Policy Glossary

President, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Vice President for Finance and Administration, Vice President for College Advancement, Vice President for Student and Campus Life, Vice President for Enrollment Management, Chief Communications and Marketing Officer, Chief Diversity Officer, and the Chief of Staff.

An individual under the age of seventeen years, who is participating in a Covered Activity. The term “child” shall not include a matriculated student of the College or a person accepted for matriculation.

A camp defined under New York Public Health Law §1392.

Policies affecting all departments, faculty, staff, students, and visitors to the College.

The Research Foundation for the State University of New York, campus foundation, campus alumni association, or campus auxiliary services corporation.

An individual’s skin pigmentation, complexion, shade, or tone.

For the purposes of this Title IX Grievance Policy, Complainant means any individual who has reported being or is alleged to be the victim of conduct that could constitute covered sexual harassment as defined under this policy.

Computing resources refer to computing technology owned, leased, operated, and managed by the College, including but not limited to software, electronic mail systems, web hosting, applications, storage media, databases, and Internet connectivity. Also included are physical resources such as College-owned, -leased, -operated, or -managed computers, network cabling, wireless access points, computer workstations, kiosks, card swipes, printers/copiers, audio-visual equipment, telephone/fax equipment, classroom equipment, or wiring closets. Further, computing resources encompass all college voice and data networks, telephone systems, telecommunications infrastructure, communications systems and services, and physical facilities.

For the purposes of this Title IX Grievance Policy, “consent” means: a knowing, voluntary and mutual decision among all participants to engage in sexual activity. Consent can be given by words or actions, as long as those words or actions create clear permission regarding willingness to engage in the sexual activity. Silence or lack of resistance, in and of itself, does not demonstrate consent. The definition of consent does not vary based upon a participant's sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression. 

• Consent to any sexual act or prior consensual sexual activity between or with any party does not necessarily constitute consent to any other sexual act. 
• Consent is required regardless of whether the person initiating the act is under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. 
• Consent may be initially given but withdrawn at any time. Consent cannot be given when a person is incapacitated, which occurs when an individual lacks the ability to knowingly choose to participate in sexual activity. Incapacitation may be caused by the lack of consciousness or being asleep, being involuntarily restrained, or if an individual otherwise cannot consent. Depending on the degree of intoxication, someone who is under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or other intoxicants may be incapacitated and therefore unable to consent. 
• Consent cannot be given when it is the result of any coercion, intimidation, force, or threat of harm. When consent is withdrawn or can no longer be given, sexual activity must stop.

A program or activity sponsored or approved by the College or a College-affiliated organization, or an activity conducted by a vendor, licensee or permittee for which a license or permit for use of College facilities has been approved, occurring on or off campus, for the duration of which the responsibility for custody, control and supervision of children is vested in the College, College-affiliated organization or the vendor, licensee or permittee so approved. This policy is not applicable to College oncampus child care centers.

A person who is responsible for the custody, control or supervision of children participating in the Covered Activity and who is:

i. an employee of the College or College-affiliated organization;

ii. a College student;

iii. a volunteer of the College or College-affiliated organization; or

iv. a vendor, licensee, permittee or other person, who is given permission to come onto campus or to use College facilities for Covered Activities; or

v. an employee, agent or volunteer of (iv) above.

For the purposes of this Title IX Grievance Policy, “covered sexual harassment” includes any conduct on the basis of sex that satisfies one or more of the following:

1. An employee conditioning educational benefits on participation in unwelcome sexual conduct (i.e., quid pro quo);
2. Unwelcome conduct that a reasonable person would determine is so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it effectively denies a person equal access to the educational institution’s education program or activity;
3. Sexual assault (as defined in the Clery Act), which includes any sexual act directed against another person, without the consent of the victim including instances where the victim is incapable of giving consent;
4. Dating violence (as defined in the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) amendments to the Clery Act), which includes any violence committed by a person: (A) who is or has been in a social relationship of a romantic or intimate nature with the victim; and (B) where the existence of such a relationship shall be determined based on a consideration of the following factors: (i) The length of the relationship; (ii) The type of relationship; (iii) The frequency of interaction between the persons involved in the relationship.
5. Domestic violence (as defined in the VAWA amendments to the Clery Act), which includes any felony or misdemeanor crimes of violence committed by a current or former spouse or intimate partner of the victim, by a person with whom the victim shares a child in common, by a person who is cohabitating with or has cohabitated with the victim as a spouse or intimate partner, by a person similarly situated to a spouse of the victim under New York domestic or family violence laws or by any other person against an adult or youth victim who is protected from that person's acts under the domestic or family violence laws of New York State.
6. Stalking (as defined in the VAWA amendments to the Clery Act), meaning engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to-- (A) fear for their safety or the safety of others; or (B) suffer substantial emotional distress.

Note that conduct that does not meet one or more of these criteria may still be prohibited under the SUNY Geneseo Student Code of Conduct or applicable employment policies.