Reporting Process

Most of the information on this page is referring to Title IX and sexual misconduct; however, our office handles reports of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation (DHR) as well. The report link for Title IX is the same for DHR matters. More information on DHR and related policies can be found on the DHR page.

MANDATED REPORTER vs. DUTY TO REPORT

There are two terms that are associated with reporting incidents of alleged sexual misconduct at Cal Poly Humboldt. For many years, the terms were used interchangeably but there is a difference.

“DUTY TO REPORT”: Almost every Cal Poly employee (faculty, staff, administrators, and student assistants) has a "duty to report" - meaning they MUST notify the Title IX & DHR Prevention Office if they learn about allegation that may violate Title IX Law & CSU Nondiscrimination Policy. The ONLY EXCEPTIONS are certain healthcare providers. If you are exempt, you will know.

"MANDATED REPORTERS":  There are very few employees (identified by CSU EO 1083) who are required to report suspected child abuse or neglect. Generally speaking, these are people who work with minors. If you are a mandated reporter, you will be notified by Human Resources.

Safety of the Campus Community is Primary

The university's primary concern is the safety of its campus community members. The use of alcohol or drugs never makes the victim at fault for sexual discrimination, harassment or violence; therefore, victims should not be deterred from reporting incidents of sexual violence out of a concern that they might be disciplined for related violations of drug, alcohol or other university policies. Except in extreme circumstances, victims of sexual violence shall not be subject to discipline for related violations of the Student Code of Conduct.

Here is an interactive guide that provides information about the reporting process, options for support, and resources available if a student decides to share what happened to them.

What happens after I make a report?

Upon receipt of a report, someone from our office will meet with the Complainant. This is a preliminary meeting and the Complainant can have a support advisor present with them.

The purpose of the preliminary meeting is to help our office gain a basic understanding of the nature and circumstances of the report or formal complaint; it is not intended to be a full investigation interview. During this meeting, we will seek to determine how the Complainant wishes to proceed.

Options range from not pursuing resolution of any kind to pursuing something through our Formal Complaint process. Supportive measures will be offered to the Complainant at this meeting regardless of their wishes to move forward with a formal complaint.

The Title IX Coordinator will follow up the meeting with a written explanation of the student or employee's rights and options and procedures. This written explanation will be sent through email using Maxient, our case management software application. For more details on Maxient, see below.

The Campus Advocate Team is available for advocacy and accompaniment during any part the university reporting and investigative processes, and can be included on all electronic communications between our office and the Complainant.

Can my information be kept totally confidential after I make a report?

To the extent possible, information reported to the Title IX Coordinator or other University employee will be shared only with individuals responsible for handling the University’s response to the incident. The University will protect the privacy of individuals involved except as otherwise required by law or University policy. A report may result in the gathering of extremely sensitive information about you and other individuals in the Campus community. While such information is considered confidential, University policy regarding access to public records and disclosure of personal information may require disclosure of certain information concerning a reported incident. In such cases, efforts will be made to redact the records, as appropriate, in order to protect your identity and privacy and the privacy of other involved individuals.

If you request of the Title IX Coordinator or another University employee that your identity remain completely confidential, the Title IX Coordinator will explain that the University cannot always honor that request and cannot guarantee complete confidentiality. If you wish to maintain confidentiality or request that no investigation be conducted or disciplinary action taken, the University must weigh that request against the University’s obligation to provide a safe, non-discriminatory environment for all students, employees and third parties, including you.

Under those circumstances, the Title IX Coordinator will determine whether your request for complete confidentiality and/or no investigation can be honored under the facts and circumstances of the particular case, including whether the University has a legal obligation to report the incident, conduct an investigation or take other appropriate steps. Without information about your identity, the University’s ability to meaningfully investigate the incident and pursue disciplinary action against the perpetrator may be severely limited.

Because the University is under a continuing legal obligation to address the issue of sexual misconduct, dating and domestic violence, and stalking campus-wide, any such reports (including non-identifying reports) may also prompt the University to consider broader remedial action – such as increased monitoring, supervision or security at locations where the reported incident occurred; increased education, training and prevention efforts, including to targeted population groups; conducting climate assessments/victimization surveys; and/or revising its policies and practices.

NOTE: If the University determines that the perpetrator poses a serious and immediate threat to the Campus community, our campus, under the Clery Act, may be called upon to issue a timely warning to the community. Any such warning will not include any information that identifies the individual who experienced harm. For more information on Clery Act Compliance on campus, visit the Clery website.

Maxient

Several departments on campus utilize Maxient, a secure, web-based application for Case Management. The emails will come from "notifications@maxient.com." These are authentic emails from the application. They are not SPAM or phishing attempts. Please add them to your contacts so you won't miss any important updates or communications. 

 In addition to a brief explanation, the body of the email will contain a button that says "Pick up your letter" at the bottom. You will access your letter through a login page, using your Humboldt ID number.

Once logged in to the Maxient portal, you can access your letter, which will be a PDF document. Print or download and save the letter for your records.

Submitting a Report - Tips and Suggestions

Information that you can include:

• Any names and Humboldt ID numbers (Complainant, Respondent, Witnesses, etc. if known)
  • if you are reporting due to your employee duty to report, you (unfortunately) cannot submit the report without the complainant information.
• Date, time and location (if known)
• Provide as much description of the situation, incident/behavior, or concern, as you have available to you
  • If you are reporting due to your employee duty to report, remember: you are not an investigator - share what was shared with you; you do not need to ask more questions in order to properly submit a report to our office.
• If you have any additional documentation such as emails, texts, screenshots, messages or word documents, please attach to the report.
• If you have concern about suicide or suicide ideation, contact University Police (x5555) who will assist in determing the appropriate course of action.

Do Not Include:

• Arm-Chair Diagnoses: Diagnoses must come from licenses individuals operating in their capacity as a health care professional. Unless the student(s) in question have self disclosed a diagnosis to you, please report the concerning behavior only (e.g. "Over the course of several weeks I have noticed the student has extreme mood swings, alternating between enthusiasm and apathy." but not "This student is manic depressive").
• Opinions/Judgments about the students character, personality, identity or other personal characteristics not related to the concerning issue.

Please note:

Lack of information will delay processing of referrals. It is extremely important that you include as much information as you have available. Please do not email reports, these reporting forms are a more secure and reliable method of getting us the information.

Additionally, Students have a right to access their educational records, and these reports are a part of those records. As such, all reports are not confidential.