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Workplace Harassment Prohibited

The District expects the workplace environment to be productive, respectful, and free of unlawful discrimination, including harassment. Discrimination, including harassment, is prohibited in the Wilmette Public Schools. District employees shall not engage in harassment or abusive conduct on the basis of an individual’s actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, citizenship status, work authorization status, disability, pregnancy, marital status, order of protection status, military status, unfavorable discharge from military service, nor shall they engage in harassment or abusive conduct on the basis of an individual’s other protected status identified in Board policy 5:10. Harassment of students, including, but not limited to, sexual harassment, is prohibited by Board policies, 2:260, 2:265, 7:20, 7:180, and 7:185.

The District will take remedial and corrective action to address unlawful workplace harassment, including sexual harassment.

Discrimination and Harassment on the Basis of Race, Color, and National Origin and Retaliation Prohibited from 105 ILCS 5/22-95(b)

Discrimination, including harassment, based on race, color, or national origin is prohibited. Examples of conduct that may constitute discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, or national origin in violation of this policy include, but are not limited to:

• Issuing more severe and/or more frequent discipline to a student based on the student’s race, color, or national origin.
• Denying a student access to specific courses, extracurricular activities, or other educational opportunities based on the student’s race, color, or national origin.
• Using racial or ethnic slurs or stereotypes.
• Offensive or derogatory remarks about a person’s perceived race, color, or national origin.
• Racially-motivated threats or attacks.

Employees are encouraged to promptly report claims or incidences of discrimination or harassment based on race, color, or national origin pursuant to the Reporting Procedures in this policy.

This policy does not impair or otherwise diminish the rights of unionized employees under federal or state law, or applicable collective bargaining agreement, to request an exclusive bargaining representative to be present during investigation interviews. Nor does this policy diminish any rights available under the applicable collective bargaining agreement, including but not limited to, the grievance procedure.

District employees who are determined to have engaged in conduct prohibited under this policy may be subject to remedial action and/or disciplinary action, up to and including discharge.

Retaliation against any person for bringing complaints, participating in the complaint process, or otherwise providing information about discrimination or harassment based on race, color, or national origin is prohibited. Individuals engaging in retaliation in violation of this policy may be disciplined, up to and including dismissal.

If the District fails to take necessary corrective action to stop discrimination or harassment based on race, color, or national origin, further relief may be available through the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR) or the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR). Contact information for the IDHR is as follows:

DHR.Illinois.gov
(312) 814-6200 (Chicago)
(217) 785-5100 (Springfield)

Prevention and Response Program for Discrimination and Harassment Based on Race, Color, and National Origin

In addition, the Superintendent or designee shall establish procedures for responding to complaints of discrimination and harassment based on race, color, and national origin and retaliation, which shall include procedures which:

1. Reduce or remove, to the extent practicable, barriers to reporting discrimination, harassment, and retaliation;
2. Permit any person who reports or is the victim of an incident of alleged discrimination, harassment, or retaliation to be accompanied by a support person of choice (who must comply with District policies and rules) when making a report;
3. Permit anonymous reporting, except that an anonymous report may not be the sole basis of disciplinary action under this policy;
4. Offer remedial interventions or take such disciplinary actions as may be appropriate on a case-by-case basis; and
5. May offer, but not require or unduly influence, a person who reports or is the victim of an incident of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation the option to resolve allegations directly with the alleged offender.

The procedures may not cause a person who reports or is a victim of an incident of discrimination, harassment, or retaliation to suffer adverse consequences as a result of a report of, investigation of, or a response to the incident.

Sexual Harassment Prohibited

The District shall provide a workplace environment free of verbal, physical, or other conduct, or communications constituting harassment on the basis of sex as defined and otherwise prohibited by state and federal law. The District provides annual sexual harassment prevention training in accordance with state law.

District employees shall not make unwelcome sexual advances or request sexual favors or engage in any unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature when: (1) submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment; (2) submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual; or (3) such conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment. Sexual harassment prohibited by this policy includes, but is not limited to, verbal, physical, or other conduct. The terms intimidating, hostile, or offensive include, but are not limited to, conduct that has the effect of humiliation, embarrassment, or discomfort. Sexual harassment will be evaluated in light of all the circumstances.

Making a Complaint

Employees and nonemployees (persons who are not otherwise employees and are directly performing services for the District pursuant to a contract with the District, including contractors, and consultants) are encouraged to promptly report information regarding violations of this policy. Individuals may choose to report to a person of the individual’s same gender. Every effort should be made to file such reports or complaints as soon as possible, while facts are known and potential witnesses are available.

Aggrieved individuals, if they feel comfortable doing so, should directly inform the person engaging in the harassing conduct or communication that such conduct or communication is offensive and must stop.

