VIII. Retaliation Prohibited

No person may intimidate, threaten, coerce, or discriminate against any individual for the purpose of interfering with any right or privilege secured by this policy or Title IX, or because the individual has made a report or complaint, testified, assisted, or participated or refused to participate in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing under this policy or Title IX. Intimidation, threats, coercion, or discrimination, including charges against an individual for policy/handbook violations that do not involve sex discrimination or sexual misconduct, but arise out of the same facts or circumstances as a report or complaint of sex discrimination, or a report or formal complaint of sexual misconduct, for the purpose of interfering with any right or privilege secured by this policy or Title IX, constitutes retaliation. The University will keep confidential the identity of any individual who has made a report or complaint of retaliation (as well as discrimination, harassment or sexual misconduct) pursuant to this policy, except as may be permitted by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) statute or regulations, as required by law, or to carry out the purposes of this policy.

Any retaliation as described above is prohibited and is a separate violation of this policy. An individual who is threatened in any way should immediately report these concerns to the Title IX/EEO Coordinator (or designee) or one of the designated Deputy Title IX/EEO Coordinators. All complaints, allegations, or reports of retaliation under this policy will be processed by the same procedures set forth in this policy. Individuals who engage in such retaliatory actions are subject to disciplinary sanctions as set forth in the grievance resolution process (See Section X below).

Some examples of retaliation include, but are not limited to:

  • Suspending or limiting a person’s involvement in an activity because of their participation in an investigation under this policy.
  • Taking adverse academic action against a student following a report of misconduct under this policy.
  • Communicating threats to an individual to encourage an individual not to pursue a complaint or to withdraw a complaint under this policy.
Note: The exercise of rights protected under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution do not constitute retaliation, subject to limitations imposed by the First Amendment and the Non-Disclosure Agreement described in Section X below. As such, the exercise of these rights could constitute retaliation in certain, limited circumstances depending on the nature of the conduct in question.