Reporting Discrimination, Sexual Harassment and Retaliation

Every student has the right to a safe and supportive environment free of sex/gender-based discrimination, sex/gender based harassment, sexual harassment, harassment, sexual misconduct and retaliation. Title IX is a federal civil rights law that does not allow discrimination on the basis of sex in schools and school activities including all of Chicago Public Schools. Additionally, the Office of Student Protections and Title IX office that schools are safe from all sexual misconduct.

If you have experienced any of the following incidents,  report your allegations using the resources below. View the glossary of terms for definitions of these behaviors.

• sex/gender-based discrimination
• sex/gender-based harassment
• sexual misconduct
• retaliation

Additionally, these resources can also be used to report incidents of

• race, color, or national origin discrimination (Title VI)
• discrimination based on another protected category
• bias based harm
• staff to student physical abuse or corporal punishment
• sports inequity
• academic inequity.

What to Report

What to Report

If you have experienced any of the following incidents,  report your allegations using the resources below. View the glossary of terms for definitions of these behaviors.

• sex/gender-based discrimination
• sex/gender-based harassment
• sexual misconduct
• retaliation

Additionally, these resources can also be used to report incidents of

• race, color, or national origin discrimination (Title VI)
• discrimination based on another protected category
• bias based harm
• staff to student physical abuse or corporal punishment
• sports inequity
• academic inequity.

Understanding Your Protections

Discrimination, harassment and sexual misconduct can take many forms. Read through the glossary of terms below to understand the behaviors you are protected from under Title IX.

Discrimination based on sex: When you are treated differently because of your sex, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, pregnancy or pregnancy-related medical condition, or childbirth.

Sex/gender-based harassment: When someone says something or touches you, creating an unfriendly and uncomfortable situation. Such as when someone says something about how you look, your body, your gender, your sexual orientation, or your private parts that makes you feel uncomfortable. This can include inappropriate staring, inappropriate jokes, showing or sending sexual pictures, demanding hugs, dates or sexual contact, saying things that put you down due to your gender, or spreading sexual rumors.

Sexual harassment: Defined under Title IX regulations as conduct on the basis of sex that satisfies one or more of the following:

• An employee of the recipient conditions the provision of an aid, benefit, or service of the recipient on an individual’s participation in unwelcome sexual conduct
• Unwelcome conduct, determined by a reasonable person to be so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive that it effectively denies a person equal access to the educational program or activity
• Sexual assault as defined in 20 U.S.C. 1092(f)(6)(A)(v) (the Clery Act), “dating violence” as defined in 34 U.S.C. 1229(a)(10), “domestic violence” as defined in 34 U.S.C. 12291(a)(8), or “stalking” as defined in 34 U.S.C. 1229(a)(30).

Retaliation: When someone takes action against you for reporting your complaint or being involved in an investigation. If this happens, you should report this to us as we do not allow retaliation.

Other types of sexual misconduct that you are protected from:

• Grooming: When someone shows you special attention in an attempt to build a relationship, trust and/or emotional connection with you so they can manipulate, exploit and/or abuse you
• Inappropriate Touching: When someone makes or tries to make physical contact of genitals (private parts), anus, groin, or breasts, whether directly on your body or indirect through clothes or with an object or any other intentional bodily contact in a sexual manner that you did not want.
• Sexual Electronic Communication: This is intentionally viewing, making, having, or sharing sexual language or pictures/recordings without the consent of one or more parties.
• Sexual Bullying: This is severe (very serious), pervasive (widespread), or persistent (ongoing) unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature or based on a person’s sexuality or gender that is based on an imbalance of power or power and control with an intent to cause harm.
• Sexual Exploitation: Taking non-consensual or abusive sexual advantage of another person for their own enjoyment (e.g. for the purpose of sexual gratification, financial gain, personal benefit or advantage), or any other non-legitimate purpose.
• Exposure/Voyeurism/Masturbation: Non-consensually exposing one’s genitals, anus, buttocks, or breasts in a sexual nature; watching others when their body parts are exposed without their consent; or touching one’s own genitals for sexual pleasure.

Consent: When you agree, give permission, or say “yes” to do something and your agreement is informed, active, voluntary, specific, and ongoing. A person cannot consent if they are not able to function normally due to drug or alcohol use, if they are not awake, if they have a physical, cognitive, or developmental difference that prevents them from understanding what is happening, if they are under the age required by law to legally consent or they are with another person who is in a position of authority or trust.

• Informed. A person must understand the who, what, when, where and nature of the activity
• Active. Verbal or nonverbal actions that clearly show willingness to participate in the activity. The absence of no does not mean yes; No means No. Stop means Stop
• Voluntary. Freely given without the use of force, coercion, manipulation, or threats
• Specific. Consent must be present every time, for every action. Consent to engage in one type of activity is not consent to engage in a different type of activity
• Ongoing. A person can take back consent at any time. Once consent is taken back, all activity must stop

Supports and Services

• Chicago Rape Crisis Hotline: (888-293-2080) or use chat function on website
• OSP List of Community Resources
• The Trevor Project: Provides 24/7 crisis support services to LGBTQ young people, Text, chat, or call to reach a trained counselor.
• NCMEC Take It Down: Take It Down is a free service that can help you remove or stop the online sharing of nude, partially nude, or sexually explicit images or videos taken of you when you were under 18 years old.
• Student Protections Schools Representatives: The Office of Student Protections and Title IX has trained over 650+ Student Protection School Representatives (SPSRs) as on-the-ground school liaisons to coordinate a school’s response, along with school administrators, to complaints involving students.
• City of Chicago Department of Family and Support Services