Whom to Contact with a Report or Complaint

An employee should report claims of discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation, including making a confidential report, to any of the following: individual’s immediate supervisor, the building principal, an administrator, the Nondiscrimination Coordinator, and/or a Complaint Manager.

The Superintendent shall insert into this policy the names, office addresses, email addresses, and telephone numbers of the District’s current Nondiscrimination Coordinator and Complaint Managers. The Nondiscrimination Coordinator also serves as the District’s Title IX Coordinator.

Investigation Process

Any District employee who receives a report or complaint of discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation in violation of this policy must promptly forward the report or complaint to the Nondiscrimination Coordinator or a Complaint Manager. Any employee who fails to promptly forward a report or complaint may be disciplined, up to and including discharge.

Reports and complaints of discrimination, harassment, and/or retaliation will be confidential to the greatest extent practicable, subject to the District’s duty to investigate and maintain a workplace environment that is productive, respectful, and free of unlawful discrimination, including harassment.

For any report or complaint of discrimination on the basis of sex that, if true, would implicate Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C. §1681 et seq.), the Nondiscrimination Coordinator or designee shall process the complaint pursuant to policy 2:265.

For any other alleged workplace discrimination or harassment that does not require action under policy 2:265, the Nondiscrimination Coordinator or a Complaint Manager or designee shall consider whether an investigation under policy 2:260, and/or 5:120, should be initiated. Should an investigation be deemed appropriate, the investigation procedures of the relevant policy or policies will be applied.

Enforcement

A violation of this policy by an employee may result in discipline, up to and including discharge. A violation of this policy by a third party will be addressed in accordance with the authority of the Board in the context of the relationship of the third party to the School District (e.g., vendor, parent, invitee, etc.).

Any employee making a knowingly false accusation regarding a violation of this policy will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge.

Retaliation Prohibited

An employee’s employment, compensation, or work assignment shall not be adversely affected by complaining or providing information about discrimination, harassment, or retaliation in violation of this policy. Retaliation against employees for bringing complaints or providing information about harassment is prohibited (see Board policy 2:260), and depending upon the law governing the complaint, whistleblower protection may be available under the State Officials and Employees Ethics Act (5 ILCS 430/), the Whistleblower Act (740 ILCS 174/), and the Ill. Human Rights Act (775 ILCS 5/).

An employee should report allegations of retaliation to the employee’s immediate supervisor, the Building Principal, an administrator, the Nondiscrimination Coordinator, and/or a Complaint Manager.

Employees who retaliate against others for reporting or complaining of violations of this policy or for participating in the reporting or complaint process will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge.

Recourse to State and Federal Fair Employment Practice Agencies

The Superintendent shall also use reasonable measures to inform staff members of this policy, which shall include posting on the District website and/or making this policy available in the District’s administrative office, and including this policy in the appropriate handbooks.

Adopted: June 8, 1998
Revised: February 23, 2015; January 22, 2018; June 18, 2018; September 23, 2019; August 24, 2020; April 24, 2023; September 23, 2024

Legal Reference:
42 U.S.C. §2000e et seq., Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964; 29 C.F.R. §1604.11.
20 U.S.C. §1681 et seq., Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972; 34 C.F.R. Part 106.
5 ILCS 430/70-5(a), State Officials and Employees Ethics Act.
775 ILCS 5/2-101(E) and (E-1), 5/2-102(A), (A-10), (D-5), 5/2-102(E-5), 5/2-109, 5/5-102, and 5/5-102.2, Ill. Human Rights Act.
56 Ill. Admin.Code Parts 2500, 2510, 5210, and 5220.
Vance v. Ball State Univ., 570 U.S. 421 (2013).
Crawford v. Metro. Gov’t of Nashville & Davidson Cnty., 555 U.S. 271 (2009).
Jackson v. Birmingham Bd. of Educ., 544 U.S. 167 (2005).
Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Servs., 523 U.S. 75 (1998).
Burlington Indus. v. Ellerth, 524 U.S. 742 (1998).
Faragher v. City of Boca Raton, 524 U.S. 775 (1998).
Harris v. Forklift Systems, 510 U.S. 17 (1993).
Franklin v. Gwinnett Co. Public Schools, 503 U.S. 60 (1992).
Meritor Savings Bank v. Vinson, 477 U.S. 57 (1986).
Porter v. Erie Foods Int, Inc., 576 F.3d 629 (7th Cir. 2009).
Williams v. Waste Mgmt., 361 F.3d 1021 (7th Cir. 2004).
Berry v. Delta Airlines, 260 F.3d 803 (7th Cir. 2001).
Sangamon Cnty. Sheriff’s Dept. v. Ill. Human Rights Com’n, 233 Ill.2d 125 (Ill. 2009).