340 Victoria Road, Asheville, NC 28801, (828) 398-7932 All other Student inquiries, contact: Office of the Vice President for Student Services 340 Victoria Road, Asheville, NC 28801, (828) 398-7143 Employee inquiries, contact: Office of the Vice President for Human Resources 340 Victoria Road, Asheville, NC 28801, (828) 398-7113
Sexual Misconduct Procedure Introduction Overview This procedure applies to any allegation of Sexual Misconduct made by or against a student, a College employee or a third party regardless of where the alleged Sexual Misconduct took place. The College’s disciplinary authority, however, may not extend to third parties who are not students or employees. A-B Tech may take disciplinary action to address Sexual Misconduct and will take appropriate action to investigate and adjudicate the matter if it impacts the educational environment of the College. This procedure applies regardless of the sexual orientation or gender identity of the parties involved. Title IX Title IX is a comprehensive federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex/ gender in any federally funded education program or activity. Under Title IX, discrimination on the basis of sex or gender also includes sexual harassment, stalking, dating and domestic violence, or sexual violence, such as rape, sexual assault, sexual battery, and/or sexual coercion. The College’s Director of Title IX Compliance has oversight responsibility for handling Sexual Misconduct complaints and for identifying and addressing any patterns and/or systemic problems involving Sexual Misconduct. All allegations involving Sexual Misconduct should be directed to the Director of Title IX Compliance or, in the case of actions solely between employees, the Executive Director for Human Resources. If the alleged incident involves both an employee and a student, the Director of Title IX Compliance shall take the lead but shall work cooperatively with the Executive Director for Human Resources. Statements of Prohibition Rules of Consent In order for individuals to engage in sexual activity of any type with each other, there must be clear, knowing and voluntary consent prior to and during sexual activity. Consent is sexual permission. Consent can be given by word or action, but non-verbal consent is not as clear as talking about what you want sexually and what you don’t. Consent to some form of sexual activity cannot be automatically taken as consent to any other form of sexual activity. Silence--without actions demonstrating permission--cannot be assumed to show consent. Additionally, there is a difference between seduction and coercion. Coercing someone into sexual activity violates these procedures in the same way as physically forcing someone into sex. Coercion happens when someone is pressured unreasonably for sex. When alcohol or other drugs are being used, a person will be considered unable to give valid consent if they cannot fully understand the details of a sexual interaction (who, what, when, where, why, or how) because the person lacks the capacity to reasonably understand the
120 • 2020-2021 Student Handbook and Calendar
