Sexual Misconduct Policy

Title IX states that:

"No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance".

Each institution must designate at least one employee to evaluate current policy practices, coordinate college wide educational programming and training to ensure an institution's compliance with Title IX, coordinate efforts to effectively and efficiently respond to complaints of sex discrimination, including complaints of sexual harassment, sexual violence, domestic violence, stalking and dating violence and ensure as much as possible that every student has an equal education. If you would like to file a complaint or give notice of a violation of Title IX, please contact one of the following Title IX Committee Members:

Seann Kalagher, J.D., M.S.Ed.
Chief Compliance Officer/Title IX Coordinator

Reid Castle – Room 230

914.323.5379

Seann.Kalagher@mville.edu

Sharlise Smith-Rodriguez

Dean of Students

Title IX Deputy Coordinator

Reid Castle Room 227

914.323.3134

Sharlise.Smith@mville.edu

Julene F. Caulfield

Associate Director for Athletics

Title IX Deputy Coordinator

Kennedy Gym – Main Floor

914.323.7285

Julene.Fisher@mville.edu

Stephanie Carcano

Human Resources Generalist/Benefits

Title IX Deputy Coordinator

Chapel Corridor - Room 206

914.323.5138

Stephanie.Carcano@mville.edu

Title IX Inquiries can also be directed to the following email address: TitleIX@mville.edu

The Title IX Coordinator is formally designated to coordinate the College’s compliance efforts regarding reports of sexual misconduct and discrimination by members of the College Community. The Coordinator will oversee the review, investigation and resolution of all reports under this Policy.

Individuals may also choose to report incidents of prohibited conduct to College employees not specifically designated above. The following is a list of Mandated Reporters who are trained to receive reports or complaints of sexual misconduct:

• President
• Senior Officers (Vice Presidents and Upper level administrators)
• Campus Safety and Security
• Human Resources Administrators
• Other Deans, Associate Deans, Directors and Administrators with supervisory responsibilities
• Academic Department Chairs and Program Directors
• Coaches including Assistant ADs and Assistant Coaches
• Faculty
• Staff
• Faculty/Staff advisors to student clubs/organizations
• Student Affairs professionals
• Residential Life Para and Professional Staff

All Mandated Reporters are required to report incidents to the College's Title IX Coordinator or designee who will determine the most appropriate course of action to ensure a prompt and equitable response. This legal obligation is based on the Title IX requirement that the College take immediate and corrective action if an employee knows or, in the exercise of reasonable care, should have known about sexual or gender-based harassment or violence.

Pursuant to this Policy, failure to report allegations of sexual misconduct may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination and/or dismissal from the College.

Filing a Report

Filing a Report 

• A Complainant has the right, and can expect, to have reports taken seriously by the College when notified, and to have these incidents investigated and adjudicated in an impartial, timely, and thorough manner by individuals who receive annual training in conducting investigations of sexual violence, the effects of trauma and impartiality.

   

• Resolution procedures are guided by principles of fairness and respect for all parties.As referenced above, both on-campus and off-campus resources and support are available for both students and employees, whether as Complainants or Respondents, to provide guidance throughout the investigation and resolution of complaints.

   

• A Complainant may withdraw a complaint or report from the College at any time, without penalty.

   

• All proceedings are conducted in compliance with the requirements of FERPA, the Clery Act, Title IX, the Violence Against Women Act, federal, state and local law, and College policy.

   

  1. Complainant’s Request Not to Pursue an Investigation

      

     If a Complainant does not wish for his/her name to be shared, does not wish for an investigation to take place, or does not want a formal resolution to be pursued, the Complainant may make such a request to the Title IX Coordinator or designee, who will evaluate that request in light of the duty to ensure the safety of the campus and comply with federal law. In cases indicating pattern, predation, threat, weapons and/or violence, the College will likely be unable to honor a request for confidentiality.  Where the Complainant requests confidentiality and the circumstances allow the College to honor that request, the College may offer interim supports and remedies to the Complainant and the Community, but will not otherwise pursue formal action.

      

  2. Privacy in Reporting

      

     The College is committed to maintaining the privacy of all parties involved and every effort will be made to protect privacy interests in a manner consistent with the need for a thorough review. 

      

     Information provided to non-confidential campus employees will be relayed only as necessary to assist the Title IX Coordinator or designee in the active review, investigation and/or resolution of the complaint. While not bound by confidentiality, the circle of people with this knowledge will be kept as tight as possible to preserve a Complainant’s and Respondent’s rights and privacy.

