Sexual Violence and Harassment Policy
Responsible and Approves Authority: Office of the Director
Date of approval: 1st of August, 2024
Mandatory Review Date: Three years from approval date
Purpose: Private Career College students have a right to study in an environment free of sexual violence. This document sets out policy on sexual violence involving our students. It ensures that those affected by sexual violence are believed and appropriately accommodated and ensures that the College has a process of investigation that protects the rights of individuals and holds individuals who have committed an act of sexual violence accountable
The Scope: The policy applies to complaints of sexual violence that have been occurred on
Empire College Canada of Health and Business campus or at a one of our events and involve our students.
Definitions:
Sexual violence: The policy prohibits the sexual violence which means any sexual act targeting a person’s sexuality, gender identity, or gender expression, whether that act is physical, psychological in nature, that is committed, threatened or attempted against a person without the persons consent, and includes sexual assault, sexual harassment, stalking, indecent exposure, voyeurism and sexual exploitation.
Sexual assault: A criminal offence under the Criminal Code of Canada. Sexual assault is any type of unwanted sexual act done by one person to another that violates the sexual integrity of the victim and involves a range of behaviors from any unwanted touching to penetration. Sexual assault is characterized by a broad range of behaviors that involve the use of force, threats, or control towards a person, which makes that person feel uncomfortable, distressed, frightened, threatened, or that is carried out in circumstances in which the person has not freely agreed, consented to, or is incapable of consenting to.
Sexual Harassment: A broad range of actions not including assault as it is described in the Criminal Code, but that can include sexual assault (unwanted physical acts). Sexual harassment refers to one or a series of comments or behaviors related to gender, or of a sexual nature that is known or ought to reasonably be known to be unwelcome, unwanted, offensive, intimidating, hostile, or inappropriate.
Policy Objective: Sexual assault and violence in any form will not be tolerated at Empire College Canada. College will provide a copy of the policy to our students, and educate them together with our career college management and contractor about this policy and how to identify situation that involve or could progress into sexual violence against our students and how to reduce it.
Students are not required to report an incident of, or make a complaint about, sexual violence or harassment to obtain supports, service, or accommodation.
Where a complaint has been made, under this policy of sexual violence. College will take all of reasonable steps to investigate it, including as follows:
a). Providing on campus investigation procedure to students for sexual violence complaints
b). Responding immediately to any complaint and providing reasonable updates to the complainant and respondent about the status of the investigation.
c). Assisting students who have experienced sexual violence in obtaining counselling and medical care.
d). Providing students who have experienced sexual violence with appropriate academic and other accommodation; and
e) Providing students who have experienced sexual violence with information about reporting options as set out in Appendix 1.
Reporting and Responding to Sexual Violence: Empire College Canada will take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual violence involving our students on our campus or events by reporting immediately to the management if our students have been subject to, or they witnessed or have knowledge of sexual violence involving our students, or have reason to believe that sexual violence has occurred or may occur which involve our students. Management will attempt to keep all information disclosed confidential except in those circumstance it believes an individual is at imminent risk of self-harm, or harming another, or there are reasonable grounds to believe that other on our campus or the broader community is at risk.
Empire College Canada recognize the rights of the complainant to determine how her or his complaint will be dealt with. However, in certain circumstances, Empire College Canada may require by law or its internal policies to initiate an internal investigation and/or inform police without the consent, if it believes the safety of the members of its campus or the broader community at risk. A complainant seeking accommodation should contact management.
Investigation Report of Sexual Violence: Complaint of sexual violence may be filed under this policy, by any students of our career college to the management. Empire College Canada may initiate an investigation including as follows:
a) To determine whether incidence should be referred to police immediately
b) Determine what interim measures, if any, need to be taken during the investigation.
c) Meeting with the complainant to determine the date and time of the incident, the person involved , the name of any person who witnessed the incident and ac complete description of what happened
d) Interviewing the complainant, any person involved in the incident and any identifiable witnesses.
e) Interviewing any other person who has knowledge of incident related to the complaint.
f) Informing the respondent of the complaint, providing details of the allegation and giving the respondent an opportunity to respond to those allegation
g) Providing reasonable updates to the complainant and the respondent about the status of the investigation
h) Determining what disciplinary action, if any, should be taken.
i). If students, in good faith, report an incident of, or make a complaint about, sexual violence, they will not be subject to discipline or sanctions for violations of the private career college’s policies related to drug or alcohol use at the time the alleged sexual violence occurred.
j) Students who disclose their experience or sexual violence through reporting an incidence of, making a complaint about, or assessing supports or services for sexual violence, will not be asked irrelevant questions during the investigation process by the private career college’s staff or investigators, including irrelevant questions relating to the student’s sexual expression of past sexual history.
Disciplinary Measures: If it is determined by college that a student of our career college has been involved in sexual violence, immediately disciplinary or correction will be taken up to and including termination of employment of instructor or staff or expulsion of a student.
In case where criminal proceeding are initiated, Empire College Canada will assist police agencies, lawyer, insurance companies and court to the fullest extent. Where criminal and /or civil proceeding are commenced in respect of allegation of sexual violence may conduct its own independence investigation and make its own determination in accordance with its own polices and procedure.
Making false Statement: It is violation of this policy for anyone to knowingly make a false complaint of sexual violence or to provide false information about a complaint. Individual who violates this policy are subject to disciplinary and/or corrective action up to and including termination of employment of instructors or staff expulsion of student.
Reprisal: It is violation of this policy to retaliate or threaten to retaliate against a complainant who has brought forward a complaint of sexual violence, providing information related to a complaint, or otherwise been involved on the complaint investigation process.
Review: This policy reviewed 3 years after it is first implemented.
Collection of student data: Empire College Canada will collect and be prepared to provide upon request by the Superintendent of Private Career College such data and information as requires according to Subsection 32. 3(8), (9) and (10) of Schedule 5 of the Private Career College Act 2005 as amended.
Resources:
Appendix 1
Lists of provincial rape crises centers which could be provided as resources.
Region in Ontario:
Algoma (Sault Ste. Marie) ,- Women In Crisis Algoma 1-877-759-1230 705-759-1230
Belleville-Quinte , -Sexual Assault Centre for Quinte & District, 1-877-544-6424
Brant, -Sexual Assault Centre of Brant, 519-751-3471 519-751-1164
Bruce County, Women’s House Serving Bruce and Grey: Sexual Assault Services 1-866-578-5566 519-372-1113
Chatham-Kent,- Chatham-Kent Sexual Assault Crisis Centre 519-354-8688, 519-354-8908
Cornwall,- Sexual Assault Support Services for Women, Cornwall English: 613-932- 1603 French: 613-932-1705 613-932
Halton (Oakville)- Sexual Assault & Violence Intervention Services of Halton ,905-875-1555 and 906-825 3622Hamilton -Sexual Assault Centre Hamilton & Area (SACHA) , 905-525-4162 and 905-525-4573
London-Middlesex- Sexual Assault Centre London 519-438-2272 ,1-877-529-2272 and 519-439-0844
Peel -Hope 24/7: Sexual Assault Centre of Peel 1-800-810-0180 and 905-792-0821
Sudbury -Voices for Women Sudbury 705-523-7100 ext. 2647
Toronto – Multicultural Women Against Rape/Toronto Rape Crisis Centre (416) 597-8808 and 416-597-1171
Waterloo -Sexual Assault Support Centre of Waterloo Region 519-741-8633 and 519-571-0121