Colleagues,
The beginning of a new academic year is a great time to refresh your memory and advance your knowledge of how to respond to disclosures of sexual harassment and sexual misconduct. Knowing how to respond to disclosures can be difficult, but there are resources available to help you. Academic Impressions is starting a mini course that will provide participants with strategies and tips to respond effectively and compassionately to a disclosure of sexual misconduct. All employees are highly encouraged to sign up for this 5-day program to get daily emails, Monday through Friday, with bite-sized videos and activities that can be completed in 30 minutes or less each day. Through this course you will learn how to:
- Understand the risks involved if a conversation is mishandled.
- Respond effectively using 7 tips to personalize your approach.
- Understand what not to say or do that could be harmful.
- Be prepared at a moment’s notice.
The next cohort starts this coming Monday, August 8th. All UIS employees have access to Academic Impressions trainings at no cost to your department. More information about logging into your Academic Impressions account can be found on the UIS Academic Impressions website. Alternatively, if you are interested in an in-person or Zoom training on this topic for your department, please email TitleIX@uis.edu.
As a reminder, all UIS employees are designated as Responsible Employees, with the exception of individuals designated as Confidential Advisors in the UIS Counseling Center. All Responsible Employees are required to report disclosures of sexual harassment, sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking to UIS’s Title IX Coordinator, Shelby Bedford. Reports can be made online through our secure reporting system or by contacting Shelby at 206.6222 or titleix@uis.edu as soon as possible after receiving a disclosure. This reporting requirement keeps UIS in compliance with related state and federal laws, but more importantly, it ensures that members of our campus community experiencing sexual misconduct have access to information about their rights, support resources, and reporting options. For more information about the rights and options of individuals experiencing sexual misconduct, please visit the Access & Equity website.
Please do not hesitate to reach out with any questions or requests. Shelby can be reached at TitleIX@uis.edu or 206.6222.
Office of Access & Equity
University of Illinois Springfield
Office: Human Resources Building Room 52
Phone: 217.206.6222