Reporting options are available to the RIT community 24/7 either in person or online. Public Safety receives in-person reports 24/7, and OCE and the Title IX Office receives in-person reports during business hours (M-F, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm). There are additional reporting options online and anonymously through the RIT Ethics and Compliance Hotline.

Anyone can also report a concern to an immediate supervisor, dean, divisional leader, or other university officer. Any supervisor who becomes aware of any concern or complaint alleging a violation of university policy must contact OCE, the Title IX Office, the Office of Legal Affairs, or Human Resources, and refrain from taking any employee action to resolve the matter without first contacting Human Resources.

To determine whether to initiate an investigation, OCE and the Title IX Office conduct a preliminary assessment of the report to determine whether the office has authority over the conduct alleged in the report, and whether that conduct, if true, would constitute a violation of university policy. If OCE or the Title IX Office determines that it has authority over the alleged conduct and there is a potential violation of university policy, then they may initiate an investigation.

Investigation of conduct that involves discriminatory misconduct based on a protected characteristic other than sex and gender, the investigation will follow the OCE Investigation Process, set forth below. If the discriminatory misconduct is based on sex and gender, then the investigation will follow the Sexual Harassment, Discrimination, and Sexual Misconduct Investigation Process.

In general, when the alleged respondent is an employee, OCE or the Title IX Office is the primary investigator, regardless of whether the complaining party is a student, employee, or community member. If the alleged respondent is a student, then Public Safety is the primary investigator, regardless of whether the person who filed the complaint is a student, employee, or community member.

OCE does not review or investigate complaints related to employee relations such as morale or performance issues, wage and hour concerns, employee disputes unrelated to any protected category, or other workplace conflicts. Nor does OCE review or investigate complaints when students have academic complaints, such as academic dishonesty, student misconduct, etc.

For more information about investigations conducted by OCE, please review the Administrative Policy for Reviewing and Investigating Reports of Misconduct or Violations of Policy Conducted by the Office of Compliance and Ethics.

If a report proceeds to investigation, all parties will receive notification of allegations by the investigating party, either RIT Public Safety, OCE or the Title IX Office. Generally, both parties to an investigation receive a Notice of Investigation and Allegations (NOIA), which identifies potential policy violations and includes any applicable interim measures, available resources, and next steps. Reporters outside of the RIT Community may not have access to certain documentation or resources internal to RIT.

Depending on the allegations, the appropriate department will investigate. All evidence, including interviews, statements, and relevant documentation, is compiled into an Investigation Report. Relevant evidence may include written notes and images, text messages, emails, photos, social media posts, video or audio files, medical reports, receipts, site visits, and any other physical evidence.

For Cases Involving Students Investigated under Policies C. 27 or D. 19: Following an investigation, cases involving students are referred to the Center for Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution. Student Conduct will determine the appropriate next steps, which may include formal or informal resolution. Formal resolution may be a hearing or a mutual resolution agreement. Informal resolution may result in a facilitated conversation. If a case proceeds to a hearing, assigned hearing officers will hear and determine the outcome of a case. The hearing officers will decide whether the respondent is responsible for violating RIT policy(s). If the respondent is responsible,
the hearing officers will also determine the appropriate conditions and sanctions (statuses) for the responsible party.

For Cases Involving Employees: Following the investigation, OCE will send an investigation report to the Human Resources Office. Human Resources will review the investigation report and is responsible for determining whether a respondent has violated any RIT policy. If found responsible for a policy violation, Human Resources then makes recommendations to senior leadership regarding the appropriate corrective action.

C27.0 Cases may result in a hearing for student and employee cases.

Student Cases: Both parties have the right to appeal the outcome of an investigation. Upon appeal, the Associate Vice President for Student Affairs will determine whether the individual appealing has satisfied the grounds for appeal, and then schedules the appeal with the University Appeal Board, which convenes for hear the appeal. The outcome of an appeal is final.

Employee Cases: Both parties have the right to appeal the outcome of an investigation under Policy C.27 only. Appeals go to the Vice President and Associate Provost for Diversity and Inclusion. An appeal committee will convene if there is a conflict with the VP and Associate Provost for Diversity and Inclusion. The outcome of an appeal is final.

There is no appeal in employee cases for any other policy.