West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine is committed to providing an environment that is supportive and comfortable for you to discuss your concerns regarding individual treatment in the workplace, educational setting, equal employment opportunity, and diversity.
Every effort will be made to ensure the fair and equal treatment of all involved parties during the complaint investigation process. West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine requests that discrimination, harassment, sex discrimination, sexual harassment, disability and any other complaints of unlawful discrimination be filed within 30 days from the date of the alleged incident(s) with:
Dr. Dawn Roberts Associate Dean for Multicultural and Student Affairs Title IX Coordinator 304-793-6591 Schedule an appointment
WVSOM's sexual misconduct policy (GA-14)
Resources, Rights & Options
Helpful Information if you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted:
Consider contacting the Family Refuge Center to talk about and possibly report the assault. These agencies can provide you with medical attention, emotional support, and law enforcement services and can help you explore your various options.
Medical assistance in emergency situations can be obtained by dialing 9-1-1. WVSOM Security is also available by calling 304-647-8911. Medical assistance is available at:
Counseling assistance is available twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week from:
West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine also offers the services of on campus licensed professional counselors for student issues. If you would like professional counseling services please contact the Aspire Office
You do not have to formally report an incident to seek medical attention or receive counseling support services.
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Any student, faculty or staff member, or applicant who has concerns about sex discrimination or sexual misconduct is encouraged to seek the assistance of the Title IX Coordinator.
Contact a coordinator if you:
Any student, faculty or staff member, or applicant who believes they are a victim of sex discrimination or sexual misconduct may file a complaint.
If you choose to file a complaint, the Title IX Coordinator will:
Alcohol or drug use by the accused and/or the complainant are not defenses to discrimination or harassment, sex discrimination or sexual harassment (including acts of sexual violence).
Use of drugs or alcohol may, however, affect the alleged victim's and/or accused's memory which may impact the investigation and final outcome of a complaint.
Substance use disorder resources.
Various State and Federal laws, including but not limited to Title IX, and the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine prohibit retaliation against any individual who files or participates in the investigation of a discrimination, harassment, sex discrimination or sexual harassment complaint.
The Title IX Coordinator will investigate retaliation complaints and report the findings to appropriate West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine personnel for review and applicable action. If you feel that you have been retaliated against for filing a complaint or otherwise participating in a complaint investigation process, please contact the Title IX Coordinator.
The Title IX Coordinator attempts to balance the needs of the parties for privacy with the institutional responsibility of ensuring a safe educational environment and workplace.
Confidentiality is an aspiration, but is not always possible or appropriate. An individual's requests regarding the confidentiality of reports of discrimination, or harassment including but not limited to sex offenses will be considered in determining an appropriate response; however, such requests will be considered in the dual contexts of the institution's legal obligation to ensure a working and learning environment that is free from discrimination or sexual misconduct and the due process rights of the accused to be informed of the allegations and their source.
Some level of disclosure may be necessary to ensure a complete and fair investigation and to insure that the institution meets its obligations under Title IX. The institution may be limited in its response and investigation if confidentiality is requested.
Complaints may be filed after 30 days however, individuals are encouraged to report incidents as soon as possible because the passage of time may affect the institution’s ability to investigate the incident.
If the complaint is against a Title IX Coordinator or the Equal Opportunity and ADA Coordinator, please file your complaint with:
Dr. Linda Boyd Vice President for Academic Affairs/Dean 400 Lee Street North Lewisburg, WV 24901 304-647-6269
ATIXA Training Information
Additional information regarding the enforcement of State and Federal anti-discrimination/ harassment/retaliation laws and complaint procedures may be obtained from the following agencies:
U.S. Department of Education 100 Penn Square East, Suite 515 Philadelphia, PA 19107-3323 Telephone: 215-656-8541 FAX: 215-656-8605; TDD: 877-521-2172 Email
1321 Plaza East – Room 108A Charleston, WV 25301 Telephone: 304-558-2616 Toll Free: 888-676-5546 FAX: 304-558-0085
801 Market Street, Suite 1300 Philadelphia, PA 19107-3127 Telephone: 866-408-8075 Fax: 215-440-2606 TTY: 800-669-6820
The complainant is at all times free to pursue a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the West Virginia Human Rights Commission, the United States Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (responsible for enforcing Title IX), the United States Department of Labor (Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs), or by consulting a labor/employment attorney at her or his own expense.
West Virginia State Code §15-12 entitled the Sex Offender Registration Act authorizes the electronic release of information regarding certain sex offenders required to register under West Virginia Law.
WVSOM has established a Coordinated Campus Response Team, and the Title IX Coordinator participates as a member of the Greenbrier County Sexual Assault Response Team which is coordinated by the Family Refuge Center. For additional information, please contact the Title IX Coordinator.
During the investigation process, and in accordance with existing policies and laws, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine will make every reasonable effort to protect the privacy of all parties involved in the investigation, and to keep the information confidential to the extent required by law. However, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine cannot guarantee that any or all of the information will remain confidential.
