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Monday, August 17, 2015

Resource Spotlight

ATIXA Issues Position Statement on the Need for Victim Advocates on College Campuses

This statement affirms ATIXA’s strong position endorsing the need to provide free and confidential support and advocacy to college students and employees who have experienced sexual assault, sexual harassment, or other gender-based or sex-based harassment or violence. ATIXA encourages every college and university to provide a designated, trained Victim Advocate who is exempt from the duty to report sexual misconduct to the college or to law enforcement.

Tip of the Week

Response to Corey Mock v. University of Tennessee, Chattanooga
by Brett A. Sokolow, Esq., and Daniel C. Swinton, J.D., Ed.D.

Last week, the Chronicle of Higher Education carried a story (subscription required) about the recent ruling of a Tennessee chancery court on the expulsion of a male student, Corey Mock, for sexual misconduct. The court reversed the expulsion. Early commenters seem to want this case to stand for grand propositions about affirmative consent and burdens of proof in campus sexual misconduct resolutions. Similar to another recent reversal in a case at the University of California San Diego, the Tennessee court’s ruling is not as significant as some would like it to be. Here are a few reasons why:

To read the complete Tip, click here.

Upcoming NCHERM Group Events

ATIXA Civil Rights Investigator Training & Certification Course Level One Dates

Two-day
September 22nd & 23rd, 2015 hosted by Davenport University
Registration deadline is Friday, September 11th, 2015.
Two-day
September 29th & 30th, 2015 hosted by Gardner-Webb University
Registration deadline is Friday, September 18th, 2015.
Two-day
October 9th-11th, 2015, Philadelphia, PA
Registration deadline is Friday, September 18th, 2015.
Two-day
December 15th & 16th, 2015 hosted by St. Thomas University
Registration deadline is Friday, December 4th, 2015.

ATIXA Civil Rights Investigator Training & Certification Course Level Two Dates

Two-day
August 31st & September 1st, 2015 hosted by Fuller Theological Seminary
Registration deadline is Friday, August 21st, 2015.
Two-day
September 17th & 18th, 2015 hosted by Waubonsee Community College
Registration deadline is Friday, September 4th, 2015.
Two-day
September 22nd & 23rd, 2015, hosted by Indiana University
Registration deadline is Friday, September 11th, 2015.

ATIXA Civil Rights Investigator Training & Certification Course Level Three Dates

Two-day
September 24th & 25th, 2015, hosted by Indiana University
Registration deadline is Friday, September 11th, 2015.
Two-day

October 9th-11th, 2015, Philadelphia, PA
Registration deadline is Friday, September 18th, 2015.

Two-day

December 1st & 2nd, 2015 , hosted by St. Charles Community College
Registration deadline is Friday, November 13th, 2015.

ATIXA Title IX Coordinator and Administrator Training & Certification Course Level Four Dates

Two-day
October 21st & 22nd, 2015, hosted by Kennesaw State University
Registration deadline is Friday, October 16th, 2015.

ATIXA Title IX Coordinator and Administrator Training & Certification Course Level Five Dates

Two-day
October 9th-11th, 2015, Philadelphia, PA
Registration deadline is Friday, September 18th, 2015.

NaBITA BIT Best Practices Certification Course Dates

Springfield, MO
September 9th & 10th, 2015 hosted by Missouri State University
Registration deadline is Friday, August 28th, 2015.

NCHERM Group Online Trainings

Upcoming Online Trainings Schedule

September 1, 2015: Best Practices in Retaining Community College Students to Graduation

To see a list of all upcoming online trainings, as well as the large array of our recent online training recordings available, click here.

Looking for more topics? Click here for a list of upcoming webinars presented by The NCHERM Group experts, sponsored by Innovative Educators.

Announcing the Release of a New Resource Available to Current Members: The VAWA Brochure Template from ATIXA

A Resource Guide for Students on Sexual Misconduct: Campus Policies, Procedures and Victim Services

The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA) requires that campuses have information readily available to assure an understanding of campus policies, procedures and victim services.

