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Relevant Excerpt

B. Harassment 

1. Harassment based on a protected class 

Harassment is conduct that is based on a person’ s race, color, religion, creed, ethic or national origin, sex, sexual orientation/gender identity/expression, disability, age, as applicable, status as a covered veteran, genetic information, or any other category protected by federal or state civil rights law, that 

• Adversely affects a term or condition of an individual’ s employment, education, participation in an institution’ s activities or living environment: 

• Has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’ s employment or academic performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, offensive or abusive environment of the individual; or• Is used as a basis for or a factor in decisions that tangibly affect that individual’ s employment, education, participation in an institution’ s activities or living environment. 

Examples of such conduct include, but are not limited to verbal or physical conduct relating to an employee’ s national origin, race, surname, skin color or accent, offensive or derogatory jokes based on a protected category, racial or ethnic slurs, pressure for dates or sexual favors, unwelcome comments about a person’ s religion or religious garments, offensive graffiti, cartoons or pictures, or offensive remarks about a person’ s age. 

Not every act that might be offensive to an individual or a group will be considered harassment. Whether the alleged conduct constitutes harassment depends upon the record as a whole and the totality of the circumstances, such as the nature of the conduct in the context within which the alleged incident occurs. Harassment does not include verbal expressions or written material that is relevant and appropriately related to course subject matter or curriculum.

2. Examples of sexual harassment 

Examples of sexual harassment include, but are not limited to, the following: 

• Refusing to hire, promote, or grant or deny certain privileges because of acceptance or rejection of sexual advances;
• Promising a work- related benefit or a grade in return for sexual favors;
• Suggestive or inappropriate communications, email, notes, letters, or other written materials displaying objects or pictures which are sexual in nature that would create hostile or offensive work or living environments;
• Sexual innuendoes, comments, and remarks about a person’ s clothing, body or activites;
• Suggestive or insulting sounds;
• Whistling in a suggestive manner;
• Humor and jokes about sex that denigrate men or women;
• Sexual propositions, invitations, or pressure for sexual activity;
• Use in the classroom of sexual jokes, stories, remarks or images in no way or only marginally relevant to the subject matter of the class;
• Implied or overt sexual threats;
• Suggestive or obscene gestures;
• Patting, pinching, and other inappropriate touching;
• Unnecessary touching or brushing against the body;
• Attempted or actual kissing or fondling; 

• Suggestive or inappropriate acts, such as comments, innuendoes, or physical contact based on one’ s actual or perceived sexual orientation and/or gender identity/expression. 

  The examples listed above are not exclusive, but simply represent types of conduct that may constitute sexual harassment. Campus policies may delineate additional examples.