Frequently Asked Questions Post

Sex discrimination is exclusion from participation in or denial of benefits from UMB’s educational programs and activities on the basis of sex, including:

• Sex Stereotypes: Fixed or generalized expectations regarding a person’s aptitudes, behavior, self-presentation or other attributes based on sex.

• Sex Characteristics: Physiological sex-based characteristics, including a person’s anatomy, hormones, and chromosomes associated with male or female bodies and which may or may not be related to a person’s reproductive capacity; intersex traits; and other physiological sex characteristics that differ from or align with expectations generally associated with male or female bodies.

• Sexual Orientation: Identification, perception, or status of an individual as to that individual’s physical, romantic, or emotional attraction to another person.

• Gender Identity: Individual’s sense of their gender, which may or may not be different from their assigned sext at birth.

• Pregnancy or Related Conditions: Current, past, or potential presence of any of the following conditions:

            Pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation;

            Recovery from pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation; or

            Medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation.

• Parental or Family Status: The current, potential, or past status of an individual who, with respect to another person who is under the age of 18 or is 18 or older but is incapable of self-care because of physical or mental disability, is:

            A biological, step, adoptive, or foster parent;

            A legal custodian or guardian;

            In loco parentis; or

            Actively seeking legal custody, guardianship, visitation, or adoption of any person who is under the age of 18, or who is over the age of 18 but incapable of self-care because of a physical or mental disability.

• Marital Status: A person's state of being single, married, separated, divorced, or widowed.

Sex discrimination behaviors include:

• Sexual harassment
• Dating Violence
• Domestic Violence
• Sexual Violence
• Stalking
• Retaliation

UMB’s programs and activities under Title IX include all operations of UMB in the United States, including, but not limited to, all conduct over which UMB exercises disciplinary authority and all conduct that occurs in any building owned or controlled by a student organization that is officially recognized by UMB. UMB shall address a sex-based hostile environment under its Education Program or Activity even when some conduct alleged to be contributing to the hostile environment occurred outside UMB’s Education Program or Activity or outside the United States.

Sexual harassment is a form of Sex Discrimination prohibited by Title IX, and means sexual harassment and other harassment on the basis of sex, including Sex Stereotypes, Sex Characteristics, Pregnancy or Related Conditions, Sexual Orientation, and Gender Identity, and that satisfies one or more of the following: 

Quid pro quo harassment— An employee, agent, or other person authorized by UMB to provide an aid, benefit, or service under UMB’s Education Program or Activity explicitly or impliedly conditioning the provision of such an aid, benefit, or service on a person’s participation in unwelcome sexual conduct.

Hostile Environment Harassment— Unwelcome sex-based conduct that, based on the totality of the circumstances, is subjectively and objectively offensive and is so severe or pervasive that it limits or denies a person’s ability to participate in or benefit from UMB’s Education Program or Activity (i.e., creates a hostile environment).

If it is a health emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency room. 

You also may go to University Police, located at the Pine Street Station, at any time of the day or night to report an incident and receive assistance. University Police must be notified if the Sex Discrimination involves threatening, aggressive or violent behavior and there is a risk of danger to yourself or others. Reports to University Police can be made in person, by phone, in writing, or via email. The Title IX Coordinator, or their designee, can assist you in making a criminal complaint to University Police or other jurisdiction, if you choose.

Regardless of whether a criminal report is made, you should report any incident of sexual violence to the University’s Title IX Coordinator as soon as reasonably possible after the incident. The Title IX Coordinator, or their designee, can assist you in receiving medical assistance, if desired. The Title IX Coordinator will also be able to guide you to the appropriate campus support services. A list of campus support resources is provided at the link below:

https://www.umaryland.edu/titleix/resources-and-references/

If the individual or individuals alleged to have perpetrated the sexual violence are members of the UMB community, the Title IX Coordinator will respond to the report through prompt investigation or other 

The Title IX Coordinator, in conjunction with your school or program, will help formulate a plan of interim steps to protect you while a complaint is being investigated.

Members of the University community are expected to promptly report incidents of Sex Discrimination involving the University community to the Title IX Coordinator in person, by phone, in writing, via email, or online using the Hotline. A report should be made to the Title IX Coordinator even if you do not have complete information.

If the behavior you observed involved threatening, aggressive, or violent behavior, in addition to notifying the Title IX Coordinator, you also should immediately call 911 and make a report to University Police.

Employees who are not Confidential Employees, who have authority to institute corrective measures or who are responsible for administrative leadership, teaching, or advising are required to report the alleged Sex Discrimination to the Title IX Coordinator.

