Reporting an Incident

Maintaining a Healthy, Safe Campus

The purpose of reporting an incident is to maintain a healthy, safe campus for all. Reporting enables Dominican University to provide its community members with assistance and support, to collect information to assess the climate of the campus, and to remediate incidents and prevent their reoccurrence.

Reporting an incident can be done in two ways: (1) by contacting Dr. Sheila Radford-Hill, Chief Diversity Officer, Crown Link 102, (708) 524-6380, in person at Lewis Link 102 or (2) by contacting Confidential Resource persons, or  any representative of the campus (e.g., the Dean of Students Office, Campus Safety and Security, Residence Life, Human Resources, the Provost’s Office, University Ministry, a faculty member, a staff member). All responsible employees are expected to document incidents in the online incident reporting system to ensure that all incident reports are addressed and progress toward resolution is tracked [link to reporting options]. An exception is made for: licensed mental health professionals and Confidential Advisors who are trained to counsel victims of sexual assault.  Counselors, and health care professionals in the Wellness Center can offer near complete confidentiality for students. Non-counseling and non-medical staff in the Wellness Center can keep confidentiality but are Confidential Resources who are required to fill out an anonymous report for students, and Confidential Advisors serve the whole Dominican community and can keep confidentiality.

Campus Security, Residence Life Staff, Coaches, Faculty, Staff, selected student workers, contracted staff and Trustees are required to report disclosures of sexual misconduct, harassment and discrimination to the Title IX Coordinator or Chief Diversity Officer. Reports to the Title IX Coordinator and/or CDO related to Clery, VAWA, harassment and discrimination may be reported to Campus Security, if required by law.

Complainants have the right and can expect to have incidents of alleged misconduct taken seriously by Dominican University when formally reported, and to have those incidents properly addressed through administrative procedures or through a fair and impartial investigation. Reporting means that only people who need to know will be told, and information will be shared only as necessary with investigators, witnesses, and the respondents.

All individuals can report incidents anonymously.  To encourage reporting, the University pursues a policy of offering witnesses and individuals who wish to report incidents limited immunity from being charged for policy violations. While conduct violations cannot be completely overlooked, the University will typically provide educational rather than punitive responses in such cases. The seriousness of discrimination and/or sexual misconduct is a major concern and the university does not want any of the circumstances (e.g., drug or alcohol use) to inhibit the reporting of discrimination and/or sexual misconduct.

To help ensure a prompt and thorough investigation, complainants are encouraged to provide as much information as possible when they report an incident, such as:

  • The name and relationship to the institution (e.g., faculty, staff, student, guest) of the person or persons allegedly causing the prohibited discrimination, harassment, or retaliation.
  • A description of any relevant incident(s), including the date(s), location(s), and the presence of any witnesses.
  • The alleged effect of the incident(s) on the complainant’s opportunity to study, work, or fully engage in their life on campus.
  • The names of other individuals who might have been subject to the same or similar acts of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation.
  • Although it is not required, any steps the complainant has taken to try to stop the discrimination, harassment, or retaliation.
  • Any other information the complainant believes to be relevant to the alleged discrimination, harassment, or retaliation.
  • The remedy sought by the complainant.
Immunity

To encourage reporting, the University pursues a policy of offering witnesses and individuals who wish to report incidents limited immunity from being charged for policy violations. While violations cannot be completely overlooked, the University will provide educational rather than punitive responses in such cases. The seriousness of discrimination and/or sexual misconduct is a major concern and the university does not want any of the circumstances (e.g., drug or alcohol use) to inhibit the reporting of discrimination and/or sexual misconduct.

Clery Act/Federal Statistical Reporting Obligations

All information will be considered confidential to the greatest extent possible. For federal reporting purposes, all personally identifiable information will be kept confidential, but statistical information must be reported to the relevant authorities. Such reporting protects the identity of the complainant and the respondent.