You are here

Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation Policy

 

Hampshire College prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, sex, age, marital status, national origin, mental or physical disability, political belief or affiliation, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information and any other class of individuals protected from discrimination under state or federal law in any of its educational programs and activities, in employment and application for employment, and in admission and application of admission as required by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and its implementing regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106.9), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the Age Discrimination Act of 1975, and Executive Order 11246 of 1965, as amended by Executive Order 11357 of 1967, and other federal and state laws that prohibit discrimination.  Hampshire College prohibits harassment of students, employees and third parties, including racial harassment, sexual harassment, and gender-based harassment.  Hampshire College also prohibits retaliation for filing good faith complaints of discrimination or harassment.

Hampshire College has designated a Title IX coordinator for purposes of Title IX compliance:
Zauyah Waite, Ph.D.
Title IX Coordinator
Merrill Student Life Center, 2nd floor
413.559.5412
titleix@hampshire.edu
Inquiries about Title IX or the College’s sexual misconduct, relationship violence, and stalking policy can be directed to the Title IX coordinator or to the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights.

Complaints and inquiries regarding all other forms of discrimination and harassment involving students can be directed to:
Sheila Lloyd, Ph.D.
Senior Vice President for Justice, Equity, and Antiracism
srlPR@hampshire.edu

Complaints and inquiries regarding all other forms of discrimination and harassment involving employees or third party vendors can be directed to:
Jake Toomey,
Director of Human Resources
413.559.5605
jtHR@hampshire.edu

Complaints and inquiries of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation regarding federal laws may be directed to:

U.S. Department of Education
Office for Civil Rights
5 Post Office Square, 8th floor
Boston, MA 02109-3921
617.289.0111
TTY: 800.877.8339

U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity
John F. Kennedy Federal Building
475 Government Center
Boston, MA 02203
800.669.4000
TTY: 800.669.6820

Complaints and inquiries of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation regarding state laws may be directed to:

Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination
436 Dwight Street
Room 220
Springfield, MA 01103
413.739.2145

It is a violation of College policy to retaliate in any way against an individual or a group because the individual or group made a good faith report concerning a violation of this policy, was the subject of a report, or otherwise participated in the College’s investigation of such a report. Retaliation includes threatening, intimidating, harassing or any other conduct that would discourage a reasonable person from engaging in activity protected under this policy.  Any individual who believes they have been the subject of retaliation should immediately report their concerns to the chief diversity officer.  The College will take immediate and appropriate action to any report of retaliation and may pursue disciplinary action as appropriate.

Harassment, Other Forms of Discrimination, and Retaliation

Discrimination
Discrimination is the adverse treatment of any individual based on the protected class or category to whom they belong, rather than on the basis of their individual merit. The protected categories include race, color, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity and gender expression, genetic information, religion, national origin, disability, veteran/military status or any other characteristic under applicable federal or state law.

In employment, discrimination or harassment may begin with adverse actions that may include using different standards of evaluation for employment, promotion or job performance on the basis of protected categories; denying an employee’s request for reasonable accommodations; denying employment opportunity or terminating on the basis of protected categories; retaliation against an employee participating in an investigation of discrimination and harassment.

For students discrimination and harassment may begin with differential treatment in their education program or activity on the basis of their protected category. This may include using different standards to evaluate academic performance on the basis of the protected category; denying academic, social, recreational, health services and housing on the basis of the protected category; retaliation against a student participating in an investigation of discrimination and harassment.

Harassment is unwelcome conduct directed toward a person based on one or more protected categories or statuses of that person, when either of these conditions are met:

(1) Submission to or rejection of such conduct is either an explicit or implicit term or
condition of an individual’s academic standing, evaluation of academic
work or advancement in an academic program, or employment, is used as the basis for College
decisions affecting the individual (often referred to as “quid pro quo” or “this for that”
harassment—this type of harassment is governed by the sexual misconduct, relationship violence, and stalking policy).

(2) The conduct is severe, persistent or pervasive that it interferes with an individual’s academic performance, participation in College programs or activities, employment and creates a working, learning, program or activity environment that a reasonable person would find intimidating, hostile or offensive.

Examples of such conduct include:

  • Offensive or degrading remarks, verbal abuse, or other hostile behavior such as insulting, teasing, mocking, degrading or ridiculing another person or group;
  • Racial slurs, derogatory remarks about a person’s accent, or display of racially offensive symbols;
  • Unwelcome or inappropriate physical contact, comments, questions, advances, jokes, epithets or demands;
  • Physical assault or stalking;
  • Displays or electronic transmission of derogatory, demeaning or hostile materials; and
  • Unwillingness to train, evaluate, assist, or work with an employee.

Retaliation
It is a violation of College policy to retaliate in any way against an individual or a group because the individual or group made a good faith report concerning a violation of this policy, was the subject of a report, or otherwise participated in the College’s investigation of such a report. Retaliation includes threatening, intimidating, harassing or any other conduct that would discourage a reasonable person from engaging in activity protected under this policy.  Any individual who believes they have been the subject of retaliation should immediately report their concerns to the Senior Vice President for Justice, Equity, and Antiracism.  The College will take immediate and appropriate action to any report of retaliation and may pursue disciplinary action as appropriate.

Please refer to the grievance policy in this handbook for guidance on how to report allegations of discrimination or harassment.  Please note that the grievance policy in this manual does not address sexual assault, sexual exploitation, relationship violence, stalking, or sexual or gender-based harassment. Those categories of prohibited conduct are governed by the College’s Title IX grievance policy or sexual misconduct, relationship violence and stalking policy, which also establishes separate procedures that outline how the College assesses, investigates and resolves reports of such prohibited conduct against student respondents (Appendix A) and employee respondents (Appendix B).  See https://www.hampshire.edu/offices/title-ix