According to the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013 (VAWA):

“Under § 668.46(b)(11)(ii), institutions must provide written information to the victim of dating violence, domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking. Institutions are required to provide information regarding: the preservation of evidence to assist in proving the alleged criminal offense or obtaining a protective order; how and to whom an alleged offense is to be reported; options for the involvement of law enforcement and campus authorities; and, where applicable, the victim’s rights or institution’s responsibilities for orders of protection.”

ATIXA now offers you an affordable brochure template, easily customizable for content that is specific to your campus. This brochure will allow you to assure information is readily available to your campus at times of immediate need. We’ve thought of everything so you don’t have to.

Specifically this brochure addresses:

What to Do When You Experience Sexual Misconduct
Understanding Confidentiality
Understanding Key Campus Policies & Procedures
Key Definitions: Sexual Misconduct Violations
Understanding Consent
Know Your Rights as a Member of the Campus Community
Steps to Remedy and Respond to Allegations of Sexual Misconduct
Survivor Options, Resources and Remedies
Risk Reduction Techniques
Bystander Intervention, VAWA/Clery Training, Prevention Efforts and Ongoing Campaigns
Key Contacts & On-Campus and Local Resources

Interested in Customizing your Brochure? To assure the brochure adequately reflects your campus policies and procedures, the resource guide is fully customizable throughout its entirety, including logos and images from your campus. You will have the opportunity to include your specific policies related to sexual misconduct, note your reporting and investigation procedures and assure that members of your campus community know their rights.

Customizing and ordering the ATIXA VAWA Brochure directly from our partners at Front End Graphics is easy, using their easy online interface to customize, print and order your brochure in one easy step. Once completed, shipments of your final resource guide will be delivered directly to you.

Begin Your Customization Process Now

Learn More About Pricing & Customization

Start your account for free today to learn more about your customization and pricing options. Visit our partners at Front End Graphics to take a look at pricing and quantity options.

Minimum order of 50 brochures required for customization. Maximum order of 5,000 is available through our customization portal. Any persons wishing to print over 5,000 brochures may contact ATIXA to be connected with a member of the Front End Graphics team to discuss additional quantities. Credit card payments required.

Contact our Team for Answers to your Questions. Contact Marianne Price, Associate Executive Director, at [email protected] or 610-644-7858.

New Subscription-Based Publication from The NCHERM Group & ATIXA: Title IX Today

Ensuring Title IX compliance can be difficult. Title IX Today, a new, monthly, subscription publication by The NCHERM Group and the Association of Title IX Administrators makes it easier, with practical content to help you address compliance issues, boost effectiveness, and avoid costly litigation. Title IX Today brings you the latest Title IX news, research, and expert guidance. With insights from our renowned advisory panel and a team of expert contributors, we provide you with a road map to navigate even your most difficult Title IX challenges.

We bring you our very first print edition absolutely free! Download and view Title IX Today and begin enjoying this new publication in your professional practice.

For just $299 annually, our subscribers receive an eight-page print issue each month delivered directly to your mailbox, with articles that get straight to the point and information you can use right now. In addition, you will receive a monthly companion e-newsletter, containing the latest issue in PDF format for maximum portability, bonus e-exclusive content and links to helpful resources and Title IX news.

If you're already a member of ATIXA, you get all this at a 15% discount off the full price. All you have to do is email us to receive your discount code. For subscription questions or additional information email the team at ATIXA.

Audio Essentials: For the Busy Higher Education Professional

Audio Essentials is an innovative product line offered by The NCHERM Group for the busy higher education professional. We’ve crafted 30-minute audio episodes on the most relevant and critical topics in higher education today, so faculty and staff can listen on the road, in the car, on the plane — or while multitasking at work. You decide when you want to listen.

Recognizing that busy higher education professionals may not have the time to sit down at their computers for hours-long webinars, and professional development can be a major budget-breaker, we bring you the indispensable facts, key discussion points, and practical advice from our most sought-after trainings, fast and at a price-point that will allow you to easily and effectively train your entire team.

