In an email to students and fac-
ulty Monday, University of Mich-
igan President Mark Schlissel
outlined the new interim policy
on sexual and gender-based mis-
conduct, which will go into effect
Aug 14. The policy will apply to
students, faculty, staff and third
parties on all three campuses and
Michigan Medicine.
“Improving how we prevent
and address sexual and gender-
based misconduct in our com-
munity must always remain a
foremost priority at U-M,” Schlis-
sel said. “We strive to do better,
always, and creating an umbrella
policy that covers all members of
the U-M community is one key
measure we are implementing.”
The policy includes definitions
for prohibited conduct, separate
procedures for addressing allega-
tions against students and allega-
tions against employees or third
parties, and clarifies confiden-
tial resources and ways to report
misconduct.
This policy, which was ori-
ginally set to be released in early
2020, was postponed in order to
take the Department of Educa-
tion’s new regulations into con-
sideration. The new regulations,
announced in May by Secre-
tary of Education Betsy DeVos,
announced new title IX proced-
ures and protocol which will
change the policy draft shared by
University administration in the
fall.
According to the University
Record, one of the most signifi-
cant changes is the new federal
regulations having a more nar-
row definition for sexual harass-
ment.
Rather than the previous def-
inition, which said sexual harass-
ment is conduct that is “severe,
persistent, or pervasive,” the
new definition says it is conduct
which is so “severe and pervasive
and objectively offensive that it
effectively denies a person equal
access to education.”
The new University policy
includes a definition of Title IX
regulations to meet federal regu-
lations, as well as a broader def-
inition that includes sexual and
gender-based misconduct out-
side of federal regulations. It also
includes two separate procedures
for staff, faculty and third par-
ties, depending on which defin-
ition the allegation falls under.
The
policy
also
retained
reporting
obligations,
despite
federal regulations removing ref-
erences and requirements related
to responsible employees. Indi-
viduals with reporting obliga-
tions are identified and obligated
to report information regarding
prohibited conduct to the Office
of Institutional Equity.
For
students,
new
federal
regulations also require that
cross examinations be held by a
student’s adviser. These advisers
can be outside attorneys provid-
ed by the University for students
who need them.
Public Policy junior Emma
Sandberg is the executive dir-
ector of Roe v. Rape, a nonprofit
organization that advocates for
sexual assault survivors. In an
interview with The Daily, Sand-
berg emphasized the policy chan-
ges announced by Schlissel are a
huge improvement over previous
policies.
“One thing that we have been
advocating for throughout the
past year is for the University to
provide students with free attor-
neys, rather than advisors for
cross examination,” Sandberg
said. “According to the Univer-
sity Record, it looks like U of M
has this demand in their policy
changes, which is a major win for
survivors.”
According to Sandberg, the
group was also glad to see the
University maintain the prepon-
derance of evidence standard and
continue to investigate off cam-
pus sexual misconduct, both of
which were not required under
the new federal regulations. Both
of these were among the seven
demands made by a petition that
circulated in May regarding the
new regulations.
2
Thursday, August 13, 2020
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
NEWS
‘U’ updates sexual
misconduct policy
The University of Michigan prides
itself on being one of the nation’s
top public research universities.
Across all three campuses, 20,540
graduate students and 8,598 faculty
members study and work at the
University, many of whom are
active in research. In addition, over
1,500 undergraduates participate
in the Undergraduate Research
Opportunity Program at the Ann
Arbor campus.
Despite
the
thousands
of
researchers,
the
University’s
anonymous
reporting
system
received only seven reports in
2019 related to “issues arising in
the research setting,” according
to University spokeswoman Kim
Broekhuizen.
A Michigan Daily investigation
found that flaws in the system
deterred student researchers from
reporting alleged abuse. The Daily
spoke to three students who claimed
the small size of their lab prevented
them from using the University’s
reporting system to report alleged
misconduct. The Daily also found
that little oversight of research
supervisors
strengthens
the
hierarchical system in research labs.
Jason Altom, a graduate student
in Harvard University’s chemistry
department, died by suicide in
1998. Two of the three suicide notes
Altom left called for changes to the
department that he felt could have
prevented his death.
“Professors here have too much
power over the lives of their grad
students,” Altom wrote in one of his
notes.
After
extensive
coverage
by
The New York Times, Harvard’s
chemistry department adopted a
series of changes, including a three-
member
committee
to
monitor
student
researcher
progress
and free, confidential access to a
therapist. Since Altom’s passing,
journalists have uncovered alleged
research abuse at other institutions
like Stanford University and the
University of Wisconsin-Madison.
In a report released last month,
WilmerHale, the law firm hired
to investigate former University
of Michigan Provost Martin A.
Philbert’s
sexual
misconduct
allegations,
found
he
harassed
women, including graduate students
who worked in his research lab.
Philbert made comments about their
bodies,
redireced
conversations
toward sex and insisted on receiving
hugs.
In 2005, specific allegations of
sexual assault arose in which one
of Philbert’s research assistants
reported Philbert had “asked her
for sex, to marry him, to run away
together and to ‘have caramel (sic)
colored babies’ with him.” The report
found “significant evidence that
Philbert engaged in a wide range of
sexual misconduct, including sexual
harassment, for at least fifteen years.”
Abuse in research
goes unreported
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Students allege
ineffective filing system
due to major flaws
The new regulations
set to take effect
on Aug. 14