Bias Response Team Training August 11,2016 12:00-2:00pm + Mission The Longwood University's Bias Response Team (BRT) strives to create a more inclusive, safe, and welcoming campus environment for all students to learn, to grow, and to develop into socially conscious citizen leaders. The primary role of BRT is to manage Longwood's bias response form, provide victim support, produce semesterly reports of bias incidents, and respond to acts of bias as appropriately*.   *All hate crimes will be immediately turned over to Longwood police. All Title IX incidents will be reported and turned over to the Title IX Coordinator. + Primary Responsibilities 1.  Provide support and referral of resources to individuals or groups who are directly or indirectly affected by acts of bias and hate. 2.  Collect and share accounts of bias and hate that happen on Longwood's campus, as well as document the university's response to these acts. 3.  Collect and share accounts of positive acts and interventions aimed at reducing bias incidents and creating a more inclusive campus climate. 4.  Recommend long-term suggestions to improve Longwood's campus climate. 5.  Report directly to the University Diversity Council and serve as a liaison to other appropriate campus offices or officials. + What does the BRT do? 1.  Assist students and organizations directly and/or indirectly affected by incidents of bias. BRT provides support by reviewing accounts of bias, discussing resources with those involved, and providing both formal and informal options for moving forward. 2.  Maintain records of bias incidents on campus, and present an annual statistical report that summarizes the bias incident reports received during the year and the disposition of each event to the University Diversity Council and the VP of Student Affairs. 3.  Promote conversations about diversity issues. Members of BRT will meet with student groups to engage in discussions about diversity on Longwood’s campus and the surrounding community. 4.  Remain current about campus climate issues and best practices within higher education through scheduled monthly meetings. + Composition and Training The Bias Response Coordinator will identify and select the members of the BRT to serve for a 2-year term. Training for BRT members Membership of BRT includes faculty, staff, and representatives of the student body. All BRT members will be trained and will engage in semesterly training and continued education opportunities. Members will be trained on the bias response protocol, the student handbook with particular attention paid to policies that directly apply to bias incidents, best practices in bias incident response, legal issues, understanding bias, and other relevant topics. + Notice of Confidentiality All inquiries and complaints are treated with utmost discretion. Persons who submit a compliant have the option of doing so without providing any identifiable information; however, not providing the complainant’s name may limit the ways in which the BRT can provide support and/or respond to the incident. When a complainant’s name is provided, that information will be shared on a need to know basis. All members of the BRT are required to sign a statement of confidentiality as a means to maintain the integrity of the bias response process. While the names of those involved will be redacted during meetings and reports, the incident itself will be shared and documented for reporting purposes. Victim/Witness Experiences Bias Incident Online ?Faculty/Staff Bias Report Coordinator Campus Police Determine Type of Incident mlormation given is United and/or no! ?taxis: Contact Victim/Witness 3 Preliminary Investigation I Document Incident on," (While maintaining communication with BR coordinator) Report Findings and Recommendations to SR Coordinator Submit to Director of Student Conduct and Integrity for possible student conduct process Microaggressions + Microagressions The casual degradation of any socially marginalized group. According to Sue et al., microaggressions seem to appear in three forms: n  Microassault: an explicit racial derogation; verbal/nonverbal; e.g. name-calling, avoidant behavior, purposeful discriminatory actions. n  Microinsult: communications that convey rudeness and insensitivity and demean a person's racial heritage or identity; subtle snubs; unknown to the perpetrator; hidden insulting message to the recipient of color. n  Microinvalidation: communications that exclude, negate, or nullify the psychological thoughts, feelings, or experiential reality of a person belonging to a particular group. + Bias Bias is a tendency or inclination; irrational preference or behavior that prevents unprejudiced consideration of people, events, or situations. Bias can manifest itself in a performed negative opinion or attitude toward a person or group of persons based on their actual or perceived: n  Age n  Creed n  (Dis)ability n  Ethnic or national origin n  Gender, gender identity, or gender expression n  Marital status n  Political or social affiliation n  Race n  Religion n  Sexual orientation + Examples of Bias n  Telling jokes based on a stereotype that intimidate, harass, or threaten n  Offensive graffiti or images/drawing n  Excluding or barring participation from university sponsored clubs and events based on ones' perceived identity n  Posting or commenting offensive or disparaging language on social media related to someone’s identity with the intent to harass, coerce, threaten, or intimidate n  Calling someone the r-word, n-word, f-word… (in person, in writing, on social media, white boards, etc.) n  Using the phrase ‘no homo’ or calling a person or a behavior ‘gay’ as an insult n  Using a racial, ethnic, or other slur to identify someone n  Writing offensive or disparaging comments on a white board about someone’s disability, ethnicity, national origin, race, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion, or political affiliations/beliefs that threaten, coerce, harass or intimidate n  Drawing, creating pictures, or speaking/acting in a way that reinforces stereotypes, or belittles/ridicules someone because of their gender, gender expression, race, ethnicity, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, faith, or political affiliation + Hate Crimes A hate crime is a criminal offense committed against a person or property which is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender’s bias against a race, religion, disability, ethnic origin, or sexual orientation. The police are involved with all reported incidents and will work with the Bias Report Coordinator, NAME REDACTED, to determine whether a hate crime or a bias related incident has occurred. It is important to note that this involves a crime, as defined by federal statutes. Incidents may involve physical assault, damage to property, bullying, harassment, verbal abuse or insults, or offensive graffiti or letters (hate mail). + Examples of Hate Crimes n  Harassing or threatening phone calls, emails, or electronic communication reflecting racist, sexist, homophobic, or other derogatory expression/acts. n  Graffiti or vandalism reflecting racist, sexist, homophobic, or other derogatory expression/acts. Case Studies What Would Longwood Do? Lehiqh Universitv 2013 Texas April 2016 Potential Responses Modified from Bucknell University?s Bias Response Team protocol + Restorative Mediation If both the reporter/target and the alleged perpetrator agree to the Restorative Mediation process, they will participate in facilitated conversation, possibly with representatives of affected communities (for example, members of a specific identity group, a residence hall community, or members of a student organization), to establish a plan for repairing damage to those affected and/or targeted by the bias incident. This process requires the alleged perpetrator to acknowledge their part in the incident and accept restorative actions agreed upon by all parties. Note: The perceived severity and impact of the bias incident determine whether this option applies to particular cases. In consultation with the Director of Student Conduct and Integrity, the BRT will review the report to determine whether this option applies. For example, restorative mediation would not likely be available for bias incidents with significant property damage or any level of physical assault. Student Conduct + No Discipline Action Reporters/targets may decide to report the incident and take no further action. While Longwood University will do its best to honor this choice, we need to respect the safety and well-being of all members of our community. As such, Longwood will assess various factors to determine whether the community impact necessitates the University should move forward to try to seek disciplinary action. Considerations include whether the responsible party is a repeat offender, the relationship between the reporter/target and the incident's targeted group identity, and the impact on the community. + Facilitated Mediation A facilitated conversation between the target/reporter and allegedly responsible party. Mediation provides an opportunity for the reporter/target to express their perception and reaction to the incident, and allows both parties to identify and agree on an appropriate solution that addresses the target(s) concerns. + Report to Supervisor and HR The reporter/target can chose to report the incident to the employee's supervisor and/or Human Resources, so the incident can be addressed according to the faculty handbook. What?s Next? I Schedule meetings I Mid-year training/Check-in