Confidential Employees are defined by the 2024 Final Rule as:

• Employees whose communications are privileged or confidential under Federal or State law;
• Employees whose communications are specifically designated as confidential for the purpose of providing services related to potential Sex Discrimination; or
• Employees who are conducting an Institutional Review Board-approved human-subjects research study designed to gather information about sex discrimination—but the employee’s confidential status is only with respect to information received while conducting the study.

Students are encouraged to report the alleged Sex Discrimination to the Title IX Coordinator. You can remind the individual that the University has campus support services that are available to the campus community and encourage and assist the individual, as needed, to connect with appropriate support services and to make reports to University Police and the Title IX Coordinator.

Reports to the Title IX Coordinator can be made in person, by phone, in writing, via email, or online using the Hotline. Reports should be made even if you do not have complete information and even if the individual requests confidentiality.

Even if you do not wish to identify yourself or pursue an investigation, you should contact the Title IX Coordinator, who will provide you with information about the campus support services available to you and work with you and your school on steps to eliminate the harassment and prevent recurrence. You may make an anonymous report, but this might limit the University’s ability to respond to the complaint.

You always may contact the police about filing a criminal complaint. Regardless of whether the behavior is part of a criminal investigation or proceeding, the University will take reasonable steps to end the misconduct and prevent recurrences, which may include a Title IX investigation.  The Title IX Coordinator, or their designee, can assist you in filing a criminal report if you choose. 

Yes. Incidents of Sex Discrimination involving a member of the campus community that occur off campus should be reported to the Title IX Coordinator.

If the behavior is threatening, aggressive, or violent should be reported to law enforcement in the jurisdiction where the incident occurred, as well as to UMB Police. The Title IX Coordinator, or their designee, can assist you in filing a criminal report if you choose. 

The University will investigate and take reasonable steps to resolve such complaints to the extent necessary and allowable to protect the complainant and prevent harassment directed toward others.

If you have been accused of Sex Discrimination, be aware that University policy does not presume an accused individual is responsible for the alleged conduct. The University will investigate and take reasonable steps to end the misconduct and prevent recurrences. The complainant and the respondent have equal opportunity to due process.

The University offers many campus support services. A list of campus resources is available in the  UMB Policy Prohibiting Sexual Misconduct and Sex and Gender-Based Discrimination [VI-1.60(A)] and at http://www.umaryland.edu/titleix/resources-and-references/.

If you have any questions or need guidance regarding campus resources, contact the University’s Title IX Coordinator.

The University’s Behavioral Evaluation and Threat Assessment (BETA) Team coordinates activities in response to reports of threatening, aggressive, or violent behavior or warning signs of such behavior. Warning signs are described in the UMB Behavioral Evaluation and Threat Assessment Policy [XI-3.00(A)] available at https://www.umaryland.edu/policies-and-procedures/library/public-safety/policies/xi-300a.php. 

The BETA Team can be reached through a report to University Police or through the UMB Hotline.

If an incident of Sex Discrimination involves threatening, aggressive, or violent behavior and you believe there is risk of continuing or recurrent danger to members of the University community, immediately report the matter to University Police in person, by phone, or via email. 

Reports of Sex Discrimination, regardless of whether or not reported to University Police and the BETA Team, also should be made to the Title IX Coordinator. The Title IX Coordinator may consult with the BETA Team if a report of Sex Discrimination presents a risk of danger to the individual making the report or others.

The University does not tolerate or condone retaliation against an individual whose report or complaint is made in good faith or against any person who participates in good faith in an inquiry or investigation of a complaint under the applicable University policies and procedures.

The 2024 Final Rule defines retaliation as intimidating, threatening, coercing, or discriminating against any individual for the purpose of interfering with any right or privilege secured by Title IX, or because an individual has reported information, made a Complaint, testified, assisted, participated or refused to participate in any manner in an investigation, proceeding, or hearing related to Sex Discrimination. Retaliation includes bringing charges against an individual for violations of other UMB policies that do not involve Sex Discrimination but arise out of the same facts or circumstances as a Complaint, for the purpose of interfering with any right or privilege secured by Title IX.

Retaliation may also include “peer retaliation” which means a student retaliating against another student, regardless of whether they were a Respondent, Complainant, or witness in a grievance procedure or informal Title IX resolution process.

If you are an employee (faculty or staff), you must provide the student with the contact information for the Title IX coordinator, who can provide them information on and assist them in exercising their rights as a pregnant or parenting student under the 2024 Final Rule of Title IX.