Faculty and staff are required to undergo training about their rights and responsibilities under the federal Title IX law and under related CalArts policies. These trainings include an overview of protections, reporting procedures for prohibited behavior under the Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Harassment policies, and best practices for communication.
Reporting Obligations
Importantly, the training goes into detail about reporting obligations under both Title IX and institutional practices. Apart from counselors, Student Health Center staff, and confidential student advocates, all CalArts faculty and staff members are required to report any and all sexual-misconduct-related activity that relates to faculty, staff, or students. This is key: The protections and obligations under Title IX apply not only to students but to the entire CalArts community.
Likewise, all faculty and staff—apart from those exceptions noted above—are required to report all misconduct related to discrimination or harassment under any protected class, including groups protected by virtue of race, ethnicity, religion, age, disability, and family status.
Training Content
The Institute’s faculty and staff training on these fronts is designed to go well beyond essential legal provisions under federal and institutional rules. Sessions encourage faculty and staff to think deliberately about the perspectives and experiences of those with less power, and about the dynamics of power differentials—for instance, whether those without authority feel able to express discomfort.
Following these training sessions, all faculty and staff should be equipped to evaluate their impact as authority figures and be well apprised of red-flag, line-crossing behaviors, such as oversharing about their personal challenges, purchasing alcoholic beverages for students, and asking students for personal errands. In addition, faculty and staff trainees should feel able to create atmospheres of deliberate comfort and understanding where no one feels threatened.
Training sessions also emphasize the Institute’s prohibition on amorous relationships between students and those who instruct, mentor, evaluate, supervise, or otherwise hold authority over them—or may do so in the future. CalArts strives to take a holistic, thoughtful approach in fostering awareness among faculty and staff, seeking to stoke reflection and routine self-assessment.
Trainings are scheduled throughout the academic year for faculty and staff members. Expectations for training attendance are made clear at the time of hire or otherwise through communications from the Office of Community Rights and Responsibilities.
Recent training materials are available for members of the CalArts community on the Hub.
If you have additional questions or would like to request training from the Office of Community Rights and Responsibilities, please contact dsimmons@calrts.edu.
