Lake Land College Board Policy 11.04 – Discrimination and Harassment reflects the College’s commitment to maintaining an environment that is free from discrimination and harassment. The College expects that the use of these procedures will facilitate a prompt resolution of such complaints.
Reports of complaints of alleged sex-based misconduct, including but not limited to sex discrimination, sexual harassment, sexual violence, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking, shall be addressed in accordance with Board Policy 11.04.01 – Prohibiting Sex-Based Misconduct and its implementing Procedures. All other reports of alleged discrimination and harassment that are not sex or gender-based shall be addressed according to the following procedures.
A student who believes that he or she has been harassed or discriminated against in violation of Board Policy 11.04, must report such behavior to the Director of Human Resources or the Vice President for Student Services.
An employee who believes that he or she has been harassed or discriminated against in violation of Board Policy 11.04 should report the unwelcome behavior to his/her supervisor or the Director of Human Resources and request assistance to stop the behavior. If the Director of Human Resources is the individual involved in the unwelcome behavior, the employee should report the behavior to the appropriate Vice President.
Informal harassment complaint resolution may be achieved by any of the steps outlined below.
After the informal complaint resolution has concluded, the complainant’s supervisor or harassment information center personnel, if involved, will forward all documentation concerning the complaint to the Director of Human Resources. The Director of Human Resources will maintain a record of the complaint in order to document that the claim of harassment was made and to document the outcome of the informal resolution.
An individual may file a formal complaint of harassment if the informal attempt(s) to resolve the complaint was not satisfactory. An individual may also file a formal complaint of harassment if he or she chooses to bypass the informal process. All formal complaints of harassment should be submitted in writing directly to the Director of Human Resources as soon after the offending conduct as possible.
The process for resolution of formal harassment complaints consists of two stages: 1) investigation; and 2) report and recommendation. Prior to investigation, a formal complaint, signed by the complainant, must be submitted in writing to the Director of Human Resources. The written complaint shall include the name(s) of the complainant and the respondent(s) and the details of the conduct alleged to be harassment. The Director of Human Resources will promptly designate a team to investigate the complaint.
The Director of Human Resources or designee will convene an investigative team consisting of two individuals, one male and one female, who are not immediate supervisors of the complainant(s) or respondent(s) and who do not have a conflict of interest with the complainant(s) or respondent(s). The investigative team may consist of the Director of Human Resources as long as the above criteria are met.
The investigative team shall interview the individual(s) filing a complaint(s), the respondent(s), and other individuals named by the complainant(s) and the respondent(s) who are identified as having information relevant to the allegations. The investigative team may interview other individuals it identifies as having information potentially relevant to the complaint. All interviews should be completed as soon as practicable.
Using the information gathered by the investigative team and in consultation with the investigative team, the Director of Human Resources or designee will prepare a formal report consisting of the complaint, the response of the respondent, the investigative team’s findings, and a recommendation of the appropriate action(s) to be taken. The report will be retained by the Director of Human Resources.
The President will designate the appropriate cabinet-level member to review the report. The cabinet-level designee may: 1) accept the report and recommendations as presented; or 2) request additional information/clarification from the investigative team and consider a modified report as appropriate.
After consideration of the final report, the cabinet-level designee will make a determination regarding the report. In consultation with the cabinet-level designee, the Director of Human Resources or designee will prepare formal responses to the complainant and respondent, which shall include a summary of the investigation findings and communication of any action to be taken. Such action will depend on the nature of the offense and may include but is not limited to oral or written reprimand, suspension, reassignment, or termination. For students, action would include regular college disciplinary procedures as found in Board Policy 07.28.01 Student Code of Conduct and Disciplinary Procedures.
The complainant(s) and/or the respondent(s) may submit a written statement to the President concerning the findings and resulting actions within ten (10) business days of having received the College’s formal response. The President may uphold the prior findings and recommendation or may determine a different response.