Canadian Ultrasound Institute & Research Centre

10 Kingsbridge Garden Circle, suite # 400, Mississauga, ON L5R 3K7 Canada.

905-507-4756 

SEXUAL VIOLENCE AND SEXUAL HARASSMENT POLICY

Career Institute Sexual Violence and Sexual Harassment Policy Template Revision as per Bill 132 as Amended– March 16, 2016: 

Canadian Ultrasound Institute

Canadian Ultrasound Institute is committed to maintaining a campus free of discrimination and harassment, and strives to foster an atmosphere of healthy attitudes and behaviors towards sexuality, sex and gender roles. We take seriously our commitment to supporting those who experience sexual violence, and we work diligently on campus and with community partners on programs, policies and resources to ensure that our campus remains free from sexual violence.

1. Sexual Violence Policy

a) The Institute is committed to providing its students with an educational environment free from sexual violence and treating its students who report incidents of sexual violence with dignity and respect.

b) The Institute has adopted this Sexual Violence Policy, which defines sexual violence and outlines its training, reporting, investigative and disciplinary responses to complaints of sexual violence made by its students that have occurred on its campus, or at one of its events and involve its students.

c) The person accused of engaging in sexual violence will be referred to as the
“Respondent” and the person making the allegation as the “Complainant”.

2. Definition of Sexual Violence

Sexual violence means any sexual act or act targeting a person’s sexuality, gender identity or gender expression, whether the act is physical or psychological in nature, that is committed, threatened or attempted against a person without the person’s consent, and includes sexual assault, sexual harassment, stalking, indecent exposure, voyeurism and sexual exploitation.

3. Reporting and Responding to Sexual Violence   

The Institute  Shall include a copy of the Sexual Violence Policy in every contract made between it and its students, and provide a copy of the Sexual Violence Policy to career Institute management (corporate directors, controlling shareholders, owners, partners, other persons who manage or direct the career Institute’s affairs, and their agents), instructors, staff, other employees and contractors and train them about the policy and its processes of reporting, investigating and responding to complaints of sexual violence involving its students. *Any company participating in offering student internships on their premises must provide an undertaking in writing that it is in compliance with all applicable legislation, including the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Occupational Health and Safety Act and will provide students access to those policies should they encounter issues relating to sexual violence in the workplace.

The Sexual Violence Policy shall be published on its website (or where the Career Institute does not have a website in a conspicuous location on each of its campuses)

Career Institute management, instructors, staff, other employees and contractors of the Institute will report incidents of or complaints of sexual violence to Institute’s Campus Director upon becoming aware of them.

Students who have been affected by sexual violence or who need information about support services should contact the Institute’s Campus Director.
Subject to Section 4 below, to the extent it is possible, the Institute will attempt to keep all personal information of persons involved in the investigation confidential except in those circumstances where it believes an individual is at imminent risk of self-harm, or of harming another, or there are reasonable grounds to believe that others on its campus or the broader community are at risk. This will be done by:

ensuring that all complaints/reports and information gathered as a result of the complaint/reports will be only available to those who need to know for purposes of investigation, implementing safety measures and other circumstances that arise from any given case; and

Ensuring that the documentation is kept in a separate file from that of the complainant/student or the respondent.

The Institute recognizes the right of the Complainant not to report an incident of or make a complaint about sexual violence or not request an investigation and not to participate in any investigation that may occur, andIf students, in good faith, report an incident of, or make a complaint about, sexual violence, they will not be subject to discipline or sanctions for violations of the private career Institute’s policies relating to drug or alcohol use at the time the alleged sexual violence occurred.
Students who disclose their experience of sexual violence through reporting an incident of, making a complaint about, or accessing supports and services for sexual violence, will not be asked irrelevant questions during the investigation process by the private career Institute’s staff or investigators, including irrelevant questions relating to the student’s sexual expression or past sexual history.
Notwithstanding (f), in certain circumstances, The Institute may be required by law or its internal policies to initiate an internal investigation and/or inform police without the complainant’s consent if it believes the safety of members of its campus or the broader community is at risk.
In all cases, including (f) above, the Institute will appropriately accommodate the needs of its students who are affected by sexual violence. Students seeking accommodation should contact the Institute’s Campus Director.

In this regard, the Institute will assist students who have experienced sexual violence in obtaining counseling and medical care, and provide them with information about sexual violence supports and services available in the community as set out in Appendix 1 attached hereto. Students are not required to file a formal complaint in order to access supports and services.