Each online episode comes with a colorful and detailed summary of the topics, so you can quickly refer back to the information you need, when you need it, share it at departmental meetings, or distribute it to the faculty and staff members who need the information in their front-line work. Drawing from the deep pool of experts at The NCHERM Group, Audio Essentials brings you the highest quality information in the most convenient of formats.

So whether you listen at your desk, on your smart phone, or on your laptop, Audio Essentials helps you stay on top of the most pressing policy issues, administrative challenges, and best-practice strategies.

Episodes

#1: Disruptive and Dangerous Classroom Behavior: 10 Traits to Cultivate for Better Classroom Management

#2: College or Zoo: Understanding the Law Regarding Animals on Campus

#3: How to Write Good Case Notes: An Essential Skill for BIT Members, Case Managers and Counselors

To purchase Audio Essentials for $49, please click here to pay via credit card online or here to download a registration form to pay via cheque.

Please contact Amanda Tarczynski, Senior Program Coordinator, at 610-993-0229, ext. 1005 for additional information.

Join the Student Affairs Community College Association

Community College in this country is now poised to become a right, with two years of free access. Across the country, the mission of community colleges is shifting, with some offering bachelor degrees, providing residence halls, and deeply expanding non-degree granting, dual enrollment and workforce development programs. Amidst this rapidly changing landscape, Student Affairs practice at community colleges has its own set of unique challenges and needs. Now, community college student affairs administrators have a professional association to call home.

Why should community college student affairs have its own association?

SACCA recognizes the unique aspects of student affairs practice for community college professionals and the need to foster research, collaboration and professional development outside the shadow of four-year campus student affairs practice. With community colleges poised to become a right for all, community colleges and the student affairs professionals who keep them functioning are about to experience an unprecedented boom and a whole new set of challenges from a new generation of students who've never accessed college before. We need to understand these students and anticipate their needs and the services and resources that will empower their success.

Welcome to your new professional home and community!

Upcoming SACCA Regional Events

October 20, 2015

Hosted by Tarrant County College - Trinity River Campus

Fort Worth, TX

Call for Programs is now open! For more information, please click here.

A Window Into BIT

BIT Meeting Simulation and Training

A Window Into BIT is a video-based training tool to enhance campus BIT and student of concern team professional development. Watch national behavioral intervention team experts and campus practitioners model a BIT meeting as they role-play key team roles. The one-hour video comes with a detailed transcript, sample documentation from the meeting, and discussion questions for your team to use as a training tool to better understand how to develop and improve BIT meetings.

What does a Behavioral Intervention Team meeting actually look like? How do counseling, conduct and residential life talk together about cases? How is the NaBITA rubric used in a meeting? When should an assessment be required? At what point should the SIVRA-35 or other tools be utilized? How are action plans developed? In what order are cases discussed? How is documentation handled? How are conflicts between departments resolved?

Watch how team members communicate with each other and put the NaBITA threat assessment tool to use in rating over a dozen varied cases. Learn how to attend to parental notification, apply OCR guidance, the ADA and Title IX to cases. Watch how the experts model interactions designed to reduce silos while building connection between the varied departments in the simulation. Listen to the discussions around mandated assessment, how counseling works with conduct, and how the BIT chair keeps the team focused and on task.

For more information about ordering A Window Into BIT for $299.99, please click here.

Mandated Reporter Training for Employees

A Full-Service Online Training from ATIXA, Newly Revised and Updated for 2015 To Comply with all New Federal Regulations

In early 2014, ATIXA heard your requests and introduced its original version of this training tool. Today, in response to the newest rounds of federal regulation and guidance (VAWA Section 304 and the OCR Title IX Q&A from April 2014) and valuable feedback from our current users, we have re-designed this tool to better meet the needs of your campus. We’ve heard your requests for ATIXA to update and create the tool you need, and now you can train your employees with ease, online. This online training is designed to inform employees about their duty to report sexual abuse, sexual misconduct and other behaviors that fall under Title IX. Learn more here.

