The mission of the Inclusive Community Assessment Team is to provide an opportunity for students, faculty and staff to be heard and supported. The fundamental role of the Inclusive Community Assessment Team is to respond to reports of bias incidents and hate speech. The team will provide services to witnesses, bystanders, targeted individuals, offenders, or members of the community in order to create change in a timely, effective, and comprehensive way. The Assessment Team will play an educational role in helping to cultivate the community values of inclusion, civility, and mutual respect.
It is not the purpose of the Inclusive Community Assessment Team to investigate, arbitrate,
or take the place of other college processes or services; rather, the intention is
to complement and work with campus departments to connect those who have witnessed
or themselves become a target of an act of bias with appropriate support and resources.
The team does not and will not initiate disciplinary action or impose sanctions regarding
bias incidents. Data collected will be used to develop educational and outreach programs.
In the case of judicial action affecting a student, all proceeding will be referred
to the campus judicial board as per student conduct. Reports pertaining to misconduct
by a university employee shall be forwarded and addressed by Human Resource. Reports
that rise to the level of hate crimes will be reported to the PennWest Edinboro Police
Department.
Bias is defined by the University as an act, verbal, written, physical, psychological,
that threatens, or harms a person or group on the basis of race, religion, color,
sex, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, ancestry,
disability, marital status, civil union status, domestic partnership status, military
service or veteran status.
Filing a report helps the University create a safe environment that supports the educational mission of the institution. In addition, unreported incidents and bias actions can perpetuate continued bias and erode the campus climate. WHO CAN REPORT? Students, University Employees, Community Members, Parents & Family Members, Alumni
You can use the online referral form to make a report:
If you are the target of, witness to, or even simply hear about any form of incident or bias happening to a member of the University community, you should report the incident immediately.
Dr. Terrence Mitchell, Vice President, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Representative of the Dean of Students
Representative of Marketing and Communications
Representative of Academic Affairs
Representative of the Office of the Provost
PennWest Edinboro is committed to the free, spirited, and safe exchange of ideas. As an academic community, PennWest Edinboro values the robust exchange of ideas and the expression of free speech, as protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution. While we encourage the exchange of ideas and free speech, we also acknowledge that we are not free from the consequences or harms of bias, hate, or harmful speech. Bias acts can be disruptive. However, bias acts may not always be a violation of civil, criminal or University codes, and therefore may not result in discipline. Acts of bias may warrant discussion or education about how they affect other members of the University community.
