MASSACHUSETIS MARITIME ACADEMY
OCR COMPLAINT No. 01-13-2008
VOLUNTARY RESOLUTION AGREEMENT

Massachusetts Maritime Academy agrees voluntarily to take the steps set out below to
resolve the above-referenced complaint. The complaint was filed with th e U.S.
Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and OCR asserted jurisdiction
under Title IX of the Education Amendmen ts of 1972 (Title IX). The Academy disagrees
that OCR has jurisdiction pursuant to 34 C.F.R. 106.13, but agreed to resolve this matter
prior to the conclusion of the investigation and a finding on this matter in order to
comply with the spirit of Title IX and its implementing regulations. Entering this
agreement is not, however, an admission by the Academy that it is required by law to
comply with Title IX or its implementing regulations.
I. ACADEM Y-WIDE ACTIONS
A. The Academy will better publicize the roles and responsibilities of its Title IX
Coordinator (Coordinator). The Academy will widely publi sh the name and
contact information of the Title IX Coordinator in print and on-line, as well as
stating the names of any delegates charged with similar responsibilities. The
Coordinator (and her delegates) will be responsible for the following:
1.

Communicating to students, parents, and staff the Academy's actions with
regard to sexual harassment and providing information to individuals
regarding their rights pertaining to non-discriminatory treatment based
on sex, the Academy's grievance processes, and the availability of interim
measures during an investigat ion of a grievance;

2.

Responding to any and all comp laint s/reports or incident s of sex
discrimination following the approved grievance procedure;

3.

Tracking comp laint s/reports for trend s and repeat perpetrator s; and

4.

Conducting periodic assessments (at least annually) of campus climate
with regard to sexual harassment and violence. The Coordinator will seek
input from students, staff, as well as a wide variety of other sources,
through surveys, interviews, and focus groups. The Coordinator will also
assess the resources on campus available to victims and will incorpora te
feedback provided by those who have gone through the grievance
process. The Academy will consider such assessments in identifying
future actions to ensure that it maintains an environment that is safe and
supporti ve to all students.

B. The Academy will revise and submit for OCR' s review grievance procedures
for comp laints of sex-based discrimination. Once approved by OCR, the
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Academy will provide broad noti ce to the community. The procedures will
include, at a minimum, the following:
1.

If informal process(es) are available, the option for complainants to bypass
an informa l process for a formal proc ess at any point, per the
complainants' discretion;

2.

No complainant will be required to have direct interaction with an alleged
perpetrator in any informal resolution or mediation involving a complaint
of sexual assault;

3.

Designated timeframes for major stages of the process;

4.

Adequate, prompt and impartial investigations of allegations of sexual
harassment and violence including:
a. Not unnecessarily delaying the Academy's inves tigation of possible
sexual violence until related criminal processes are concluded;
b. The opportunity for both parties to present witn esses and other
evide nce;
c. Use of the preponderance of evidence standard in determining
whether sexual harassment or violence occurred;
d. Availability of interim steps to protect the parties during the
Academy's investigation of possible sexual harassment or violence.
Such interim steps should not disproportionately impact the
complainant(s).

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5.

Assurances that the Academy will take steps to stop any sexual
harassment or viole nce if found, prevent its recurrence and remedy its
effects on those impact ed, where appropriate;

6.

Assurances that retaliation is prohibited and that retaliation will be
handled promptly and equitabl y if it occurs;

7.

No tice in writing to the relevant parties regarding the outcome of the
process including whether sexual harassment or violence was found and a
description of the Academy's response;

8.

Equitable rights to both parties to appeal, if applicable;

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9.

Maritime Academy, OCR Complaint No. 01-13-2008

Consistent with its current policies, adequate record-keeping of
complaints filed, including a description of the claim or copy of the
complaint; copies of all witnesses statement s; any docum entary ev idence
or written statemen ts provided; a copy of final disposit ion/ outc ome; and
documentation that notice of th e outcome was provided to the parties.

