Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Board - Home

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What is the Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Board?

The Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Board (HSMB) is a group of faculty, staff, and students whose purpose is to help ensure that members of the College community can live and work free from harassment or sexual misconduct. Click the following link for the complete Harassment and Sexual Misconduct policy and procedure. http://www.hamilton.edu/student-handbook/hsmp

Hamilton College prohibits harassment, which is defined as:

Verbal or physical conduct based on a person's race, color, religion, creed, ethnicity, gender or gender identity, age, sexual and affectional orientation/associations, or mental/physical disabilities that is sufficiently severe, pervasive, persistent or patently offensive that it has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with that person's work or academic performance, or that creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working, educational, or living environment, from both a subjective (the complainant's) and an objective (any reasonable person's) viewpoint.

Hamilton College prohibits sexual misconduct, which is defined as:

non-consensual sexual touching,
non-consensual sexual intercourse (with a body part or object), or
sexual exploitation (e.g., videotaping sexual acts, engaging in voyeurism).

It's important to note that sexual assault is not the survivor's fault.

All members of the College community have an obligation to raise awareness and to prevent sexual harassment and misconduct from occurring at Hamilton. When an incident does occur, resources are available, and HSMB members are here to help.

The importance of consent

Consent is: clear, unambiguous, affirmative, and mutually understood permission and agreement for each level of increased intimacy from holding hands to intercourse. Consent can be taken away at any time.

Silence does not mean permission.
Consent to some form of sexual activity cannot be automatically taken as consent to any other sexual activity.
If the survivor is mentally or physically incapacitated, asleep, involuntarily physically restrained, impaired from the taking of so-called "date rape drugs," consent is not valid.
If one person is incapacitated because of drug or alcohol, consent is not possible.
If physical force, coercion, intimidation, and/or threats are used, there is no consent.
In order to give consent one must be of legal age, which is 17 in New York State.