What is Sexual Harassment?

The new Title IX regulations define Sexual Harassment broadly to include three types of harassment based on sex and all risks equal access to education and within the workplace that Title IX is designed to prevent and protect. Sexual Harassment is:

● Any instance of “quid pro quo” harassment by a school’s employee;
● Any unwelcome sex-based conduct that a reasonable person would find so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it denies a person equal education access (creating a hostile environment); and
● Any instance of sexual assault (as defined by the Clery Act), dating violence, domestic violence, or stalking (as defined by the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA)).

Conduct that satisfies this definition is not sexual harassment for purposes of this policy if the conduct occurs (1) outside the United States or (2) under circumstances in which the District does not have substantial control over both the harasser/respondent and the context in which the harassment occurred. Title IX protections extend to all programs and/or activities whether on or off campus.

Examples of Sexual Harassment:
• Attempted or actual sexual assault, including rape;
• Sharing or displaying sexually inappropriate images or videos in any format;
• Sending sexually suggestive communications in any format;
• Sharing sexual or lewd anecdotes or jokes;
• Making inappropriate sexual gestures, such as pelvic thrusts;
• Unwelcome touching, including pinching, patting, rubbing, or purposefully brushing up against another person;
• Staring in a sexually suggestive manner;
• Repeatedly asking a person for dates or asking for sex;
• Rating a person’s sexuality;
• Making sexual comments about appearance, clothing, or body parts;
• Name-calling or using slurs with a gender/sexual connotation;
• Making derogatory or demeaning comments about someone’s sexual orientation or gender identity.