Responsible Employee
Except for Confidential Resources, all University Employees are designated Responsible Employees and thereby mandatory reporters of potential Sexual and Interpersonal Misconduct (“SIM”) violations. Responsible Employees include all staff (hourly and salary), faculty, instructors, teaching assistants, and student workers who have supervisory responsibility or responsibility for the welfare of other students and learn of potential violations of this policy in the scope of their employment. Student workers who are Responsible Employees include but are not limited to Campus Living & Learning Community Leaders, Resident Chaplains, Athletics Team Managers, Peer Educators, and Line Camp Leaders. Responsible Employees must report immediately any information about suspected sexual or gender-based harassment, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, stalking, intimate partner violence, or retaliation[1] for reporting regardless of when (both prior to or during their time at Baylor) or where (both on and off campus) the alleged misconduct occurred, or whether it is a Title IX or Non-Title IX Misconduct. Reports must include any known details such as identities of the parties and the date, time and location of the incident. Confidential Resources who do not have to report to the Equity, Civil Rights, and Title IX Office (“Equity Office”) include those working in the Counseling Center, Health Center, and the University Chaplain, Dr. Burt Burleson. If you believe that a student has been the victim of a sexual assault or interpersonal violence, please contact the Title IX Coordinator at 254-710-8454. If there is an immediate safety concern, please contact Baylor Police Department at 254-710-2222. Reporting may also be done online through https://titleix.web.baylor.edu.
[1]Responsible employees must report retaliation when they are aware of acts consistent with the policy definition of retaliation, and they have reason to believe it is occurring because of a party's participation in a SIM process, or in order to prevent either making a report to Equity Office or participation in a SIM process.
Reporting Obligations under Texas Law
Effective January 2020, a Texas law (Senate Bill 212) requires any employee of a college or university in Texas to report to the Title IX Coordinator any information regarding an alleged incident of sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, or stalking, committed by or against a person enrolled at or employed by the institution at the time of the incident. The law requires colleges to terminate employment for employees who fail to report such matters and imposes criminal penalties of up to a year in jail.
The obligation to report applies whenever an employee receives, in the course and scope of employment, information about an alleged incident which reasonably constitutes sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, or stalking committed by or against a person who was a student or employee at the time of the incident. The report must include all information known to the employee which would be relevant to an investigation or redress of the incident, including whether the alleged victim has expressed a desire for confidentiality. A party’s desire for confidentiality does not relieve the employee’s obligation to report.
The law encourages but does not require student employees to report. Baylor policy, however, requires student employees to report such instances.
The only exceptions to the reporting obligation are for designated confidential sources. At Baylor, the designated confidential sources are counselors and medical personnel when acting as such, and the University Chaplain, Dr. Burt Burleson. Designated confidential resources are not excused from all reporting obligations; they must report the incident type for any report that meets the criteria above.
Definitions of sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence (also called intimate partner violence), and stalking are included in the Sexual and Interpersonal Misconduct Policy. However, employees do not need to, and furthermore should not, investigate matters or make unnecessary judgments about the information they receive in order to determine whether the reported information meets the definition for misconduct. All instances of alleged misconduct that could reasonably constitute Prohibited Conduct must be reported to the Title IX Coordinator.
Reports can be made online at https://titleix.web.baylor.edu. Reports can also be made via email (titleix_coordinator@baylor.edu), phone (254-710-8454), or in person (Clifton Robinson Tower, suite 285).