Image provided by: Clackamas Community College; Oregon City, OR
About The Clackamas print. (Oregon City, Oregon) 1989-2019 | View Entire Issue (March 9, 2016)
photo by Katie Archer STAFF AND STUDENT RELATIONSHIP POLICIES VARY AT OTHER OREGON COLLEGES Portland State University Starting this year, signs can be seen around campus to inform the CCC community about sexual harassment. Portland State University’ s policy states that it encourages individuals to avoid such relationships. They recognize that a relationship between a student and staff member could potentially result in favoritism or bias if the staff member is in a position o f power over the student. The policy says that the adults engaging in a consensual relationship are' responsible for disclosing their relationship im mediately to their supervisors or to Hum an Resources or the Office of Academic Affairs. They also must work to make sure there are no conflicts o f interest or adverse effects on third parties. Mt. Hood Community College anym ore,” said Martineau. “ As an A.D. [athletic director] you hope to make good decisions on the people we h ire.” W asm u nd and R u fen er did not respond to repeated requests for interviews. Both W asm und and Rufener are no longer at CC C , but the issue o f romance between staff and students remains in question. With the Obama administration investigating the handling o f sexual assault allegations at several colleges and the overall grow ing awareness o f sexual assau lt, som e colleges have chosen to tighten their policy on faculty and student romantic relationships. Title IX has also played a factor in these decisions. In federally funded education program s, like Clackam as, Title IX prohibits discrim ination on the basis o f sex. Starting this year, sexual harassm ent posters can be seen around cam pus to inform the CCC com m unity their rights, what sexual harassm ent is and how people can report it. Last year, Harvard U niversity banned faculty from having romantic or sexual relationships with their undergraduate students. In 2003, U n iv ersity o f C a lifo rn ia, Berkeley, decided to prohibit staff and student relationships after a scandal involving its law school dean the year before. The women’s center at Northwestern University gives advice to stu d en ts about d atin g th eir professors. “ The best time to date your professor, if at all, is after you have graduated from school,” their website states. U n lik e o ther colleges around O rego n, (see sidebar) CCC has a vague policy when it comes to faculty and student romantic relationships. Patricia Anderson W ieck, the dean o f hum an resources at Clackam as, said in an email that the college’ s employment policy can be found in the employee handbook and on the college’ s sexual respect website. W ieck wrote that according to the em ployee han db o o k, “ A ll em ployees are expected and required to treat each other, our students and our com m unity in a courteous and respectful manner at all tim es.” Wieck said there are guidelines and requirements in staff handbooks. “ If there were a report, or inappropriate conduct, it would be investigated and resolved/sanctioned accordingly,” said Wieck. Since The Clackamas Print has raised questions about the college’ s p olicy, board o f education member Greg Chaim ov said the board is looking into w hether or not it would be good to have a policy guiding the relationships between students and staff. “ We have discussed generally how we hope the staff will interact with students and vice versa,” said Chaim ov. “ Our hope and expectation is that any relationship between staff and students will be respectful, cordial and productive in terms o f h elp in g the students becom e a better student and upon graduating, a b etter m em ber o f the com m unity.” Consensual relationships involving a faculty member and a student are prohibited at M t. Hood Com m unity College where the faculty member has direct authority, influence or responsibility with regard to that student. The policy says that the person with authority could create an environment that diminishes the freedom of the other to alter or end the relationship. It also said that a consensual relationship could result in harm to a third party who is denied privileges that accrue to those who participate in the relationship. Chemeketa Community College The policy at Chem eketa Com m unity College states that staff involved in a consensual relationship, or even what appears to be a consensual relationship, with a student are prohibited from supervising or m aking grading decisions related to that student. The college wants to have an environment o f learning and growth and they view consensual relationships between staff and students as a disruption from that environment. The policy also states that any person who engages in behavior against the policy is subject to disciplinary actions including termination. - Megan McCoy Oadanas M MARCH 9,20B thedadiamasintiorn 7
