University Council
University at Albany
Resolution
February 27, 2015
To: Members of the Council
From: Michael J. Castellana, Chair
Re: Amendments to Community Rights and Responsibilities relative to:
Sexual Violence Prevention and Response
I recommend that the Council adopt the following resolution:
WHEREAS, the SUNY Board of Trustees, consistent with the leadership of Govemor Andrew
M. Cuomo, and to build upon SUNY ’s nationally-recognized efforts to address sexual violence
on its campuses, passed a resolution at its October 2, 2014 meeting (“Resolution”) to establish a
comprehensive, system-wide, uniform set of sexual assault prevention and response practices at
SUNY campuses, which can be a model for colleges and universities across the State and the
nation; and
WHEREAS, the Resolution required the Chancellor within sixty (60) days of its adoption to
develop a comprehensive, uniform, system-wide sexual violence prevention and response plan
(the “Plan”) to be implemented by all SUNY Campuses; and
WHEREAS, the Chancellor convened a SUNY Working Group on Sexual Violence Prevention
that included staff from SUNY System Administration, State Operated Campuses, Community
Colleges, student leaders and community members at large to draft the Plan which was
completed by the Working Group and adopted by the Chancellor on or about December 1, 2014;
and
WHEREAS, the Resolution requires SUNY campus presidents to report to the Chancellor, or
her designee, on or before March 31, 2015 as to actions the presidents have taken to address the
measures set forth in its Resolution to prevent and respond to campus sexual assault; and
WHEREAS, the federal Violence A gainst Women Reauthorization Act of 1993 (“VAWA”)
requires colleges and universities to adopt specific provisions to sexual misconduct prevention
and response policies and procedures, and the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil
Rights (“OCR”) requires sexual misconduct case investigations to be completed within certain
time frames absent extenuating circumstances; and
WHEREAS, the Plan, VAWA and OCR require that colleges and universities adopt definitions
and procedures that specifically address sexual misconduct by students and the colleges and
universities’ disciplinary responses to that misconduct; and
WHEREAS, Section 356(3) (g) of the New Y ork State Education Law requires the University
Council to make regulations governing the conduct and behavior of students, such regulations
being known as Community Rights and Responsibilities ("C RR” ), the University at Albany's
student code of conduct.
Now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, that CRR is hereby amended as follows:
a. To add new definitions of the following: “affirmative consent,” “proceedings,” and
“results;”
b. To add under “Prohibited Conduct” the conduct of dating violence, domestic violence
and stalking;
c. To revoke the Student Conduct Procedures as they relate to sexual misconduct cases
and replace that section with the following new Procedures:
(i) the authority of the Administration to issue a “no contact order” against
the respondent while an investigation and/or conduct proceeding is
pending;
(ii) the authority of the Administration to temporarily suspend a student
accused of sexual assault pending the outcome of the case, if the
Administration determines that the student presents a continuing threat to
the health and safety of the campus community; and
(iii) the requirement that the University review and resolve all cases of sexual
harassment, including sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence
and/or stalking within sixty (60) days of the receipt of a complaint, absent
extenuating circumstances.
d. To revoke the phrase “Sexual Misconduct, Sexual Harassment or Sexual Violence”
from Student Conduct A ppeals Section and replace the phrase with “Sexual
Misconduct,” a term defined in the Definition Section of the CRR to include sexual
harassment and sexual violence.
And it be further
RESOLVED, that the President, or his designee(s), shall make any other non-substantive
amendments and/or corrections to CRR as may be necessary for consistency in the use of terms
and phrases and to otherwise comply with the requirements of (1) the SUNY Board of Trustees
Resolution; (2) the Plan; (3) VAWA; and (4) the OCR mandates regarding its interpretation of
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 USC Section 1681-1688).