Final-Eyes – Off-site Investigation Review

You've been trained to investigate civil rights violations. You have experience investigating sexual misconduct complaints. You've been though every detail, twice. Yet, some cases leave you feeling uneasy. Have you asked every question? Is there anything you're missing? Something you are not thinking of? Are you too close to the facts now to see them clearly? Check in each step of the way with Final-Eyes to ensure you’ve got it right from A to Z.

This off-site support and review service allows you to

Access our assistance to strategize the investigation from the outset
Touch base with you as you conduct the investigation along the way
Offer a sounding board for your conclusions as you are ready to make a finding
Have the confidence that one of the nation’s foremost experts on Title IX has laid final eyes on your findings, sanctions and/or remedies, and thinks you are on the right track

Final-Eyes guarantees that an NCHERM Group partner will be available to walk you through you investigation step-by-step and review your decision by phone and/or email to let you know how they see it. Final-Eyes is the reassurance you need in a time when there is zero margin for error on campus sexual misconduct cases.

This service is usually billed hourly, but instead you can subscribe to Final-Eyes for a flat-fee of $5,000 for the entire year, with no limit on how often it can be used. When your campus becomes a Final-Eyes subscriber, you will receive a coupon code for $500 off an institutional membership to ATIXA (discount is only valid for upcoming new and renewal memberships; cannot be combined with any other offer). Subscribe to Final-Eyes online or request an invoice. For more information, contact Ryan McDavis, Vice President for Marketing and Client Relations at 610-993-0229, ext. 1009.

Model Clery Act ASR Template Language to Comply with VAWA Section 304

By now, many of you have taken a look at the VAWA Reauthorization section 304 known as the Campus SaVE Act. This amendment adds 70 new disclosure and substantive requirements to the Clery Act. While amendments before asked us to disclose existing policies, they largely did not require us to create new policies except for the set of amendments contained in the 1992 Campus Sexual Assault Victim's Bill of Rights. Now, those disclosures and rights have been largely eclipsed by Section 304, which require us to develop significant new policy language. Final regulations were released in October 2014 by the Negotiated Rulemaking Committee, requiring changes to the Clery Act effective July 2015. Start planning now, because there is a lot to this new law.

We have a shortcut to SaVE you time. We have created template language to satisfy all of the VAWA Section 304 disclosure requirements. It's nine pages of model language containing policy and procedure information outlined by Title IX and VAWA 304, and is compliant with the final regulations. This template is available from The NCHERM Group for $249. To purchase our VAWA Section 304 disclosure template, visit our online store or contact Michelle Issadore at 610-993-0229, ext. 1002. Please note that our template only includes the new ASR required disclosures, not all updates that were made by SaVE or the Clery Act before it, such as those involving hate crimes statistics and hate crime categories. Please also note that purchasers will receive all updates made to the template language in the future, so you can be assured that you will always have our most current version at hand.

Maintain Certification with the Continuing Certification Credit (CCC) Program

Have you been certified as a Title IX Coordinator or investigator by ATIXA? Has your BIT been certified by NaBITA? Are you considering obtaining these certifications? Do you benefit from ongoing professional development from The NCHERM Group?

If so, the CCC program is for you. The NCHERM Group heard your requests to update and renew your certifications online, and is proud to offer an online professional development platform called the Continuing Certification Credit (CCC) program.

Are Your Campus Policies and Procedures Title IX Compliant?

If you want to be sure your policies and procedures are compliant with all of the regulatory documents, our Title IX Policy and Procedure Review Service is the cost-effective reassurance you need. We know what to look for, and we'll make sure your policies and procedures don't miss a thing. Contact Kate Halligan, Executive Vice President for Client Relations, at 610-579-3725 for details.

The ATIXA MaxStack
A Database for Title IX Case Documentation from ATIXA & Maxient

ATIXA has collaborated with Maxient, the industry’s leading database for case documentation and tracking, to offer the new ATIXA MaxStack. Together, we are giving existing and new Maxient users access through the Maxient database to ATIXA’s proprietary forms, checklists, investigation templates, template letters, materials for Title IX case organization, documentation and tracking. Check out our website to learn more about bringing this resource to your campus!