To create an academic learning and working environment where students, post-doctoral scholars and fellows, faculty, staff and others can thrive, CWRU prohibits conduct which falls into the categories of quid pro quo sexual harassment, hostile environment sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, stalking, and sexual exploitation, when that conduct negatively impacts or has the potential to negatively impact CWRU’s campus and/or community, educational and/or employment programs, and activities.
Title IX sexual harassment
Title IX sexual harassment occurs when a) The alleged conduct occurred within an educational program or activity controlled by CWRU; b) The person experiencing the alleged conduct was in the United States at the time the alleged conduct occurred and c) The person experiencing the alleged conduct was participating in or attempting to participate in an education program or activity of CWRU.
Acts of sexual harassment may be committed by any person upon any other person, regardless of the biological sex of those involved. Sexual harassment is conduct on the basis of sex that is sexual, and that results in a quid pro quo or a hostile environment. Title IX defines sex discrimination as including quid pro quo sexual harassment, hostile environment sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking.
2.1.1 Quid pro quo (abuse of authority) sexual harassment
Quid pro quo sexual harassment occurs when: a) an employee (including postdoctoral scholar or fellow) of CWRU b) explicitly or implicitly conditions the provision of an aid, benefit, or service of CWRU c) on an individual’s participation in unwelcome sexual conduct. An example of quid pro quo sexual harassment is when a university employee tells a student, “I’ll give you an A in the class if you kiss me,” or “You will fail this class if you don’t let me kiss you.”
2.1.2 Hostile environment sexual harassment
Hostile environment sexual harassment occurs when the conduct is: a) unwelcome sex-based conduct b) determined by a reasonable person c) to be so severe, and d) pervasive, and e) objectively offensive, f) that it effectively denies a person equal access to the CWRU’s education program or activity.
Unwelcomeness is subjective and determined from the perspective of the person experiencing the alleged conduct, except when that person is below the age of consent. Severity, pervasiveness, and objective offensiveness are evaluated based on the totality of the circumstances from the perspective of a reasonable person in the same or similar circumstances as is the person experiencing the alleged conduct, including the context in which the alleged incident occurred and any similar, previous patterns that may be evidenced. Hostile environment sexual harassment can be physical, verbal or nonverbal, and include:
a) Physical: grabbing someone’s hand, groin, hip, breasts or buttocks; rubbing up against or leaning on a person in a manner that prevents them from avoiding the contact.
b) Verbal: making sexual comments; using sexual innuendo; turning discussions to sexual topics; telling sexual jokes or stories; asking about sexual fantasies, preferences, or history, or sharing one’s own sexual fantasies, preferences, or history; repeatedly asking out a person who is not interested; or discussing a person’s body.
c) Non-Verbal: repeatedly looking a person’s body up and down or staring; blocking a person's path or placing one’s body in another’s personal space on multiple occasions; repeatedly following a person; and making sexual gestures with hands or through body movements.
2.1.3 Sexual assault
Sexual assault includes forcible and nonforcible offenses.
Forcible sex offenses are defined as:
a) Any sexual act directed against another person,
b) without that person’s consent,
c) including instances in which that person is incapable of giving consent.
Sexual acts that may comprise forcible sex offenses are:
a) Forcible rape, comprising penetration, no matter how slight, of the vagina or anus with any body part or object, or oral penetration by a sex organ of another person, without that person’s consent.
b) Forcible sodomy, comprising oral or anal sexual intercourse with another person, forcibly, and/or against that person’s will (non-consensually), or not forcibly or against the person’s will in instances in which that person is incapable of giving consent because of age or because of temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity.
c) Sexual assault with an object, which occurs when an object or instrument is used to penetrate, however slightly, the genital or anal opening of the body of another person, forcibly, and/or against that person’s will (non-consensually), or not forcibly or against the person’s will in instances in which that person is incapable of giving consent because of age or because of temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity.
d) Forcible fondling, comprising the touching of the private body parts of another person (buttocks, groin, breasts), for the purpose of sexual gratification, forcibly, and/or against that person’s will (non-consensually), or not forcibly or against the person’s will in instances in which that person is incapable of giving consent because of age or because of temporary or permanent mental or physical incapacity.
Examples of forcible sexual assault include non-consensual sexual activity that is forcefully imposed on another person (i.e., rape or any type of sexual act without consent), unwanted rough or violent sexual activity, and physical contact that is non-consensual (i.e., forcible hugging and kissing, squeezing a person’s breasts or testicles, or forced oral sex).
Sexual acts that may comprise non-forcible offenses are:
a) Incest, which is non-forcible sexual intercourse, between persons who are related to each other, within the degrees wherein marriage is prohibited by Ohio State law
b) Statutory rape, which is non-forcible sexual intercourse, with a person who is under the statutory age of consent of 16 years of age
2.1.4 Dating violence
Dating violence is defined as: a) Conduct that is based on sex, b) committed by a person, c) who is in or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the person experiencing the alleged conduct. The existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on that person’s statement and with consideration of the length of the relationship, the type of relationship, and the frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship.
