LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment Policy
- Policy Application - This policy applies to all career college students of LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program.
- The Scope- The policy applies to complaints of sexual violence that have occurred on LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program’s career college campus or at one of our events and involve our students.
- Purpose and Intent - All of LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program’s career college students have a right to study in an environment free of sexual violence. This document sets out our policy on sexual violence involving our students, defines the prohibited behaviours and outlines our investigative process for sexual violence.
- Policy Objectives - LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program is committed to providing our students with an educational environment free from sexual violence and treating those students who report incidents of sexual violence with dignity and respect.
To that end, LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program will provide a copy of the policy to our students, and educate them together with our career college management, employees, and contractors about this policy and how to identify situations that involve, or could progress into sexual violence against our students and how to reduce it.
Where a complaint has been made, under this policy of sexual violence, LMS Montessori Teacher Education program will take all reasonable steps to investigate it, including as follows:
a) Providing on campus investigation procedures to students for sexual violence complaints.
b) Responding promptly to any complaint and providing reasonable updates to the complainant and the respondent about the status of the investigation;
c) Assisting students who have experienced sexual violence in obtaining counselling and medical care;
d) Providing students who have experienced sexual violence with appropriate academic and other accommodation; and
e) Providing students who have experienced sexual violence with information about reporting options as set out in Appendix 1.
5. Definition of Sexual Violence - This policy prohibits sexual violence which manes any sexual act or act targeting a person’s sexuality, gender identity, or gender expression, whether the act is physical or psychological in nature, that is committed, threatened or attempted against a person without the person’s consent, and includes sexual assault, sexual harassment, stalking, indecent exposure, voyeurism, and sexual exploitation.
6. Reporting and Responding to Sexual Violence - Students, faculty and staff of LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program will take all reasonable steps to prevent sexual violence involving our students on our career college campus or events by reporting immediately to Janice Mayhew, LMS Teacher Education Program Director, if our students have been subject to, or they have witnessed or have knowledge of sexual violence involving our students, or have reason to believe that sexual violence has occurred or may occur which involves our students.
Subject to paragraph 7 below, to the extent it is possible, Janice Mayhew will attempt to keep all information disclosed confidential except in those circumstances she believes an individual is at imminent risk of self-harm, or of harming another, or there are reasonable grounds to believe that others on our campus or the broader community are at risk.
LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program recognizes the right of the complainant to determine how her or his complaint will be dealt with. However, in certain circumstances, LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program may be required by law or its internal policies to initiate an internal investigation and/or inform police without the complainant’s consent, if it believes the safety of members of its campus or the broader community is at risk.
A complainant seeking accommodation should contact Janice Mayhew, Director of LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program.
7. Investigating Reports of Sexual Violence - A complaint of sexual violence may be filed under this policy, by any student of our career college, to Janice Mayhew in writing.
A complainant may ask another person to be present during the investigation.
Upon a complaint of alleged sexual violence being made, Janice Mayhew will initiate an investigation, including as follows:
a) Determining whether the incident should be referred immediately to police;
b) Determining what interim measures, if any, need to be taken during the investigation;
c) Meeting with the complainant to determine the date and time of the incident, the persons involved, the names of any person who witnessed the incident and a complete description of what occurred;
d) Interviewing the complainant, any person involved in the incident and any identified witnesses;
e) Interviewing any other person who may have knowledge of incidents related to the complaint or any other similar incidents;
f) Informing the respondent of the complaint, providing details of the allegations and giving the respondent an opportunity to respond to those allegations;
g) Providing reasonable updates to the complainant and the respondent about the status of the investigation; and
h) Determining what disciplinary action, if any, should be taken.
8. Disciplinary Measures – If it is determined by LMS Montessori Teacher Education program that a student of our career college has been involved in sexual violence, immediate disciplinary or corrective action will be taken up to and including termination of employment of instructors or staff or expulsion of a student.
In cases where criminal proceedings are initiated, LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program will assist police agencies, lawyers, insurance companies, and courts to the fullest extent.
Where criminal and/or civil proceedings are commenced in respect of allegations of sexual violence, LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program may conduct its own independent investigation and make its own determination in accordance with its own policies and procedures.
9. Making False Statements – It is a violation of this policy for anyone to knowingly make a false complaint of sexual violence or to provide false information about a complaint. Individuals who violate this policy are subject to disciplinary and/or corrective action, up to and including termination of employment of instructors or staff or expulsion of a student.
10. Reprisal – It is a violation of this policy to retaliate or threaten to retaliate against a complainant who has brought forward a complaint of sexual violence, provided information related to a complain or otherwise been involved in the complaint investigation process.
11. Review – This policy will be reviewed 3 years after it is first implemented.
12. Collection of Student Data – LMS Montessori Teacher Education Program shall collect and be prepared to provide upon request by the Superintendent of Private Career Colleges such data and information as required according to Subsections 32.2 (8), (9), and (10) of Schedule 5 of the Private Career Colleges Act, 2005 as amended.
13. Resources – Appendix 1 lists provincial rape crisis centres which could be provided as resources.
Appendix 1
Canadian Association of Sexual Assault Centres, Ontario
Assaulted Women’s Helpline, Toll free: 1-866-863-0511 TTY: 416-364-8762 www.awhl.org
Sexual Assault/ Domestic Violence Treatment Centres:
Local- Sexual Assault Crisis Centre of Essex County, Crisis: 519-253-9667 www.saccwindsor.net