During the investigation process, West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine is required to:
The individual filing the complaint is referred to as the "Complainant". The accused is referred to as the "Respondent".
Anyone accused of discrimination or harassment is presumed not responsible for the alleged conduct.
Generally, an investigation will result in a written report that, at a minimum, includes a statement of the allegations and issues, a summary of the information considered, findings of fact, and a determination by the investigator as to whether the institution's policy has been violated. For allegations of discrimination or harassing behavior, there are three possible findings:
The report, the complaint, the response and any other evidence obtained during the investigation of the complaint may be used as evidence in other related procedures, such as subsequent complaints, grievances and/or disciplinary actions.
The report also may contain recommendation for actions to resolve the complaint, including but not limited to educational programs, counseling/coaching, mediation, remedies for the complainant, and a referral to institutional disciplinary procedures, as appropriate.
The complainant and the respondent shall be concurrently informed in writing of the completion of the investigation and the outcome of the investigation. The complainant shall be informed of the findings and of actions taken or recommended to resolve the complaint, if any, that are directly related to the complainant, such as a recommendation that the accused not contact the complainant.
The complainant and the respondent shall be informed of the findings and of actions taken or recommended to resolve the complaint and shall be notified generally of referrals for disciplinary action and recommended action.
You are permitted to have a representative of your choice, including legal counsel (paid for at your own expense), at any stage of the investigation process.
Acts of sex discrimination or sexual harassment, including but not limited to acts of sexual violence, may also constitute acts of criminal conduct.
Any individual may report an incident alleging criminal conduct by calling 9-1-1 in an emergency or by contacting the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine Security at: 304-647-8911. The West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine Security Office and/or other law enforcement authorities may be notified if a complaint contains allegations of criminal conduct.
Pursuant to the federal law known as the Jeanne Clery Act (20 USC § 1092(f)), any campus security or law enforcement personnel or any West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine employee who has significant responsibility for student and campus activities (including but not limited to faculty advisers to student groups, coaches and a student activities director) who has witnessed or been informed of an alleged incident that constitutes a crime for the purpose of the Clery Act including but not limited to a forcible or nonforcible sex offense or a hate crime, whether a criminal or administrative complaint has been filed, must:
Employees may be obligated to report to law enforcement the fact that an alleged Clery Act Crime has been reported, but the name or other personally identifiable information about the complainant will be provided only with the consent of the complainant, except as may be required or otherwise permitted by law.
The administrative investigation of complaints filed with the Title IX Coordinator is different from a law enforcement investigation. The technical rules of evidence and procedure do not apply.
A law enforcement investigation will not take the place of an investigation or disposition of a complaint filed with the Title IX Coordinator and the results of a law enforcement investigation or adjudication are not determinative of whether an individual is responsible for discriminatory/harassing/retaliatory conduct.
An investigation by the Title IX Coordinator may be carried out prior to, simultaneously with, or following civil or criminal proceedings off campus.
West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine will cooperate fully with law enforcement and other agencies in the enforcement of criminal law on campus or that affects the campus community and such cooperation may require the institution to temporarily suspend the fact-finding aspect of the administrative investigation while the law enforcement agency is in the process of gathering information.
Suspensions of investigations typically last from three to ten days but may be extended depending upon the circumstances of each case.
West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine will promptly resume its administrative investigation as soon as notified by the law enforcement agency that it has completed the evidence gathering process.
West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine may at any point in the complaint process elect to place the respondent on investigative leave, reassignment, temporary suspension from classes or authorize other types of temporary measures while an investigation is pending, including but not limited to "no contact" directives.
When the Title IX Coordinator receives a report of harassment or discrimination, s/he will undertake an appropriate inquiry and take such prompt and effective action as is reasonably practicable under the circumstances to support and protect the complainant, the campus community and to avoid retaliation against the victim(s) before the final outcome of the investigation or full implementation of the complaint process.
Interim measures may be implemented without prior notice to the accused whenever there is reason to believe, based on available facts, that the continued presence of the student poses a substantial threat to himself/herself, to others, to college property, or to the stability and continuance of normal college functions.
If the allegation constitutes a sex offense as defined by the Clery Act, the College will change the victim's academic situation after an alleged Clery Act sex offense if those changes are requested by the victim and are reasonably available.
When taking steps to separate the complainant and the accused, the Title IX Coordinator will seek to minimize unnecessary or unreasonable burdens on either party; provided, however, that every reasonable effort will be made to allow the complainant to continue in his or her academic and/or campus employment arrangements.
Violation(s) of the Title IX Coordinator's directive and/or protective actions will constitute related offenses that may lead to additional disciplinary action.
Interim measures that may be implemented include but are not limited to:
The Title IX Coordinator is empowered to hear allegations of, and to recommend sanctions for, conduct that violates any institution rule regulation or policy including but not limited to employee handbooks and/or any student conduct code directly related to the alleged discriminatory/harassing/retaliatory conduct.
The Title IX Coordinator may refer the complaint to other college departments for disposition pursuant to other disciplinary procedures if the conduct does not rise to the level of discrimination or harassment but does violate other institutional rules, regulations or policies.