Waverly Hart

Managing Editor

Last Thursday, Aug. 30, Title IX Coordinator Lori Makin-Byrd announced proposed changes to The College of Wooster’s sexual misconduct policy.  Among the potential changes is a resolution process that applies to students, faculty and staff, which would represent a major change in what happens when a complaint is made.

The draft policy Makin-Byrd presented is an expanded version of the current Anti-Sexual Harassment, Discrimination and Sexual Misconduct Policy at the College.  She says the biggest change in the policy has to do with process.

“The draft policy proposes a resolution process that applies to students, faculty and staff,” said Makin-Byrd.  “The existing policy only lays out student process in detail and briefly refers to faculty and staff process separately.”

The Title IX coordinator hopes this will create more equity and transparency in Wooster’s sexual misconduct policy and process, something that other colleges are striving toward as well.

“One of the current best practices in the field is to adopt similar kinds of processes for resolution of student, faculty and staff complaints,” said Makin-Byrd.  

“That’s the goal of this draft policy — to fully explain the process for all constituents and to make those processes similar to each other.  We are not the only college doing this; other colleges have moved to (or are currently working toward) similar processes for all constituents.”

Before the draft can become actual policy, Makin-Byrd would like to get feedback from the campus community.  She wants everyone to be able to provide input on the proposed policy.

“[I] know that some people would rather read about something first before asking questions.  I think updating this policy will allow everyone to get answers to questions from the policy itself if they don’t feel comfortable reaching out to me or another staff member,” she said.

She added that she hopes the proposed changes further the College’s goal in increasing equity and providing fairness in the process to all parties.  

“Our commitment to ending sexual violence and to increasing gender equity is unwavering,” Makin-Byrd wrote in an email in September 2017.  “We are also unchanged in our commitment to fairness, transparency and equity for all parties within our investigation and resolution processes. Those two commitments were never mutually exclusive.”

Makin-Byrd says the most recent policy draft is a step forward to both those commitments.  

Additionally, Makin-Byrd hopes the new policy will make students, faculty and staff more familiar and comfortable with the available resources.  

Makin-Byrd, who has been the College’s Title IX coordinator since March 2017, has been making minor changes, such as wording edits and clarifications, to the sexual misconduct policy since she’s been at Wooster.  

“This draft policy would represent a major change to process — what happens when a complaint is made — it would not represent a major change to policy, what is and isn’t allowed,” said Makin-Byrd.  

In her email to the campus, Makin-Byrd also mentioned that, while she believes the draft policy represents the best ways to respond to gender-based discrimination, harassment and sexual misconduct, she’s looking forward to working with other campus leaders to develop a similar policy to address all forms of bias-related discrimination.  

Makin-Byrd has office hours every Tuesday from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. in Lowry 118.  She encourages any campus community member to attend office hours to ask questions or give feedback about Title IX-related concerns.  She welcomes any student thoughts on the new policy drafts.