Sexual Harassment Essay, Research Paper

"First of all, let me say that being sexually harassed since 5th grade has

gone beyond the damage of affecting the way I feel…. Now…I have no pride, no

self- confidence, and still no way out of the [misery] I am put through in my

school."1 Sexual harassment of students is a real and serious problem in

education at all levels, including elementary and secondary schools as well as

colleges and universities. It can affect any student, regardless of sex, race,

or age. Sexual harassment can threaten a student’s physical or emotional

well-being, influence how well a student does in school, and make it difficult

for a student to achieve his or her career goals. Moreover, sexual harassment is

illegal–Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) prohibits sex

discrimination, including sexual harassment. Preventing and remedying sexual

harassment in schools is essential to ensure nondiscriminatory, safe

environments in which students can learn. A…student should feel safe and

comfortable walking down the halls of his or her school. School is a place for

learning and growing. Sexual harassment stops that process.2 This pamphlet

provides school administrators, teachers, students, and parents with fundamental

information to assist them in recognizing and dealing with sexual harassment

under Title IX. It outlines basic principles in question-and-answer format. Some

more information about a school’s responsibilities has been omitted, and school

officials should read "Sexual Harassment Guidance: Harassment of Students

by School Employees, Other Students, or Third Parties" to ensure a full

understanding of the law. Parents and students can also consult this Guidance,

for more information about student rights. The Guidance was published by the

Office for Civil Rights in the Federal Register on March of 1997 and may be

obtained from any of the OCR Enforcement Offices or by calling 1-800-421-3481.

It is also posted on OCR s web page at http://www.ed.gov/offices/OCR/ocrpubs.html.

Sexual harassment can occur at any school activity and can take place in

classrooms, halls, cafeterias, dormitories and other areas. Too often, the

behavior is allowed to continue simply because students and employees are not

informed about what sexual harassment is or how to stop it. Students, parents

and school staff must be able to recognize sexual harassment, and understand

what they can do to prevent it from occurring and how to stop it if it does

occur. Harassing behavior, if ignored or not reported, is likely to continue and

become worse, rather than go away. The impact of sexual harassment on a

student’s educational progress and attainment of future goals can be significant

and should not be underestimated. As a result of sexual harassment, a student

may, for example, have trouble learning, drop a class or drop out of school

altogether, lose trust in school officials, become isolated, fear for personal

safety, or lose self-esteem. For these reasons, a school should not accept,

tolerate or overlook sexual harassment. A school should not excuse the

harassment with an attitude of "that’s just emerging adolescent

sexuality" or "boys will be boys," or ignore it for fear of

damaging a professor’s reputation. This does nothing to stop the sexual

harassment and can even send a message that such conduct is accepted or

tolerated by the school. When a school makes it clear that sexual harassment

will not be tolerated, trains its staff, and appropriately responds when

harassment occurs, students will see the school as a safe place where everyone

can learn.