AMDA is committed to providing an academic environment free from sex discrimination, where all members of the school community are treated with respect and dignity. Sex discrimination includes both sexual and gender based harassment and violence. All members of the AMDA community, including students, employees, and third parties, are protected under this policy. Further, the policy applies to both on and off campus conduct with a reasonable connection to the AMDA educational sphere.
Detailed information about AMDA's Non-Discrimination Policy and Grievance Process is available here.
Detailed information about AMDA's Lived Name & Pronoun Policy is available here.
Detailed information about AMDA's Title IX Vendor and Third Party Non-Discrimination Statement is available here.
The American Musical and Dramatic Academy and College of Performing Arts (“AMDA”) does not discriminate and prohibits discrimination against any individual based on any category protected under applicable federal, state, or local laws.
Accordingly, AMDA does not discriminate, and strictly prohibits unlawful discrimination on the basis of race (including traits historically associated with race, such as hair texture and protective hairstyles), color, religion, creed, national origin, ancestry, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), gender, gender identity or expression, age, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, citizenship, genetic information or predisposing genetic characteristics, marital status, familial status, domestic violence victim status, caregiver status, military status, including past, current, or prospective service in the uniformed services, or any other category or characteristic protected by applicable law. When brought to the attention of AMDA, sex discrimination will be appropriately addressed by AMDA according to the procedures below, and discrimination on the basis of any other protected category will be addressed in accordance with applicable collective bargaining agreement.
The protections in this policy apply regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, or criminal conviction.
AMDA does not discriminate in its admissions practices except as permitted by law, in its employment practices, or in its educational programs or activities on the basis of sex. As a recipient of federal financial assistance for education activities, the School required by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 to ensure that all of its education programs and activities do not discriminate on the basis of sex. Discrimination on the basis of sex includes discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, and pregnancy or related conditions. Pregnancy or related conditions include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation; medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation; and recovery from pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, or related medical conditions.
AMDA also prohibits retaliation against any person opposing sex discrimination or participating in any sex discrimination investigation or complaint process, whether internal or external to the institution. Sex-based harassment, sexual assault, dating and domestic violence, and stalking are forms of sex discrimination, which are prohibited under Title IX and by AMDA policy.
Discrimination is defined as treating members of a protected category less favorably because of their actual or perceived membership in that category or as having a policy or practice that adversely impacts the members of one protected category more than others.
Discrimination on the basis of sex includes discrimination on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
Sex-based harassment is a form of sex discrimination and means sexual harassment and other harassment on the basis of sex, including on the basis of sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity. Sex-Based Harassment includes the following:
Retaliation is any materially adverse action taken against an individual because they were involved in the disclosure, reporting, investigation, or resolution of a report of Prohibited Conduct. Retaliation includes threats, intimidation, harassment, coercion, discrimination, violence, or any other conduct against any person by AMDA, a student, or an employee or other person authorized by AMDA to provide aid, benefit, or service under AMDA’s education program or activity, for the purpose of interfering with any right or privilege secured by this policy or by law, including Title IX or its regulations. Adverse action does not include perceived or petty slights, or trivial annoyances.
The prohibition against retaliation applies to any individuals who participate (or refuse to participate) in any manner in an investigation and to any student who refuses to participate in an investigation or proceeding.
Retaliation may occur even where there is a finding of “not responsible” under this policy. Good faith actions lawfully pursued in response to a report of Prohibited Conduct are not Retaliation.
AMDA is committed to creating and maintaining a community where all individuals enjoy freedom from discrimination, including discrimination or harassment, on the basis of sex, as mandated by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. Harassment or discrimination based on pregnancy or related conditions, familial status, marital status, or parental status is prohibited in AMDA’s education programs and activities, including, but not limited to admissions, hiring, leave policies, employment policies, and health insurance coverage. AMDA establishes this procedure to ensure the protection and equal treatment of individuals who are pregnant, experiencing a medical condition related to pregnancy, including lactation, or the need to express breast milk for a child.
For the purposes of this procedure, the legal definitions of reasonable accommodation, undue hardship, and other definitions and legal standards pertinent to the provision of reasonable accommodations for an individual’s pregnancy or related condition apply. Click here to review the policy.
AMDA prohibits discrimination and harassment on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation; 2) medical conditions related to pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, or lactation; or 3) recovery from pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, or related medical conditions.
Individualized measures offered as appropriate, as reasonably available, without unreasonably burdening a Complainant or Respondent, not for punitive or disciplinary reasons, and without fee or charge to the Complainant or Respondent to:
Supportive measures may include but are not limited to: counseling; extensions of deadlines and other course-related adjustments; campus escort services; increased security and monitoring of certain areas of the campus; restrictions on contact applied to one or more parties; leaves of absence; changes in class, work, housing, or extracurricular or any other activity, regardless of whether there is or is not a comparable alternative; no-contact directives (which may be mutual or unilateral at the discretion of the Title IX Coordinator); and training and education programs related to sex-based harassment. Supportive measures are non-disciplinary and non-punitive. Supportive Measures will also be offered to Respondents when they are notified of the allegations.
Any Supportive Measures put in place will be kept confidential, except when doing so impairs the ability of AMDA to provide the Supportive Measures.
