Washington College defines Sexual Misconduct as deliberate sexual behavior, contact, or threat of sexual contact without the other person’s consent. Examples include, but are not limited to:

• Crude, obscene, or sexually offensive gestures
• Unwanted touching, fondling, or groping of a sexual nature or coercion to force someone else to touch, fondle, grope
• Rape, forcible sodomy, or penetration with inanimate object, sexual intercourse without consent
• Coercing a person to consume alcohol or other drugs for the purpose of inducing sexual activity
• Any act involving sexually related behavior which places another person in a degrading, exploitative, abusive, or humiliating situation including (but not limited to): placing photographs of a sexual nature on the internet without permission

FYI

• Between 20 and 25% of college age women will be victims of rape or attempted rape during their college career (Fisher et al, 2000).
• 84% of women who reported sexually coercive behaviors experienced the incident during their first four semesters on campus (An Examination of Sexual Violence Against College Women, 2006).
• 1 in 33 men, or 3 %, will be the victim of a completed or attempted rape during his lifetime (National Institute for Justice, Center for Disease Control & Prevention, U.S. Department of Justice, 2000)

Washington College defines sexual harassment as any unwelcome sexual advance, request for sexual favors, or other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature which has the purpose or effect of interfering with one’s academic or work performance or social world by creating an intimidating, hostile, offensive, or violence environment.

Examples include:

• An action of an individual in position of authority or power who misuses that position to subject an individual to unwanted sexual attention of either a verbal or physical nature when that conduct is explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of a person’s employment or academic status;
• Demanding sexual favors accompanied by implied or overt threats or promises concerning grades, recommendations, or evaluations;
• Inappropriate conduct against an individual that interferes with an individual’s work performance or educational experience by creating an uncomfortable environment that would not occur but for the sex of the individual.

FYI

• 62% of female college students report having been sexually harassed at their university, with 80% reported harassment being peer to peer.
• More than 1/3 of college students experience sexual harassment within their first year.  
• While female students are more likely to be target of sexual jokes, comments, gestures, or looks; male students are more likely to be called gay or a homophobic name.

(American Association of University Women, 2005)

A pattern of repeated and unwanted attention, harassment, contact, or any other course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to feel fear (U.S. Department of Justice)

Examples of stalking

• Repeated calls, including hang ups
• Follow and show up wherever you are
• Send unwanted gifts, texts, letters, emails, messages
• Damage property
• Monitor phone calls, computer use
• Use GPS technology to track where you go
• Drive by home, work, school to ensure you are there or for intimidation purposes
• Threaten to hurt you, family, friends, pets
• Find out information about you using public records, online searches, investigators, going through garbage, contacting friends…

FYI

• 80% of stalking victims knew their stalker (National College Women Sexual Victimization Study, 2000).
• 1 in 6 women and 1 in 19 men have experienced stalking victimization during their lifetime in which they felt very fearful or believed that they or someone close to them would be harmed or killed (Campus Safety Magazine, 2012).
• 13% of college women report they have been stalked, 42% of these were stalked by a current or former boyfriend (Fisher and Cullen, 2000).