On Nov. 6, Catherine Berryman, Director of Community Standards, sent out an all-campus email containing the 2018–2019 Report on Harassment and Sexual Misconduct. The report was conducted by the Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Board (HSMB), which consists of College faculty and staff. It is a summary of reports made to the Title IX Coordinator during the 2018–2019 academic year. In addition to quantifying these incidents, the report outlines formal resolution procedures, sanctions, and definitions set forth by the HSMB.

When a report is filed to the Title IX Coordinator, HSMB’s Investigation Team initially looks into the incident before providing a final report to the Review Board. If evidence of a violation or violations of the College’s Sexual Misconduct Policy is found, both the Complainant and Respondent can submit a personal impact statement to the Title IX Coordinator; subsequent sanctions are determined based on the nature of the violation. Sanctions may include a warning, a mandatory educational workshop, a loss of status in housing selection, a status of probation, suspension, or expulsion.

There were 54 reports of potential violations of the College’s Sexual Misconduct Policy, with eight of the reporting individuals choosing to continue through to the formal resolution process. After this formal resolution process, two students were found responsible for Non-Consensual Sexual Acts, one student was found responsible for Non-Consensual Sexual Contact, and one student was found responsible for Sexual Harassment. The perpetrators were expelled in these cases.

In two other cases, students were found responsible for Sexual Exploitation and the conferral of their degree was deferred.

There are four ongoing investigations involving Retaliation and Sexual Harassment. In 28 of the remaining 35 reports, the accused were not contacted due to a request by the reporting individual or a lack of information. In the other seven cases, the accused was notified at the request of the reporting individual.

There were also eleven reports of behavior that may fall under the Harassment and Discrimination Policy, four of which went through Hamilton’s formal resolution process. In each of the four cases, the employee was found not responsible.

The email to campus containing the HSMB report emphasized that each report is counted separately, regardless of whether or not they are filed about the same individual.

“The purpose of the report is to share information with the Hamilton community about the reports of potential sexual misconduct made to the Title IX Coordinator in the previous academic year,” said Berryman. “The Title IX Coordinator shares this information with the community in addition to complying with the reporting requirements in the federal Clery Act and the New York State Enough is Enough Act, also known as NY 129-b.”

In addition to the annual report, Berryman and Dayna Campbell, Assistant Director of Community Standards, conduct trainings on the College’s Sexual Misconduct Policy throughout the semester.

“The Director of Community Standards and Assistant Director of Community Standards are actively engaged in a cross-campus working group to review and improve the College’s response to allegations of sexual misconduct,” said Berryman.