4. Investigating Reports of Sexual Violence
5. Under this Sexual Violence Policy, any student of the Institute may file a report of an incident or a complaint to the Institute’s Campus Director in writing. The other officials, offices or departments that will be involved in the investigation are Director Education and Program Director.
6. Upon receipt of a report of an incident or a complaint of alleged sexual violence being made, the Institute’s Campus Director will respond promptly and:
7. determine whether an investigation should proceed and if the Complainant wishes to participate in an investigation;
8. determine who should conduct the investigation having regard to the seriousness of the allegation and the parties involved;

• determine whether the incident should be referred immediately to the police;

In such cases or where civil proceedings are commenced in respect of allegations of sexual violence, the Institute may conduct its own independent investigation and make its own determination in accordance with its own policies and procedures; and

1. determine what interim measures ought to be put in place pending the investigation process such as removal of the Respondent or seeking alternate methods of providing necessary course studies.

1. Once an investigation is initiated, the following will occur:
2. the Complainant and the Respondent will be advised that they may ask another person to be present throughout the investigation;

1. interviewing the Complainant to ensure a complete understanding of the allegation and gathering additional information that may not have been included in the written complaint such as the date and time of the incident, the persons involved, the names of any person who witnessed the incident and a complete description of what occurred;

1. informing and interviewing the Respondent of the complaint, providing details of the allegations and giving the Respondent an opportunity to respond to those allegations and to provide any witnesses the Respondent feels are essential to the investigation;

1. interviewing any person involved or who has, or may have, knowledge of the incident and any identified witnesses;

1. providing reasonable updates to the Complainant and the Respondent about the status of the investigation; and

1. following the investigation, the Institute’s Campus Director will:

1. review all of the evidence collected during the investigation;
2. determine whether sexual violence occurred; and if so
3. determine what disciplinary action, if any, should be taken as set out in Section 5

5. Disciplinary Measures
6. If it is determined by the Institute that the Respondent did engage in sexual violence, immediate disciplinary or corrective action will be taken. This may include:
7. disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment of instructors or staff; or
8. expulsion of a student; and /or

• the placement of certain restrictions on the Respondent’s ability to access certain premises or facilities; and/or

1. any other actions that may be appropriate in the circumstances.

6. Appeal
7. Should the Complainant or the Respondent not agree with the decision resulting from the investigation, he or she may appeal the decision to the Institute’s Executive Director ( President) within (5) days by submitting a letter addressed to The Institute Executive’s Director ( President) advising of the person’s intent to appeal the decision.

7. Right to Withdraw a Complaint

A complainant has the right to withdraw a complaint at any stage of the process. However, the Institute may continue to act on the issue identified in the complaint in order to comply with its obligation under this Policy and/or its legal obligations.

8. Protection from Reprisals, Retaliation or Threats:

 It is contrary to this Policy for anyone to retaliate, engage in reprisals or threaten to retaliate against a complainant or other individual for:

1.       Having pursued rights under this Policy or the Ontario Human Rights Code;
2.       Having participated or co-operated in an investigation under this Policy or the Ontario Human Rights Code; or
3.       Having been associated with someone who has pursued rights under this Policy or the Ontario Human Rights Code.

Anyone engaged in such conduct may be subject to sanctions and/or discipline.

9. Addressing Complaints:

A victim may choose to confide in anyone about an act of sexual violence – a student, professor, instructor, teaching assistant, coach, or staff from housing, health, counselling or security. Everyone on campus will have access to basic information on how to provide a compassionate and reassuring response.

Process for responding to and addressing incidents and complaints of sexual violence involving students:

Step 1: The “first responder” at the Institute is the Campus Manager.

The Campus Manager will provide information about campus and community services that are immediately available.

The Campus Manager will:

• Listen without judgement and will accept the disclosure as true.
• Understand that communicating about sexual violence is never the responsibility of the victim.
• Help the survivor identify and/or access available on- or off-campus services, including emergency medical care. Respect the survivor’s right to choose the services they feel are most appropriate and to decide whether to report to police.
• Recognize that disclosure can be traumatic and a survivor’s ability to recall the events may be limited.
• Respect the survivor’s choices as to what and how much they disclose about their experience  Make every effort to respect confidentiality and anonymity.

Step 2: The Campus Manager’s primary functions will also include:

• Helping the victim decide whether to formally report the incident. This will include an explanation of the criminal justice system proceedings or the institution’s disciplinary process. See the Student Complaint Procedure Form, issued to you at registration, or ask the Campus Manager for a copy of the Form, and the Complete a Student Complaint Form.
• Helping the victim develop a safety plan.
• Providing referrals to counselling, peer groups and other campus and community services.
• Supporting a requested change in residence or campus housing.
• Facilitating academic considerations, such as extensions on assignments, a request to drop a class or continue studies from home.
• If requested, the Campus Manager may also assist the survivor in contacting family members or friends.

