Letter from UCSC Title IX Coordinator
Dear Campus Community,
On August 14, 2020, the University of California issued a revised Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment Policy (“SVSH Policy”). The revision was required to comply with the Title IX regulations issued by the U.S. Department of Education (DOE), which became effective on the same date. This letter summarizes the major policy changes.
Much of the prior SVSH Policy remains unchanged. The same conduct that was prohibited by the policy prior to August 14 is still prohibited. A subset of this conduct is now covered by the DOE regulations if all of the following are true:
- The conduct occurred in the United States.
- The conduct occurred in a University “program or activity,” which includes:
o on campus; or
o off-campus, and the conduct occurred in the context of University operations, at a location, event or circumstance over which the University exercised substantial control over the respondent and the context in which the conduct occurred, or at a building owned or controlled by a student organization that is officially recognized by the University.
- The conduct was “sex-based misconduct” as defined in the Title IX regulation, which includes:
o quid pro quo sexual harassment by an employee;
o hostile environment sexual harassment if the conduct is severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive;
o sexual assault—penetration;
o sexual assault—contact if it involves the respondent touching the complainant’s intimate body part;
o relationship violence;
o stalking;
o sexual intercourse with a person under the age of 18; and
o invasion of sexual privacy if the conduct is severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive.
If the conduct falls within the above-noted criteria, the University must address the conduct through the newly designated DOE Grievance Process. Some of the notable changes in this process include: (1) the insertion of a hearing following an investigation, and prior to a policy determination[1]; (2) the advisors will ask questions of the other party during a hearing; and (3) the University will provide a person to read the party’s questions during a hearing if their advisor is not present or they do not have an advisor.
If the conduct does not fall within the above-noted criteria (i.e., other forms of Prohibited Conduct), the University will respond through the processes that existed prior to August 14, 2020.
If a case involves both DOE-Covered Conduct and other Prohibited Conduct, the University will respond under the DOE Grievance Process.
The regulations are complex and, as a result, the SVSH Policy is also complex. The above overview summarizes the major changes within the updated policy. To further clarify these changes, the University developed a resource page that includes initial FAQs, and will be updated as appropriate.
It is important to note that the new interim policy makes no change to responsible employee duties. All employees, who are not designated a Confidential Resource, are required to report possible Prohibited Conduct to the Title IX Office.
Responding appropriately to possible sexual harassment on our campus is of the upmost importance. We remain committed to our students and community and will implement the rules with care and thoughtfulness. Together, we will ensure that students and other members of the UC community continue to come forward, that those who engage in our resolution processes are treated both fairly and empathetically, and that our outcomes are just and reliable.
Sexual misconduct has no place at UC Santa Cruz, we will continue to work to create a community that is inclusive and welcoming to all. Our campuses must be safe and supportive environments to serve our students and succeed in our educational mission.
If you have questions about how the policy might be applied to a particular incident or you have other questions that are not answered by the FAQs, please contact the UCSC Title IX Office.
[1] This change was implemented in 2019 for student respondents in response to changes in California case law. The current change of the hearing insertion now applies to cases that meet the DOE regulations and involve an employee respondent.
Messages from UC Office of the President Regarding DOE Regulations
May 6, 2020 message from UC President:
May 6, 2020 message from systemwide tix officer:
https://www.ucop.edu/title-ix/_files/letter-to-title-ix-officers-title-ix-rules.pdf
May 7, 2020 message: Response to new federal Title IX regulations
https://news.ucsc.edu/2020/05/response-to-new-federal-title-ix-regulations.html
