Academics

Sexual Harassment Statement
(Approved by Board of Trustees, December 13, 1986, amended on September 1, 1987, Spring Semester 1998, and March 7, 2007)

a. Policy

Sexual harassment is a form of sexual discrimination and is contrary to the policy of Lake Forest College. It is our policy to maintain the College community as a place of work and study for staff, faculty, and students, free of sexual harassment. The violation of this policy by members of the College community and third parties who serve the College community can result in discipline and discharge for
employees; discipline and dismissal of students; and such penalties, sanctions, and impositions against other individuals or parties as may be available to the College, given the nature of the contractual or business relationship that may be established with such parties or individuals.

Individuals who believe that they have been harassed as defined below have recourse to formal and informal grievance procedures through the Sexual Harassment Hearing Board.

b. Definition

Sexual harassment is defined as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other
speech and physical conduct of a sexual nature, without regard to whether the parties are the same or
opposite gender when:

(1) submission to such conduct or communication is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or
condition of an individual's employment or academic status, or is used as the basis for employment or
academic decisions affecting the individual,
(2) such conduct directed at an individual persists despite its repeated rejection, or
(3) such conduct or communication has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with the individual's work, academic performance, or housing, or of creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working or educational environment.

An offensive or hostile environment will be judged to exist only where the offensive conduct continues over a period of time; a single or isolated instance is insufficient to establish a valid "offensive environment" claim. Similarly, a person’s subjective belief that behavior is offensive, intimidating, or hostile does not necessarily make that behavior sexual harassment. The conduct complained of must be offensive to a reasonable individual in the same or similar working or study environment. Specifically,
the conduct complained of must be examined from both a subjective and objective viewpoint, meaning
that the harassment must have been perceived by the individual as creating a hostile environment as well as being severe or pervasive enough that a reasonable person in the same or similar working environment would find the conduct hostile or abusive.

Lake Forest College’s policies regarding sexual harassment are intended to protect members of the
College community from sex discrimination, not to regulate the content of speech. The College recognizes that the offensiveness of particular expression as perceived by some individuals, standing
alone, is not a sufficient basis to establish a claim of sexual harassment. Moreover, in regulating the
conduct of its students, staff and faculty to prevent or redress harassment, the College must formulate,
interpret, and apply its rules so as to protect academic freedom and free speech rights.

c. Composition of the Board

The Sexual Harassment Hearing Board (SHHB) is composed of:

(i) Two faculty members, appointed by the President in May for staggered three-year terms,
(ii) Two students, appointed annually by the President in May for the following academic year,
(iii) Two exempt administrative staff members, appointed by the President in May for staggered threeyear
terms,
(iv) Two non-academic, non-exempt staff members, appointed by the President in May for staggered
three-year terms, and
(v) One alternate member from each constituency above, appointed annually by the President in May,
for the following academic year.

Before making these appointments, the President shall inform his or her decision by consultation with the Faculty Personnel Policies Committee, the Officers of Student Government and the Officers of the
Employee Advisory Representatives Committee. The Chair of the Sexual Harassment Hearing Board,
who does not vote at hearings, will be appointed annually by the President from among the members of
the Board and will be apprised of the other appointees to the Board at that time.

In any particular case, the voting members of the Hearing Board must include two from the same
constituency as the accused; thus, in any case in which the accused and the Chair, who does not vote, are from the same College constituency, the alternate member from that constituency will serve as a voting member of the Board. Thus, there will be seven voting members of the board, except in the case where the Chair and the accused are from the same constituency above; in this latter case, the alternate from that constituency will be called in to vote, and there will be eight voting members of the Board, plus the Chair.

In cases of conflict of interest for a member of the Board in a particular case, the alternate member from
the same constituency will serve in that case, or the President may appoint a substitute from the same
constituency.

d. Procedures

Any individual member of the Lake Forest College community who believes that he or she has been
sexually harassed as defined above, or who is unsure how to interpret what he or she thinks may be
harassment, should consult with the Chair of the Sexual Harassment Hearing Board. After consultation,
the individual may decide: (1) not to go forward with a complaint, (2) to bring a complaint forward for
informal resolution, or (3) to bring a formal complaint to the Board.

A complaint of sexual harassment must be initiated as soon as possible, but no later than 180 days,
after the alleged harassment has occurred, in order to ensure a fair and prompt resolution. The SHHB
Chair will provide information about the procedures and their possible outcomes.

All complaints and proceedings regarding a case of sexual harassment will be kept in the strictest
confidence throughout and after the processes of consultation, mediation, and hearing of any
complaint of sexual harassment. All members of the SHHB, the complainant, the person complained
against, and any counsel to the parties from the college community (see below) must sign statements
to this effect: no names or identifying details of any case will be shared with any person other than the
parties, members of the SHHB, the College Officer who oversees the constituency of the respondent,
the President, and others designated by the President. If it seems appropriate for an officer of the
College or a member of the board to discuss a complaint with other members of the community, he or
she may do so, with the approval of the board.

Records of sexual harassment complaints and the investigation of those complaints, including
recordings of hearings, will be retained by the Chair of the SHHB, and transferred to each succeeding
chair, on a confidential basis. As a part of the College’s educational mission, the Chair will submit to
the personnel or student file of the person complained against, a report of any complaints against them,
including whether the complaint was dismissed, mediated, or heard, and the basic substance of any
complaint heard. The College Officer who oversees the constituency of the respondent will at that time
invite her or him to submit to her or his file a response to the report, and may discuss the complaints
and advise the person complained against, as the College Officer sees fit.

e. Informal Mediation

Informal mediation is an option for the complainant to pursue before deciding whether or not to file a
formal complaint of sexual harassment.

In the event that informal mediation is desired, the complainant must select a member of the Board to act as mediator between the parties. A board member who considers himself or herself unsuitable to act as a mediator shall identify another member of the board to serve as mediator.

A person seeking mediation must agree to be identified to the person against whom the complaint is
lodged. The mediator shall begin mediation efforts promptly.

A mediator may also discuss a case with other members of the Board, the Chair of the Board and/or with the appropriate Officer of the College ((the College Officer who oversees the constituency of the person complained against), although only with the consent of the complainant, and will identify the respondent only if the complainant agrees to be identified as well.)

If mediation is not pursued or if mediation does not resolve the issue to the satisfaction of the parties,
then the complainant may lodge a formal complaint with the Sexual Harassment Hearing Board.

f. Formal Complaints

Individuals who wish to lodge a formal complaint must do so as soon as possible , but no later than 45
days, after the mediation concluded or after an informal complaint has been made to a member of the
Sexual Harassment Hearing Board, in order to insure both parties a fair and prompt hearing.

A person who wishes to lodge a formal complaint should contact the Chairperson of the Sexual
Harassment Hearing Board. A formal complaint must be made in writing and be accompanied by a
signed statement detailing the complaint. The complainant shall submit the statement of complaint to the Chairperson of the Board, who shall give copies of it to the person complained against and to members of the Hearing Board.

When a formal complaint is filed, the person accused of sexual harassment will be invited to submit a
written response to the Chair of the SHHB, within two weeks of being informed of the complaint.
Responses submitted after that time will not be accepted by the Board. A formal reply from the accused
is not required, however, and no adverse conclusions will be drawn if a formal reply is not provided. The
Chairperson of the Board shall give copies of the response, if any, to the complainant, and to the other
members of the Hearing Board. If the complaint has no merit as judged by the Board's objective
standards and according to the definitions given in 4a above, the Board may refuse to investigate further,
and the case is dropped.

If the Board considers the case to potentially have merit, the Chairperson shall next provide copies of the
complaint, and response if there is one, to the appropriate College officer: a complaint against a student
to the Dean of Students, a complaint against a faculty member to the Dean of the Faculty, and a
complaint against another employee or a third party to the appropriate officer of the College. The officer
may, upon request of either party, try to separate the working, living or academic arrangements of the
complainant and the accused. The complaint will then receive a hearing as soon as possible.

g. The Hearing

If the Board considers the case to potentially have merit, the Chair of the SHHB will arrange a date and
time for the hearing which allows time for all parties to prepare and which is consistent with the need for
promptness of resolution in fairness to the parties. In all cases, the Chair shall have the authority to set a hearing date, which, in the absence of compelling circumstances, will be no later than 45 days following the submission of the complaint. The refusal of any party to attend the scheduled hearing date shall not result in a delay of the hearing.

The complaint shall be heard by the Sexual Harassment Hearing Board. The Chair does not vote.

At the hearing, either party has the right to be accompanied by and/or represented by a counselor of his
or her choosing, who is a member of the College community; a counselor may advise the complainant or the accused, but may not participate directly in the hearing, nor may a counselor also serve as the party’s attorney at law.

The Hearing Board shall interview the parties together so that there is an opportunity to discuss all
allegations. The hearing will be recorded. The Hearing Board shall decide, call for, and study what
further evidence or witnesses may be necessary before reaching a final determination.

Both parties shall have an opportunity to hear all witnesses and review all further evidence received by
the Hearing Board. The Hearing Board shall retire to an executive session (unrecorded) to reach its
determination as to the responsibility of the person against whom the complaint is lodged. For a finding
of responsibility for sexual harassment, five of the seven (or eight) voting members must agree.

The Board will present its findings, including the breakdown of the vote, in writing as soon as possible
after the conclusion of its deliberations, to each of the parties, and to the officer(s) of the College who
supervises the individual(s) against whom the complaint is lodged.

h. Appropriate Discipline

If the Board finds that the person against whom the complaint has been lodged is responsible for sexual harassment, then the Board shall recommend a sanction, or a range of appropriate sanctions, to the appropriate College Officer.

Since, under c, above, the College Officer in charge of the individual who has been found responsible for
sexual harassment will have been notified of prior incidents, (and as above, of the breakdown of the
vote,) the College Officer who supervises the person found responsible for sexual harassment may avail
herself or himself of that information when determining a sanction.

After the sanctioning decision, the appropriate College Officer shall prepare a written statement outlining
the action taken, and shall give copies of this statement to the complainant, the accused, and the
members of the Hearing Board who heard the case.

Reports of sanctions will be kept among the personnel or student records of the person found to have
committed sexual harassment.

i. Appeal

Either party may appeal to the President either the decision of the Sexual Harassment Hearing Board or
the sanctioning decision of the College Officer. The President shall consider appeals only on the basis of: (i) procedural error, or (ii) inappropriate sanction. Substantive judgments of the SHHB will not be
revisited.

j. Annual Report

At the beginning of each academic year, the board shall report on the previous year's activities. Its report
shall include the number of individuals who came to the Board Chair for help during the past year, the
number of requests for mediation, the number of formal complaints that were lodged, and the kinds of
behavior that gave rise to complaints. The board shall submit its report to the President, who shall
publicize it to the College community. The report shall not mention the name of any individual or
identifying details of any case.

k. Sexual Harassment during an Internship

Lake Forest College has been advised by its attorneys that, in the event of sexual harassment during an
internship, it is unlikely that the College would have the right to assert a claim against an employer. The
individual student, even though not actually employed, may have a right to assert a tort claim action
based on negligence of the employer to protect the student and may have a direct tort claim against the
individual committing the harassment. Should a student face this situation, he or she may wish to seek
the advice of his or her own counsel.