Step 3: The Campus Manager may also:

• Conduct internal investigations to gather evidence and present findings to the appropriate adjudication body. In some circumstances, the investigation can only be pursued by a bona fide police service.
• Follow or implement measures to manage the alleged perpetrator while an investigation is taking place. This may be done with the guidance of the local police service.
• Put in place measures to protect the victim, where possible, from the alleged perpetrator (for example, “no contact orders”). Cooperate with local police in their investigations.

10. Unsubstantiated or Vexatious Complaints

If a person, in good faith, discloses or files a sexual violence complaint that is not supported by evidence gathered during an investigation, that complaint will be dismissed.

Disclosures or complaints that are found following investigation to be frivolous, vexatious or bad faith complaints, that is, made to purposely annoy, embarrass or harm the respondent may result in sanctions and/or discipline against the complainant.

11. Confidentiality

Confidentiality is particularly important to those who have disclosed sexual violence. The confidentiality of all persons involved in a report of sexual violence must be strictly observed, and the Institute does its best to respect the confidentiality of all persons, including the complainant, respondent, and witnesses.

However, confidentiality cannot be assured in the following circumstances:

1. an individual is at imminent risk of self-harm;
2. an individual is at imminent risk of harming another; and/or
3. there are reasonable grounds to believe that others in the Institute or wider community may be at risk of harm.

In such circumstances, information would only be shared with necessary services to prevent harm, and the name of the survivor would not be released to the public.

Where the Institute becomes aware of an allegation of sexual violence by a member of the Institute community against another member of the Institute community, the Institute may also have an obligation to take steps to ensure that the matter is dealt with in order to comply with the Institute’s legal obligation and/or its policies to investigate such allegations. In such cases, certain Institute administrators will be informed about the reported incident on a “need to know” and confidential basis, but not necessarily of the identities of the persons involved.

If students, in good faith, report an incident of, or make a complaint about, sexual violence, they will not be subject to discipline or sanctions for violations of the private career Institute’s policies relating to drug or alcohol use at the time the alleged sexual violence occurred.

Students who disclose their experience of sexual violence through reporting an incident of, making a complaint about, or accessing supports and services for sexual violence, will not be asked irrelevant questions during the investigation process by the private career Institute’s staff or investigators, including irrelevant questions relating to the student’s sexual expression or past sexual history.

12. Cross References to Other Policies and/or Legal Requirements

To contact the Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Treatment Centre in Ontario nearest you, contact: Ontario Network of Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Treatment Centres, 76 Grenville Street, Toronto, ON M5S 1B2, Tel. (416) 323-7327

www.satcontario.com/en/home.php

If You Have Experienced Sexual Violence

If you have experienced sexual violence, please contact the College President immediately at 647-280-9601.

It is often difficult to disclose and report incidents of sexual violence. It is entirely up to you if you choose to report the incident; however, we strongly encourage you to do so. You are not required to report an incident of, or make a complaint about, sexual violence to obtain supports, services, or accommodation. A number of other resources are available to you, including:

You can contact a Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Treatment Centre

Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Treatment Centres in Ontario are hospital-based centres that provide 24/7 emergency care to women, children and men who have been sexually assaulted or who are victims or survivors of domestic violence (intimate partner) abuse. Services include:

• Emergency medical care
• Crisis intervention
• Collection of forensic evidence
• Access to emergency contraception and preventative treatment for sexually-transmitted infections
• Medical follow-up
• Counselling
• Referral to community resources.

You can choose to have centre staff conduct a physical examination, offer medical care and/or collect any physical (forensic) evidence of a recent sexual assault. It is your decision whether you wish to report the assault to the police or provide the forensic evidence. If you think you were drugged and sexually assaulted, Sexual Assault/Domestic Violence Treatment Centres can also test to determine the presence of drugs in your body.

Sexual Assault/Rape Crisis Centres              www.sexualassaultsupport.ca

Sexual Assault/Rape Crisis Centres offer a wide variety of services to victims and survivors of sexual violence, 16 years and over. Services include a 24-hour anonymous crisis/support telephone line, individual and group counselling, court, police and hospital accompaniment, information on the legal system, and community referrals. Francophone services are available in designated areas.

13. Institute Contact

Dr. Khalil Lakho, Campus-Director
Unit: 10 Kingsbridge Garden Circle, suite # 400, Mississauga, ON L5R 3K7 Canada.

Phone: 905-507-4756, Fax: 905-507-4756,
Email: canadianultrasound@gmail.com,
Web Site:  www.canadianultrasound.com,

14. Making False Statements

1. It is a violation of this Sexual Violence Policy for anyone to knowingly make a false complaint of sexual violence or to provide false information about a complaint.
2. Individuals who violate this Sexual Violence Policy are subject to disciplinary and / or corrective action up to and including termination of employment of instructors
3. Review and Amendment

The review of the sexual violence policy will occur at least once every three years and amended it if necessary.

Appendix 1

The following represents a list of Provincial Rape Crisis Centres that could be provided as resources: