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Title VI provides that “No person in the United States shall, on the ground of race, color, or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.” 42 U.S.C. section 2009(d) et seq.
Title VI protects members of the University community, including students, faculty, staff and visitors, from race, color and national origin discrimination. While religion is not expressly mentioned in Title VI, the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights has stated that Title VI protects individual of any religion from discrimination, including harassment, based on a person’s actual or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics; or citizenship or residency in a country with a dominant religion or distinct religious identity. https://www.ed.gov/laws-and-policy/civil-rights-laws/race-color-and-national-origin-discrimination/race-color-and-national-origin-discrimination-key-issues/discrimination-based-shared-ancestry
Discrimination based on race, color, or national origin is prohibited, when, for example, the discrimination:
Retaliation against a student, employee or any witness who reports discrimination and/or participates in any College investigation is prohibited. Any substantiated act of retaliation may result in sanctions or other disciplinary action as provided by College Policy, including the Student Conduct Code, Sexual Violence Response Policy, or Title IX Grievance Policy, and/or the disciplinary procedures contained within any applicable collective bargaining agreement.
The College of Optometry will promptly address any discrimination that violates Title VI, including, but not limited to, Antisemitism and Islamophobia.
Title VI Coordinator
Joy Harewood
Chief Diversity Officer, Associate Clinical Professor
212-938-5513
Jharewood@sunyopt.edu
The United States Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) enforces Title VI and has the authority to investigate complaints of discrimination where an individual alleges exclusion from educational programs, services or activities, or harassment based on race, color, national origin, or shared ancestry.
OCR investigates and resolves Title VI complaints against educational institutions (that are recipients of federal funds) alleging that such institutions have failed to protect students from discrimination or harassment based on race, color, or national origin. Where OCR identifies concerns or violations, educational institutions often resolve them with agreements requiring the educational institutions to adopt effective anti-harassment policies and procedures, train staff and students, address the incidents in question, and take other steps to restore a nondiscriminatory environment.
Discrimination on the basis of race, color, or national origin includes discrimination based on a person’s actual or perceived race, color, national origin, ethnicity, or ancestry. OCR has interpreted national origin to extend to discrimination or harassment based on shared ancestry or perceived shared ancestry or ethnic characteristics or citizenship or residency in a country with a dominant religion or distinct religious identity. This means that individuals have a right to be free from ethnic or racial slurs, harassment for how they dress or speak, and from any stereotypes based on actual or perceived shared ancestral or ethnic characteristics.
Racial and national origin harassment is unwelcome conduct based on a student’s actual or perceived race or national origin. Harassers can be students, school staff, or even someone visiting the school, such as a student or employee from another school. Racial and national origin harassment can take many forms, including slurs, taunts, stereotypes, or name-calling, as well as racially motivated physical threats, attacks, or other hateful conduct. Although none of the laws OCR enforces expressly address religious discrimination, OCR can investigate complaints that students were subjected to ethnic or ancestral slurs; harassed for how they look, dress, or speak in ways linked to ethnicity or ancestry (e.g., skin color, religious attire, language spoken); or stereotyped based on perceived shared ancestral or ethnic characteristics. Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, and Sikh students are examples of individuals who may be harassed for being viewed as part of a group perceived to exhibit both ethnic and religious characteristics.
Harassing conduct can be physical or verbal conduct that creates a hostile environment that is so offensive and severe or pervasive that it limits or denies a student’s ability to participate in or benefit from the school’s educational programs, services, or activities.
Generally, offensive speech, standing alone, is insufficient to establish a hostile environment in violation of Title VI. The harassment must be sufficiently serious to deny or limit a student’s ability to participate in or benefit from the educational programs, services, or activities.
OCR has defined a hostile environment as unwelcome conduct that based on the totality of the circumstances is subjectively and objectively offensive and is so severe or pervasive that it limits or denies a person’s ability to participate in or benefit from a recipient’s educational program or activity.
Harassing acts need not be directed at the complainant to create a hostile environment.
In most cases, harassment must consist of more than casual or isolated incidents in order to establish a Title VI violation.
Bias incidents can be reported using the following methods:
Once a complaint is filed, the Title VI Coordinator or a designated investigator will conduct a thorough investigation, which will include evidence gathering, witness interviews, and review of any relevant documents. After the investigation has been completed, the complainant will be notified of the determination and any actions to be taken, to the extent consistent with applicable privacy laws.
SUNY Optometry is committed to maintaining a structured and consistent process for the reporting and handling of Title VI cases, providing a clear pathway for addressing and resolving issues of discrimination.
If you have questions, please contact
Dr. Joy Harewood jharewood@sunyopt.edu (x5513)