A form of unlawful discrimination including verbal and/or physical conduct based on legally protected characteristics and/or membership in a protected group that:

• has the purpose or effect of creating an objectively intimidating, hostile or offensive work or educational environment;
• has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work or educational opportunities; or
• otherwise unreasonably adversely affects an individual’s employment or educational opportunities.

Reasonable directions or warnings by authorized personnel as to the time, place and manner in which employees perform their assigned responsibilities, students carry out their educational assignments or program participants engage in sponsored activities do not constitute evidence of discriminatory harassment under this Policy.

For purposes of this Plan, unwelcome conduct constitutes hostile environment harassment when: it is targeted against a person on the basis of their membership in a protected group; AND/OR

• it is sufficiently severe or pervasive that it alters the conditions of education or employment and creates an environment that a reasonable person would find intimidating, hostile or offensive;
• submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment or education;
• submission to, or rejection of, such conduct by an individual is used as a basis for academic or employment decisions affecting that individual.

The determination of whether an environment is “hostile” is based on the totality of the circumstances. These could include the frequency of the conduct, its severity, and whether it is threatening or humiliating. Simple teasing, offhand comments and isolated incidents (unless extremely serious) will not amount to hostile environment harassment under this Plan.

Conduct that is not based on a person’s membership in a protected group is not considered hostile under this Plan.

Examples of discriminatory harassment, all of which are prohibited by this Policy, include, but are not limited to:

• Physically harassing another individual or group because of that person’s or persons’ membership in a protected class by assaulting, touching, patting, pinching, grabbing, staring, leering at them, making lewd gestures, invading their personal space, blocking their normal movement, or other physical interference.
• Encouraging others to physically or verbally abuse an individual (or group of individuals) because of that person or persons’ membership in a protected group.
• Threatening to harm an individual or group because of that person or persons’ membership in a protected group.
• Directing epithets, slurs, derogatory comments, unwelcome jokes or stories at an individual or group because of that person or persons’ membership in a protected group.
• Displaying hostile, derogatory and/or intimidating symbols/objects, such as offensive posters, cartoons, bulletins, drawings, photographs, magazines, written articles or stories, screen savers, or electronic communications, to an individual or group because of that person or persons’ membership in a protected group.

A form of unlawful discrimination including verbal and/or physical conduct based on legally protected characteristics and/or membership in a protected group that:

• has the purpose or effect of creating an objectively intimidating, hostile or offensive work or educational environment;
• has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work or educational opportunities; or
• otherwise unreasonably adversely affects an individual’s employment or educational opportunities.

Reasonable directions or warnings by authorized personnel as to the time, place and manner in which employees perform their assigned responsibilities, students carry out their educational assignments or program participants engage in sponsored activities do not constitute evidence of discriminatory harassment under this Policy.

For purposes of this Plan, unwelcome conduct constitutes hostile environment harassment when: it is targeted against a person on the basis of their membership in a protected group; AND/OR

• it is sufficiently severe or pervasive that it alters the conditions of education or employment and creates an environment that a reasonable person would find intimidating, hostile or offensive;
• submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment or education;
• submission to, or rejection of, such conduct by an individual is used as a basis for academic or employment decisions affecting that individual.

The determination of whether an environment is “hostile” is based on the totality of the circumstances. These could include the frequency of the conduct, its severity, and whether it is threatening or humiliating. Simple teasing, offhand comments and isolated incidents (unless extremely serious) will not amount to hostile environment harassment under this Plan.

Conduct that is not based on a person’s membership in a protected group is not considered hostile under this Plan.

Examples of discriminatory harassment, all of which are prohibited by this Policy, include, but are not limited to:

• Physically harassing another individual or group because of that person’s or persons’ membership in a protected class by assaulting, touching, patting, pinching, grabbing, staring, leering at them, making lewd gestures, invading their personal space, blocking their normal movement, or other physical interference.
• Encouraging others to physically or verbally abuse an individual (or group of individuals) because of that person or persons’ membership in a protected group.
• Threatening to harm an individual or group because of that person or persons’ membership in a protected group.
• Directing epithets, slurs, derogatory comments, unwelcome jokes or stories at an individual or group because of that person or persons’ membership in a protected group.
• Displaying hostile, derogatory and/or intimidating symbols/objects, such as offensive posters, cartoons, bulletins, drawings, photographs, magazines, written articles or stories, screen savers, or electronic communications, to an individual or group because of that person or persons’ membership in a protected group.

Taking adverse employment or educational action against a person who: (a) files claims, complaints or charges under this Plan, or under applicable local, state or federal statute; (2) is suspected of having filed such claims, complaints or charges; (3) has assisted or participated in an investigation or resolution of such claims, complaints or charges; or, (4) has protested practices alleged to be violative of the non-discrimination policies of the University, the BHE, or local, state or federal regulation or statute. Retaliation, even in the absence of provable discrimination in the original complaint or charge, constitutes as serious a violation of this Plan as proved discrimination under the original claim, complaint or charge.

Examples of retaliation, all of which are prohibited by this Policy, include, but are not limited to:

• Terminating an employee for stating an intention to file a complaint of discrimination or for assisting another employee in filing a discrimination complaint.
• Refusing to hire an employee because employee pursued an age discrimination charge against a former employer.
• Denying a promotion to an employee for complaining about alleged sexual orientation harassment.
• Refusing tenure to a faculty member for filing a complaint of sexual harassment pursuant to the Complaint Investigation and Resolution Procedures.
• Issuing an unjustified negative evaluation to an employee for testifying in a legal proceeding concerning a complaint of discrimination or harassment.
• Assigning a student an unearned poor grade for requesting a reasonable academic accommodation based on religion.
• Assigning a student an unearned failing grade for cooperating with an internal investigation of alleged discriminatory practices or a complaint of discrimination or harassment.
• Refusing to admit a student for requesting a reasonable accommodation based on disability in the admission process.

In addition to the College’s procedures, if you believe you have been subjected to unlawful discrimination, discriminatory harassment, or retaliation, you may contact or file a complaint with the appropriate governmental agencies listed below:

• Office of Civil Rights – The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights enforces Title IX. OCR’s Boston office may be reached at 617-289-0111 or OCR.Boston@ed.gov
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission – The U.S. EEOC administers and enforces civil rights laws against workplace discrimination. The Boston office may be reached at 800.669.4000
• Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination.  MCAD is the Commonwealth’s chief civil rights agency charged with the authority to investigate, prosecute, adjudicate and resolve cases of discrimination. Please call 617.994.6000 for assistance