Filing a Complaint
Simmons encourages students, faculty and staff to promptly report all incidents of Sex Discrimination against them or other members of the Simmons community. Please note that, with a few limited exceptions, Simmons faculty and staff are considered Responsible Employees and therefore have a duty to report sex discrimination if it comes to their attention. The options for reporting sex discrimination and receiving support are listed below.
Simmons Title IX Team
Members of the Simmons community can make a report of sex discrimination to the Title IX Coordinator (whether or not the person reporting is the person alleged to be the victim of conduct that could constitute sex discrimination), in person, by mail, by telephone, or by electronic mail, or by any other means that results in the Title IX Coordinator receiving the person’s verbal or written report:
Sara Simberg
Assistant General Counsel, Title IX Coordinator
Simmons University
300 The Fenway, Suite A-230
Boston, MA 02115
Phone: 617-521-3289
[email protected]
Maxient
Any person (whether a member of the Simmons community or not) may submit a report of sex discrimination to the Title IX Coordinator through Maxient, an online reporting tool. Submit an Incident Report.
Ethicspoint
Any member of the Simmons community can file a complaint of sex discrimination on Ethicspoint, a third party web-based reporting tool. Ethicspoint offers individuals the option to make an anonymous report of a violation of this Policy.
Simmons Public Safety
Members of the Simmons community can choose to make a report directly to Public Safety. Public Safety will share
reports of sex discrimination with the Title IX Coordinators. Public Safety can also provide support in a number of different ways, such as:
- Providing assistance with filing a criminal complaint and working with the local law enforcement agency if requested to do so;
- Supporting students in filing a no trespass order at Simmons or seeking a protection order in court;
- Providing transportation to the hospital, if needed; and
- Connecting Complainants with other resources, as needed.
Boston Police Department (or other local law enforcement)
If the sex discrimination is potentially criminal in nature, a Complainant can choose to file a criminal complaint. Except where the Complainant is younger than eighteen (18) years old or there are concerns about an impending threat to the University community that justifies police involvement, the University will respect an individual's choice on whether or not to report an incident to local law enforcement. If requested, the University will assist individuals in making a criminal report and will cooperate with law enforcement agencies to the extent permitted by law.
Note that the definition of sex discrimination and the burden of proof under the Simmons Sex Discrimination Policy may differ from Massachusetts criminal law. You can seek resolution through the University's Sex Discrimination Policy and through a criminal report. A report to law enforcement will not change the University's obligation to respond to an incident of sex discrimination, but it may briefly delay the timing of an investigation if a law enforcement agency requests the University to delay its process for a reasonable amount of time to allow it to gather evidence. The University's determination of whether a policy violation has occurred is entirely independent of a law enforcement agency's decision to pursue criminal charges against a suspect or the outcome of any criminal prosecution.
Confidentiality
The University values the privacy of individuals involved in the reporting, investigation, and/or resolution of matters subject to this Policy, and is committed to protecting the privacy of individuals involved in a report of sex discrimination to the extent it may and must do so.
For a list of confidential resources, see here.