment policies have no time limit with regard to reporting alleged violations. Faculty conduct also is regulated by the Academic Senate; Appendix II of the Berkeley Division Academic Senate Manual (Title II, subsection A) deals with Professional Conduct and Faculty Discipline, and prohibits sexual relationships between faculty and students where there is a supervisory relationship between the two. Full bylaws of the Academic Senate are available online.

Education and Training

Student notification of sexual harassment policies

Code of Student Conduct
All students are subject to the Code of Student Conduct, which explicitly prohibits sexual harassment. The code is available online to all students. Additionally, the code is distributed in printed form to the following groups:

• all students living in residence halls (as part of the Guide to Student Living)
• directors of all 400+ student groups
• the leadership of all campus Greek organizations
• all students attending CalSo orientation programs
• all students who purchase the General Catalog
• all students who purchase the Graduate Handbook

Twice yearly, parts of the code are printed in the Daily Californian student newspaper, with a reminder to students to review the entire code online.

As a supplement to Code of Student Conduct, the Berkeley Campus Student Policy and Procedures Regarding Sexual Assault and Rape includes the UC Berkeley policy regarding sexual harassment. This document also provides the following information: campus response, prevention and education efforts, procedures for responding to an incident, and contact information for campus units providing services related to sexual assault or harassment, including: ASUC Student Advocate, Housing and Dining Services, Ombudsperson for Students, Office of Student Conduct, Student Legal Services, Title IX Compliance Officer, University Health Services, UC Police Department, and Women’s Resource Center.

Safety Counts
The UC Berkeley Police Department prints an annual report of crime statistics that includes data on non-forcible sex offenses. The booklet also includes the text of the Berkeley Campus Student Policy and Procedures Regarding Rape and Sexual Assault. This booklet is available to all students online via the UCPD Web site, and can be mailed upon request.

Individual units on the campus, including the School of Law, also make additional information on this subject available through their own publications.

Faculty and staff notification of sexual harassment policies

At the annual retreat for deans and chairs of departments sponsored by the executive vice chancellor and provost, information on the university’s policies and procedures, including sexual harassment, is distributed. Faculty are directed annually to the online Faculty Guide to Campus Life, which discusses campus policies and procedures. At orientations for new faculty, the sexual harassment policies are distributed. At orientation sessions for new staff, the Title IX officer discusses these policies. The Title IX officer also presents eighty to ninety workshops per year on the subject of sexual harassment to a variety of groups on the campus.

Services

University Health Services
A variety of resources are available at the Tang Health Center to students who have been sexually harassed or assaulted, including counseling and medical care. Additionally, the University Health Services Web site offers a variety of resources for students facing such a crisis with step-by-step instructions on how to report the incident and/or get immediate treatment. The Tang center also sponsors prevention activities to support the campus community by helping to create an environment free of sexual assault. Workshops are available for living centers, classes, departments and other groups.

SHAPE (Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault Prevention Education and Services)
Located within the Gender Equity Resource Center, SHAPE strives to increase campus awareness of sexual harassment through education and programs.

• SHAPE interns provide advocacy and support to students throughout the complaint process – including assistance with documentation, information about available options and accompaniment to appropriate campus units involved in their case.
• SHAPE recruits and trains student interns to facilitate interactive educational workshops for a variety of campus groups including residence halls, freshman orientation classes, sororities and fraternities, and campus student groups requesting information.
• SHAPE sponsors a semester-long seminar on “The Politics of Sexual Harassment.” Class participants explore in-depth the cultural underpinnings and the range of gray areas surrounding sexual harassment, as well as the political, economic and social climates surrounding issues of sexual harassment.

Related story:

• Law school dean resigns after harassment charge: a Q&A
  

.