State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
PA-6: Support for Underrepresented Groups

- http://www.esf.edu/administration/titleIX/discrimination.htm Nondiscrimination Policy: Pursuant to State University of New York policy, SUNY-ESF is committed to fostering a diverse community of outstanding faculty, staff, and students, as well as ensuring equal educational opportunity, employment, and access to services, programs, and activities, without regard to an individual's race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, or criminal conviction. Employees, students, applicants or other members of the College community (including but not limited to vendors, visitors, and guests) may not be subjected to harassment that is prohibited by law, or treated adversely or retaliated against based upon a protected characteristic. SUNY-ESF's policy is in accordance with federal and state laws and regulations prohibiting discrimination and harassment. These laws include the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as Amended by the Equal Employment Opportunity Act of 1972, and the New York State Human Rights Law. These laws prohibit discrimination and harassment, including sexual harassment and sexual violence. Inquiries regarding the application of Title IX and other laws, regulations and policies prohibiting discrimination may be directed to: For students: Anne Lombard, Dean of Student Affairs, 110 Bray Hall, aelombard@esf.edu For employees: Marcia Barber, Director of Human Resources, 216 Bray Hall, mabarber@esf.edu For athletics equity: Robert French, Vice President for Enrollment Management and Institutional Research, 205 Bray Hall, rcfrench@esf.edu For general inquiries, including vendors, visitors and guests: Joseph Rufo, Vice President for Administration and SUNY-ESF Title IX Coordinator, 208 Bray Hall, jlrufo@esf.edu

Title IX is the federal anti-discrimination law that states: "No person in the U.S. shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, or denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any educational program or activity receiving federal aid." (Title IX 1972 Education Amendments). Title IX bans discrimination throughout the College and campus community -- in all programs and activities including, but not limited to, academic and athletic programs, financial aid and student records and accounts, health and counseling services, and housing and residence life programs. Title IX also prohibits sexual harassment, including sexual violence, which is a crime. All students, employees and visitors should be aware of these expectations. Reporting an Incident: If you experience or observe an incident of sexual discrimination, harassment, violence or exploitation on or off campus, report the incident to: ESF University Police (24/7) at (315)-470-6666; University Police Officers have received specialized training to attend to the needs and concerns of victims of sexual offenses and relationship violence. OR the following individuals are responsible for Title IX and may be reached during College business hours, Monday through Friday, 8am-4:30pm: Title IX Contacts You will be asked to make a written acknowledgement describing: (1) the College employee or representative who spoke to or worked with you as well as the date; (2) which options you would like to pursue, if any including the criminal justice system and the student conduct process; and (3) that you received information about resources (medical, counseling, environmental relief). If you file a complaint, you have a right to adequate, reliable and impartial investigation of your complaint, the right to present evidence and witnesses, and the right to appeal the conclusions of investigators or hearing officers. If you do not file a complaint, the College is obligated by federal mandate to investigate the incident in order to seek further understanding for the protection of recurrences. The College will issue a "cease all contact" order to the accused (with a copy to you) that prohibits any contact—personal, written, electronic—by the accused or his/her associates acting on behalf of the accused with or without their knowledge. The College can address conditions in your living, learning or working environment to reduce the level of hostility in your environment, such as room assignment changes, class changes, work location changes, or limits on access for the accused. You will be notified of the time frame within which the College will conduct a full investigation related to the report or complaint. The College will decide outcomes of the complaint, the sanctions imposed upon the accused, and all aspects of the complaint that relate to you and may affect your learning, living or working environment. You will be notified of the outcome of a complaint that you submit and any conditions of the outcome that may affect you. If you or your witnesses are subjected to retaliation (pressure, intimidation, or coercion by the accuser or his/her associates, with or without the accuser's knowledge), you should immediately report the incident so the College can investigate and take action. You may opt for a voluntary informal method of resolving the complaint (i.e., mediation, alternative dispute resolution, etc.) if the College deems the incident to warrant an informal approach. You may choose to end such informal resolution methods at any time and choose to proceed with formal stages of this complaint process.

ESF currently has designed and is implementing for the second year, a diversity pipeline project specifically targeting underrepresented students from the NYC area via the SEO (Sponsors for Education Opportunity) program. As for faculty, SUNY in the Spring of 2015 created a faculty diversity hiring initiative allowing institutions and departments to put together proposals to attract underrepresented faculty candidates to their campus. ESF's Department of Environmental Studies participated and was successful in hiring a candidate who is starting this summer.

The primary support entities for underrepresented students at ESF are housed in the Student Diversity & Inclusion Initiatives Office which includes mentoring, peer support and coaching along with programming. Mentoring, Counseling, peer support, academic support, etc. are all available to students who are members of the state sponsored CSTEP and EOP programs. The most prominent support group on campus for faculty and staff would arise from the ESF Women's Caucus as SUNY defines gender identity as a part of the system's diversity and inclusion definition. General supports are available for all employees via the ESF Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

However, ESF participates in the SUNY Graduate Diversity Fellowship: The Graduate Diversity Fellowship, sponsored by the State University of New York, is funded by a program designed to recruit, enroll, and retain outstanding students from groups that have been historically underrepresented in the graduate and professional programs of the University. The Program provides financial support, which may include full in-state tuition and a stipend, to graduate students who contribute to the diversity of the student body in their graduate programs and have overcome a disadvantage or other impediment to success in higher education. Funding is available for a maximum duration of two years for a master’s degree and three years for a doctoral degree.

An additional program we have that is offered to Women on campus: ESF Women’s Caucus: The ESF Women's Caucus was formed by a group of ESF students, staff and faculty who wanted an opportunity to work and socialize with other women. The first meeting convened November 17, 1994, as a brown-bag lunch discussion. The Caucus aims to raise consciousness about women's concerns, work for change to improve the climate for women at ESF and create a community that is a respectful forum for diverse ideas. The goals are to increase the number of women students and faculty at ESF, find ways for women to better communicate and coordinate or sponsor activities that benefit them, and improve services for ESF families. Any woman student (undergraduate or graduate), staff member or faculty member, including any woman that is at ESF part-time, can join the Women's Caucus. The Women’s Caucus facilitates numerous environmental lectures on the ESF campus each semester. http://www.esf.edu/womenscaucus/Speakers.htm