Who is required to report?
At the university, those required to report to the Office of Equity (OE) are called "responsible employees." Any faculty or staff member who is considered a "responsible employee," as defined herein, who witnesses or receives information regarding possible prohibited protected characteristic discrimination or harassment, any form of sexual misconduct, and/or related retaliation is required to promptly report the information to the OE or their designee.
Who is considered a responsible employee?
Anyone who has the authority to, hire, promote, discipline, evaluate. grade, formally advise or direct faculty, staff, or students.
When does my role as a responsible employee apply?
- This applies whether the member of the CU community is the person who was subjected to the misconduct (reporting party/complainant) or the person who allegedly committed the misconduct (responding party).
- This applies regardless of where or when an incident occurred, including if it occurred on/off campus and/or before the person was a member of the campus community.
- This applies regardless of how the information was conveyed to a responsible employee (whether spoken, written, or through a third party).
- The OE is responsible for determining if there is jurisdiction to investigate, but will always outreach to provide information about resources.
Anyone disclosing conduct related to these policies may be reaching out in an attempt to get the behaviors to stop or to obtain resources for support and safety. The university does not expect responsible employees to know how to handle these situations and it is not always clear that the behavior falls within our policies. This is why it is important to report all concerns and relevant information to the OE as soon as possible.
What information do I need to report to the OE?
Such information about the alleged conduct, where possible, should include if known:
- name of the alleged complainant(s);
- name of alleged respondent(s);
- name of any alleged witnesses; and
- any other relevant facts, including the date, time and specific location of the alleged incident.
The university may have an obligation to report to the police, keeping the name of the victim confidential, in circumstances where the incident includes an allegation that a crime has been committed.