      

  3. Receipt of Notice

     Upon receipt of notice of any allegation of sexual misconduct, the College shall ensure that Complainants are advised of their right to: 

     • “notify proper law enforcement authorities, including on-campus and local police;
     • be assisted by campus authorities in notifying law enforcement authorities if the Complainant so chooses; and
     • decline to notify such authorities.” 20 U.S.C. §1092 (f)(8)(B)(iii)(III)(aa)-(cc).

The College will also inform the Complainant of his/her right to be protected from retaliation for reporting an incident in good faith, even if the report is not later substantiated. 

If a Complainant chooses to file a report with the Harrison Police

Department or any other applicable law enforcement agency, upon request,

the College will assist the Complainant in doing so. Any criminal investigation performed by law enforcement will be separate from the investigation performed by the College. Disciplinary action will normally proceed concurrently with these civil and/or criminal proceedings and will not be subject to challenge on the grounds that civil or criminal charges involving the same incident have been dismissed or reduced. The College may undertake a short delay (several days to weeks) in its investigation or resolution process, to comply with a law enforcement request for cooperation (e.g. to allow for criminal evidence collection) when criminal charges on the basis of the same behaviors that invoke this process are being investigated. This temporary delay should not last more than 10 days except when law enforcement specifically requests and justifies a longer delay. The College will promptly resume its investigation and processes once notified by law enforcement that the initial evidence collection process is complete. 

Transcript Notation Policy

Per New York Education Law Article 129-B, “for crimes of violence, including, but not limited to sexual violence, defined as crimes that meet the reporting requirements pursuant to the federal Clery Act established in 20 U.S.C. 1092(f)(1)(F)(i)(I)-(VIII), the College shall make a notation on the transcript of students found responsible after a conduct process that they were ‘suspended after a finding of responsibility for a code of conduct violation’ or ‘expelled after a finding of responsibility for a code of conduct violation.’ For the Respondent who withdraws from the College while such conduct charges are pending, and declines to complete the disciplinary process, the College shall make a notation on the transcript of such students that they ‘withdrew with conduct charges pending.’” NY Educ. Law § 6444.

See Transcript Notation Policy for formal process.

Appeal’s Process for Seeking Removal of Notation

Any decision of the Conduct Process may be appealed in writing within 48 hours to the Vice President for Student Affairs for cases heard by the Director of Residence Life or Dean of Students. Once an appeal is submitted the appeals officer will determine if a face to face meeting is warranted. An appellate decision for this purpose is defined as having the power to review the conduct findings of another conduct officer. Appellate decisions of the Director of Residence Life, Dean of Students, Vice President for Student Affairs are final, and will be rendered after receiving the appeal.

The appeal form must include the grounds for the appeal as well as the supporting facts and arguments. The following are grounds for an appeal:

• The conduct process was not in accord with the rules and regulations governing the College’s conduct process, and this deprivation materially affected the decision; and/or
• The finding of the violation is contradicted by new evidence and would have resulted in a different decision.

On appeal, sanctions can be increased or decreased. If an appeal is heard, the following actions may be taken:

• Possible modification of the sanction, including increasing the penalty.
• Ordering reconsideration by the original conduct officer or designee based on:
  • Alleged new evidence – only if the new evidence is of such a nature as to be reasonably likely to change the outcome of the original investigation and was unavailable at the time of the original investigation.
  • Alleged defect in procedure – only if the defect in the original investigation is sufficiently substantial to be reasonably likely to change the outcome.
  • Ordering dismissal of the case where false evidence was presented.

Resources

Manhattanville College supports the Sexual Misconduct policy through educational prevention, counseling, and medical support services. Educational programs at Manhattanville College include, but are not limited to, guest speakers, awareness programs, individual counseling, various victim support services and other programs presented by various departments.

Here are on-campus and off-campus support services available for the complainant, respondent, and witnesses

On Campus:

Off Campus:

Inquiries may be made to the local Office for Civil Rights (OCR) Office:

Region II – New York (New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands)

Office for Civil Rights

U.S. Department of Education

32 Old Slip, 26th Floor

New York, NY 10005-2500

Telephone: (646) 428-3800

Facsimile: (646) 428-3843

Email: OCR.NewYork@ed.gov

Complaints with OCR must be filed within one hundred eighty (180) days of the last act the Complainant believes was discriminatory. There is no time limit for making a report to the College; however, if the Respondent is no longer a student or employee, the College’s authority to pursue disciplinary action may be limited.