Policies Reminder for the Academic Year
Dear members of the Northwestern community,
With the new academic year upon us, we encourage everyone to take the time to read through the policies listed below fully as they help facilitate healthy dialogue, respectful disagreement and the exchange of ideas so that we can do our best work as students, faculty and staff.
The Student Handbook, which contains the Student Code of Conduct (page 9), describes the standards for behavior and conduct for students in the Northwestern community. Faculty and staff are encouraged to review their respective handbooks. These handbooks incorporate University policies, such as the Demonstration Policy on how, when and where members of the community may engage in expressive activity and the Display and Solicitation Policy that sets rules and requirements for on-campus displays, including flyers, banners, chalking and 3-D installations. Each member of the Northwestern community is expected to interact with one another with respect and consideration.
In addition to the policies above, we want to remind you about the Office of Civil Rights and Title IX Compliance (OCR), which moved from reporting to the Chief of Staff in the Office of the President to reporting to the provost with a dotted line to the president. OCR oversees policies concerning discrimination, harassment and sexual misconduct, and offers a variety of support and resolution options:
- Policy on Discrimination, Harassment, and Sexual Misconduct: This policy covers a wide range of discriminatory and harassing behaviors, including those based on race, ethnicity, religion, sex and other protected characteristics.
- Policy on Title IX Sexual Harassment: This policy specifically addresses sexual harassment and sexual misconduct consistent with Title IX.
- Non-Retaliation Policy: This policy prohibits the taking of any retaliatory action for reporting or inquiring about alleged improper or wrongful activity.
- Reasonable Accommodation Policy: This policy explains the availability of accommodations for students, employees, job applicants, visitors and other third parties on the bases of disability, pregnancy, lactation and religion.
- Reporting by University Employees of Disclosures Related to Discrimination and Harassment: This policy sets out the reporting requirements for employees when they learn about discrimination, harassment and sexual misconduct.
Our goal with these policies is to help ensure we all have a shared understanding of our responsibilities, requirements and limitations. If necessary, sanctions for policy violations range from a warning for minor offenses to suspension, expulsion or termination for major infractions.
Thank you for helping us all begin another successful year at Northwestern.