Dating violence includes, but is not limited to, sexual or physical abuse or the threat of such abuse (hitting, punching, pinching, kicking, pushing, and shoving). Dating violence also includes conduct that does not involve physical violence, such as physical, sexual, emotional, economic, or psychological actions or threats of actions that influence another person. This includes any behaviors that intimidate, manipulate, humiliate, isolate, frighten, terrorize, coerce, threaten, blame, hurt, injure, or wound someone. Threats may be made against a person, their possessions (car, computer, phone), pets, children or others about whom they care. Dating violence includes undermining an individual's sense of self-worth and/or selfesteem through constant criticism, diminishing one's abilities, name-calling, or damaging one's relationship with peers; making or attempting to make an individual financially dependent by maintaining total control over financial resources, withholding one's access to money, or forbidding one's attendance at school or employment; causing fear by intimidation; threatening physical harm to self, partner, children, or partner's family or friends; destruction of pets and property; and forcing isolation from family, friends, or school and/or work. Dating violence does not include acts covered under the definition of domestic violence.
2.1.5 Domestic violence
Domestic violence is defined as: a) conduct that is based on sex b) committed by a current or former spouse or intimate partner of the person experiencing the violence c) by a person with whom the person experiencing the violence shares a child in common, or is cohabitating, or has cohabitated with d) as a spouse or intimate partner, or by a person similarly situated to a spouse under the domestic or family violence laws of the State of Ohio, or e) by any other person against an adult or youth who is protected from that person’s acts under the domestic or family violence laws of the State of Ohio. For examples of domestic violence, see the examples of dating violence, above.
2.1.6. Stalking
Stalking is defined as: a) engaging in a course of conduct b) on the basis of sex i) ii) 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.
Examples of stalking include repeated, unwanted phone calls, texts, messages, etc. that may or may not be threatening; creating fake profiles to continue contacting a person after they have been blocked on their personal account; observing, following or “coincidentally” showing up wherever the person goes; waiting outside of the person’s class, home, job, car, etc.; leaving notes, gifts or other items for the person; spreading rumors online and in person; posting messages or images of the person on social media or in discussion groups; vandalism or destruction of property, including sabotaging schoolwork; breaking into the person’s home or car; hacking into the person’s social media, email or other accounts; collecting information about the person through friends, family members, coworkers or acquaintances; and contacting other people in order to gain information about how to access them.
Prohibited sexual conduct (that falls outside Title IX's definitions and jurisdiction)
Acts of sexual harassment may be committed by any person upon any other person, regardless of the sex, sex, pregnancy, parental status, gender identity or expression, transgender identity, and sexual orientation of those involved. Sexual harassment that falls outside of Title IX is conduct on the basis of sex or gender or that is sexual, and that results in quid pro quo or a hostile environment that does not meet any one the jurisdictional requirements for Title IX sexual harassment (conduct occurred in a CWRU educational program, in the US and/or the person experiencing the conduct was participating or attempting to participate in a CWRU educational program).
To create an academic learning and working environment where students, post-doctoral scholars and fellows, faculty, staff and others can thrive, CWRU prohibits sexual harassment that falls within Title IX and other conduct based on sex that falls outside of Title IX, when that conduct negatively impacts or has the potential to negatively impact CWRU’s campus and/or community, educational and/or employment programs, and activities. That conduct is described below.
The definitions of quid pro quo sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating and domestic violence, and stalking are the same as the definitions above.
2.2.2 Hostile environment sexual harassment
Non-Title IX hostile environment sexual harassment occurs when the conduct is:
a) unwelcome sex-based conduct
b) determined by a reasonable person
c) to be so severe, or d) pervasive, or e) objectively offensive,
f) that it effectively denies a person equal access to the CWRU’s education program or activity.
2.2.7 Sexual Exploitation
Sexual exploitation occurs when a person:
a) Takes non-consensual or abusive sexual advantage of another
b) for their own benefit or
c) for the benefit of anyone other than the person being exploited and
d) that conduct does not otherwise constitute sexual harassment under this Policy.
Examples of Sexual Exploitation include, but are not limited to:
a) Sexual voyeurism (such as observing or allowing others to observe a person undressing or using the bathroom or engaging in sexual acts, without the consent of the person being observed)
b) Invasion of sexual privacy
c) Taking pictures, video, or audio recording of another in a sexual act, or in any other sexuallyrelated activity when there is a reasonable expectation of privacy during the activity, without the consent of all involved in the activity, or exceeding the boundaries of consent (such as allowing another person to hide in a closet and observe sexual activity, or disseminating sexual pictures without the photographed person’s consent), including the making or posting of revenge pornography
d) Prostituting another person
e) Engaging in sexual activity with another person while knowingly infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) or a sexually transmitted disease (STD) or infection (STI), without informing the other person of the infection
f) Causing or attempting to cause the incapacitation of another person (through alcohol, drugs, or any other means) for the purpose of compromising that person’s ability to give consent to sexual activity, or for the purpose of making that person vulnerable to nonconsensual sexual activity
g) Misappropriation of another person’s identity on apps, websites, or other venues designed for dating or sexual connections
h) Forcing a person to take an action against that person’s will by threatening to show, post, or share information, video, audio, or an image that depicts the person’s nudity or sexual activity
i) Knowingly soliciting a minor for sexual activity
j) Engaging in sex trafficking k) Creation, possession, or dissemination of child pornography
l) Extortion, sextortion, and/or blackmail relating to the threatened disclosure of pictures or videos of sexual activity, or information or other action related to sex or sexual activity.