C. The Academy will provide trainin g to the Title IX Coordinator and those

designated to conduct investigations in response to reports or complaints of
sexual harassment or violence on: the Academy's rules/ policies regarding
sexual harassment/ violence; relevant resources available on and off campus;
the Academy's grievance procedure, including accepting, processing and
investigating complaints of sexual harassment or violence; interacting with
victims of sexual harassment or violence; gathering relevant evidence and
assessing it in the Title IX context; the importance of confidentiality, fair
proce ss, impartialit y, and applicable legal standards; and safety
considerations whe n determining interim measures and disciplinary
sanctions.
D. The Academy will provide all staff with training on: interacting with victims
of sexua l hara ssment or violen ce; the Academy's policies regarding sexual
hara ssment or violence; resources on campus; the Academy's grievance
procedures; reporting requirements; and other topics the Academy deems
relevant to address sexua l harassment and violence.
E. The Academy will conduct training for freshmen stude nts on: the Academy's

policies regarding sexual haras sment or violence; resource s on campus; the
Academy's grievance procedures; reporting requirements; and other topics
the Academy deems relevant to address sexual hara ssment and violence. The
Academy will also hold trainings for sop homor e students on bystander
intervention and will re-affirm the topics presented to freshman stud ents.
F. The Academy will deve lop and provide to OCR for its review and approval,

an intake checklist for staff and the Coordinator to use when a student reports
an incident of sexual hara ssment or violence.
G. The Academy will develop a pamphlet and webpage explaining the
Academy's grievance procedure, remedies available to victims, and resources
available on and off campus for victims. The pamphlet and hyperlink will be
provided to any student reporting sexual harassment or violence and will be
distributed to the Academy community at the beginning of each school year.

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H. In an effort to raise awareness on campus of issues of sexual violence, the
Academy will provide ongoing educational forums/ events on these topics
suc h as holding a "Take Back the Night" awareness eve nt each year.
II.

STUDENT-SPECIFIC ACTION

The Academy will meet with the Complainant and his daughter to discuss the fall
event, the Academy's response, and the impact it has had on the Complainant's
daughter.
Ill. REPORTING

A. By August 31, 2013, the Academy will pro vide OCR with documentation that it
has better publicized the role of Title IX Coordinator and published the name
online and in print; submit for OCR' s review intake checklist, pamphlet and
hyper link to website.
B. The Academy will submit for OCR' s review the revised Title IX grievance
procedures within two days of approval by the Massachusetts Board of Higher
Education, if such approval is necessary. Oth erwise, the Academy will submit
for OCR' s review the revised Title IX grievance procedures by Augus t 31, 2013.
C. Two weeks prior to completing the training in Provision C, D, and E of the

Academy-Wide actions, the Academy will provide OCR with the name and
qualifications of the trainer , and copies of the training materials.
D. By December 31, 2013, the Academy will provide OCR with documentation that
it is implementing its grievance procedure, the Title IX coordinators are fulfilling
their responsibilities, and the Academy is making efforts to increase awareness
around these issues on campus, including:

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1.

documentation of reports and complaints and the Academy's respo nse to
complaints of sexual hara ssme nt and violence;

2.

documentation of efforts to track complaints/reports
perpetrators;

3.

documentation of efforts to assess the schools' climate with respect to the
sexual harassment; and

4.

documentation of orientation programs and other ongoing annual events
related to sexual harassment and violence.

of trends and repeat

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Maritime Academy, OCR Complaint No. 01-13-2008

E. By June 30, 2013, the Academy will provide documentation that it has made all
reasonable efforts to complete the Student-specific action outlined in Section II.
The Academy und erstand s that OCR will not close the monitoring of this agreement
until OCR determines that the Academy has fulfilled its term s and is in compliance
with the regulation s implementing Title IX which were at issue in thi s case.
The Academy understands that by signing this agreement, it agrees to provide data and
other information in a timely manner in accordance with the reporting requirements of
this agreement. Further, the Academy understand s that during the monitoring of this
agreement, if necessary, OCR may visit the Academy, interview staff and students, and
request such additional reports or data as are necessary for OCR to determine whether
the Academy has fulfilled the terms of this agreement and is in compliance with 34
C.F.R. Sections 106.S(a) and (b), and 106.31(a) and (b), which were at issue in this
complaint.
The Academ y understands and acknowledges that OCR ma y initiate admini strati ve
enforcement or judicial proceedings to enforce the specific terms and obligation s of thi s
Agreement. Before initiating administrative enforcement (34 C.F.R. Sections 100.9,
100.10), or judicial proceeding s to enforce this Agreement, OCR shall give the Academ y
written notice of the alleged br each and a minimum of sixty (60) calendar day s to cur e
the alleged br each.
For the Academy :
(b)(6); (b)(7(C)

Richard G. Gurnon, Presid ent
10 April 2013

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