Message from President Earl Potter

Preventing Harassment and Discrimination
at St. Cloud State University

St. Cloud State University is committed to providing quality education within an environment that fosters respect for its students, staff, and faculty. As a center of learning, we work to enhance professional respect by freely exchanging ideas and respecting each individual. To this end, SCSU has policies and procedures, as required by Federal and State law and MnSCU policy, to prevent discrimination and discriminatory harassment. These policies and procedures also help to provide recourse for those who believe they have been harmed by discriminatory conduct.

To be an effective institution, we must have a shared understanding of what this commitment to anti-discrimination and anti-harassment means. Thus, all of us - students and employees – must know what constitutes employment discrimination and sexual harassment. The U.S. courts, in 40 years of judicial opinion on employment discrimination cases, have articulated standards and criteria which distinguish between discriminatory and nondiscriminatory workplace behaviors. These court opinions guide our SCSU management policy and procedures to prevent discriminatory conduct.

To help you become familiar with these policies and procedures, the Offices of Equity & Affirmative Action and Human Resources have arranged for all our employees to access a computerized, online training program called "Preventing Discrimination in the Workplace." This program includes two segments: "Preventing Employment Discrimination" and "Preventing Sexual Harassment." This series explains state and federal laws and system and university policies defining discrimination and harassment. It also provides guidance for reporting potential harassment or discrimination.

This program will help each of us understand our personal and collective responsibility for creating, supporting, and contributing to the professional conduct and harassment-free environment the university. This understanding will enhance the quality of our campus life and help promote an atmosphere that values the dignity of each individual. An environment of mutual respect is one of the benchmarks of a quality institution. I am asking all administrators and supervisors to take this training, and I strongly encourage all faculty, non-supervisory employees, and students to complete this training as well. For further information, please contact Ellyn L. Bartges, Equity & Affirmative Action Officer and Title IX Compliance Officer, (320) 308-5123 or by email at elbartges@stcloudstate.edu.

Thank you.

President Earl Potter

Updated April 2nd, 2010