Sexual Harassment
Acts of sexual harassment may be committed by any person upon any other person, regardless of the sex, sexual orientation, and/or gender identity of those involved. It includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other physical, verbal, and non-verbal sexual conduct when one of the following circumstances are present:
Quid Pro Quo
Quid pro quo means "this for that." This type of harassment is generally committed by someone who can make or recommend employment or academic decisions. This means your job or academic evaluation is based on your acceptance or rejection of the sexual conduct. Quid Pro Quo criteria include:
- A District employee,
- Conditions the provision of an aid, benefit, or service of the District,
- On an individual's participation in unwelcome sexual conduct.
Hostile Environment
Hostile environment harassment occurs when the sexual conduct is so severe that it interferes with someone's work or learning environment. Hostile environment criteria include:
- Unwelcome conduct,
- Determined by a reasonable person,
- To be so severe, and
- Pervasive, and
- Objectively offensive,
- That it effectively denies a person equal access to the District's education program or activity.
Examples of physical, verbal, and non-verbal sexual conduct that may create a hostile environment:
- Deliberately brushing up against, touching, hugging, kissing, pinching, massaging or stroking someone.
- Making sexual jokes, innuendos or using indecent gestures.
- Making comments about someone's appearance or spreading rumors about a person's sex life.
- Repeatedly flirting, making advances or asking a person to socialize when they said no.
- Publicly displaying sexually demeaning or offensive pictures, cartoons or other materials.
- Giving gifts or leaving objects that are sexually suggestive.
Sexual Assault
Any sexual act directed against another person, without their consent is sexual assault. Affirmative consent means an expressed, affirmative, conscious, and voluntary agreement to engage in sexual activity.
The following videos may help initiate conversations about consent.
Domestic and Dating Violence
Abuse may involve physical violence, coercion, threats, intimidation, isolation, stalking, or other forms of emotional, sexual or economic abuse. Although the image below does not reflect District policy, it may help describe what occurs in an abusive relationship. Read more about the Power and Control Wheel.
The National Domestic Violence Hotline produced the relationship spectrum to help you see where your relationship falls on a spectrum from healthy to abusive. More information about signs of a healthy and unhealthy behaviors in a relationship can be found at loveisrespect and onelove.
Stalking
Stalking is engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for the person's safety or the safety of others, or to suffer substantial emotional distress.
For complete definitions, refer to District policy AP 5910 Sexual Misconduct - Interim Procedure.