Definitions
Complainant refers to an individual who is alleged to have experienced or been subjected to Prohibited Conduct.
Respondent refers to an individual who has been reported to be the perpetrator of conduct that may constitute Prohibited Conduct.
A report is an account of Prohibited Conduct prohibited by this policy that has allegedly occurred that has been provided to the University by the Complainant, a third party, or an anonymous source.
A formal complaint is a document filed by a Complainant or signed by the Title IX Coordinator alleging Prohibited Conduct and requesting that the university investigate the allegation of the Policy violation. A formal complaint begins the formal resolution process as set forth below.
Pregnancy or Related Conditions means: (1) Pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation; (2) Medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation; or (3) Recovery from pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, or related medical conditions.
Consent is clear, knowing, and voluntary words or actions that give permission for specific sexual activity. Consent is active, not passive. Silence, in and of itself, cannot be interpreted as consent. Consent can be given by words or actions, as long as those words or actions create mutually understandable permission regarding willingness to engage in sexual activity. There is no consent when force, coercion, intimidation, or threats are used. There also cannot be consent when an individual is incapacitated, or if one is below the legal age (16 years of age in North Carolina) to grant consent. Consent to any one form of sexual activity does not automatically imply consent to any other forms of sexual activity, nor can previous relationships or previous consent imply consent to any future sexual acts. Consent can be withdrawn at any time. Consent is considered in context. Explicit and contemporaneous consent by all parties is required in advance for any behaviors that fall under bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, and sadism and masochism (BDSM). If consent is established for these behaviors, the evaluation of consent will be considered within the context of compliance with established boundaries or other mechanisms to revoke consent (i.e., safe words).
Coercion or Force includes conduct, intimidation, and expressed or implied threats of physical or emotional harm that would reasonably place an individual in fear of immediate or future harm and that are used in order to compel someone to engage in sexual contact.
Any sexual contact occurring after a person has engaged in coercion or force will be presumed non-consensual, even if the particular sexual contact that occurs is different from the form of sexual contact in which the individual was attempting to engage, and even if the other individual uses words or actions that would otherwise appear to convey consent.
Examples of coercion or force include causing the deliberate incapacitation of another person; conditioning an academic benefit or employment advantage on submission to the sexual contact; threatening to harm oneself if the other party does not engage in sexual contact; or threatening to disclose an individual’s sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, or other personally sensitive information if the other party does not engage in the sexual contact.
Incapacitation is the physical and/or mental inability to understand the fact, nature, or extent of the sexual situation. Incapacitation may result from mental or physical disability, sleep, unconsciousness, involuntary physical restraint, or from the influence of drugs or alcohol. With respect to incapacitation due to the influence of alcohol or other drugs, incapacitation requires more than being under the influence of alcohol or other drugs; a person is not incapacitated just because they have been drinking or using other drugs. Where alcohol and other drugs are involved, incapacitation is determined based on the facts and circumstances of the particular situation, looking at whether the individual was able to understand the fact, nature, or extent of the sexual situation; whether the individual was able to communicate decisions regarding consent, non-consent, or the withdrawal of consent; and whether such condition was known or reasonably should have been known to the Respondent or a reasonable, sober person in the Respondent’s position. Use of drugs or alcohol by the Respondent is not a defense to any violation of this Policy.