FIU changes its ‘application’ of discrimination law

Joshua Ceballos/Assistant Entertainment Director

FIU students who are the victims of sexual misconduct such as harassment, inappropriate touching, rape, or discrimination, can report the incidents with the office of Equal Opportunity Programs and Diversity (EOPD) in PC 321.

Shirlyon McWhorter is the director of EOPD and a Title IX coordinator. McWhorter oversees the operations of her office and others, and ensures that FIU is adhering to the Title IX law.

“Title IX is a 1972 law that’s been around for quite some time. Most people are familiar with Title IX as it applies to sports… Title IX applies to any type of discrimination based on sex or gender,” said McWhorter.

Whereas people normally think of Title IX as the law that requires women’s basketball teams to be treated just as fairly as men’s basketball teams, FIU takes their approach to a different level, according to McWhorter.

“The law didn’t change, but our application of this law has changed. Now we’re looking at it holistically. Any type of behavior dealing with sexual misconduct [or] dealing with sex and gender… what Title IX says is that educational institutions, are not to discriminate or to allow discrimination at your school,” said McWhorter.

EOPD handles cases of sexual misconduct  that occur between a student and a staff member, or a student and a faculty member. Cases of misconduct between students are handled by Student Conduct and Conflict Resolution, according to the sexual misconduct informational pamphlet provided by the EOPD.

“Students can report [sexual misconduct] in a number of ways… they can come in in-person; they can call us on the telephone. What we try to do is make ourselves accessible to the students so that we can contact them and they can contact us in the way that is most convenient to them,” said McWhorter.

McWhorter said that students normally go to Student Conduct because it’s what people are familiar with. At Student Conduct, students will fill out a form about the incident and the office will conduct an investigation, and ensure that the student’s needs are met.

“One of our concerns is not just addressing the investigation… but first and foremost, to make sure that that student is okay, to make sure that that student is whole,” said McWhorter.

McWhorter says that when a student reports an incident of sexual harassment, EOPD and Student Conduct makes sure that students get the proper psychological help from CAPS if necessary, helps refer students to the Victim Empowerment Program, and also accompanies victims in reporting the incident with the police department on or off campus if the student feels it is necessary.

For those who may not know where EOPD, the Victim Empowerment Program, or Student Conduct is, McWhorter said that FIU is prepared to direct them.

“We’ve trained the university faculty and staff here at the university to deal with Title IX as well, so even if a student went to someone else and it wasn’t my office… those faculty members are trained, they know about my office, they know where [students] should go,” said Mcwhorter.

The Resident Assistants in the FIU dorms are also trained to direct students to the EOPD according to McWhorter, so should an RA receive a complaint, they’ll know what to do.

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