AMDA believes it is important to be proactive in taking reasonable steps to identify and prevent incidents of sex discrimination. All employees, with limited exceptions as identified by AMDA, are required to promptly provide to the Title IX Coordinator all complaints or reports of sex discrimination, including sex-based harassment, to the Title IX Coordinator and share all information reported or made available to the employee. If an employee in a supervisory capacity has direct knowledge of an incident of harassment or discrimination on the part of, or directed toward, any employee of the Title IX Coordinator community, that supervisor is required to bring the matter to the attention of the Title IX Coordinator.
Reporting FormAMDA does not tolerate sexual assault, harassment or discrimination in any form, nor does it tolerate threats to others' health, safety or welfare. AMDA's priority is enforcing these policies in order to protect members of our campus community. Additionally, AMDA offers support to any student who survives a sexual assault that occurs within the context of the school community to enable them to continue pursuing their academic and career goals. Sex-related crimes (including but not limited to sexual assault and rape) represent violations of criminal and civil law, and constitute a serious and unacceptable breach of student conduct. Any report of sexual assault, harassment or discrimination is taken with the utmost of seriousness. AMDA does not tolerate retaliation against students who bring forth a complaint in good faith about sexual misconduct.
AMDA prohibits conduct that constitutes, could lead to or contributes to the harassment of or by faculty, staff, supervisor/manager, students, customers, vendors, suppliers, and independent contractors based on (without limitation) an individual's sex, race, color, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability, marital status, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state or local laws. AMDA does not tolerate retaliation against employees or students who bring forth a complaint in good faith about sexual misconduct.
Sexual harassment or violence is unwelcome written, verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Examples of conduct that may constitute sexual harassment or violence include sexual propositions, sexual innuendoes, suggestive comments, suggestive jokes or pictures, graphic commentaries, suggestive or insulting sounds, leering, whistling, obscene gestures, unwanted physical contact of any type, and conditioning of any academic decision upon consent to sexual contact or relationship. AMDA protects against the following types of sexual harassment and violence, but this is not an exhaustive list:
Gender based harassment or violence includes harassment or violence directed at a person because of their gender identity. Examples of this include jokes, gossip, harassment, or violent acts taken against someone because of their gender identity, or a change in treatment or responsibilities based on gender; i.e. pregnancy discrimination. The following terms are used in the state of California to define gender under this policy.
Both New York and California are affirmative consent states.
Affirmative consent is affirmative, conscious, and voluntary agreement to engage in sexual activity. A lack of protest or resistance does not mean consent, nor does silence mean consent. Relying solely on nonverbal communication may result in a violation of this policy. Consent must be ongoing throughout the entire sexual experience. An existing dating relationship or past sexual relations does not automatically equal consent. Consent is revocable. The use of alcohol or drugs will not be accepted as an explanation for the actions of any individual charged with a violation of this policy.
AMDA encourages any individual who has been a victim of sex discrimination to make a report to the Title IX Coordinator or Deputy Title IX Coordinator and to local law enforcement. AMDA also encourages any individual who has been the victim of sexual assault or rape to seek assistance from a medical professional and law enforcement immediately after an incident of sexual violence to ensure preservation of evidence and to begin a timely investigation and initiate an immediate response.
AMDA is committed to protecting the privacy and confidentiality of personal, identifiable information to the extent possible, subject to provisions of state and federal law. Other than as required by laws that guarantee public access to certain types of information, or in response to subpoenas or other legal instruments that authorize disclosure, personal information (including the victim's identity) will be disclosed on a need to know basis, and only to parties involved in the investigation. A student may request to be anonymous, and the school will uphold that request when possible.
To abide by state law, AMDA will report immediately to local law enforcement any willful homicide, robbery, aggravated assault, or hate crime committed on or off campus, as reported to campus security or other authority by the victim.
The easiest is to submit an incident report form. Though you may also email us at either LATitleIX@amda.edu or NYTitleIX@amda.edu.
Eugene Smith, Title IX and Equity Coordinator, LA
esmith@amda.edu
Students can email to make an appointment
NY Contact:
347-266-9428 / NYTitleIX@amda.edu
Office Hours: Mondays, from 2-5pm EST
Students can drop in, or call without an appointment
Right to an Appeal: Both parties have a right to an appeal. Such an appeal should be addressed to the Appeal's Administrator and submitted to the Title IX Coordinator or the Deputy Title IX Coordinator or Appeal's Administrator within seven days of the appellant's receipt of the determination. The student must provide a detailed written request stating the basis for their appeal, with at least one of the following reasons:
Disagreement with the findings or sanctions is not, by itself, grounds for an appeal.
When making a report to AMDA, you will be advised of your rights as a student, including your right to make a report to law enforcement and to the school's assistance in doing so, and your rights to interim measures to ensure your safety and well-being after making a report. After making a report, a student may decide not to proceed with a School investigation. In these cases, a school may have to continue without the students cooperation, if, for example, the conduct reported constitutes a danger to the campus as a hole.
AMDA's investigation of a policy violation does not preempt or supersede any legal procedure or remedies otherwise available to a victim.
In order to ensure the safety and protect the well-being of all parties involved, sometimes remedial actions are taken during the investigation. Following a report of an incident, both the complainant and respondent will be informed of accommodations that may be available to them. Students may request reasonable accommodations as needed. The Title IX Coordinator or the Deputy Title IX Coordinator will evaluate any request for accommodations on a case-by-case basis. AMDA will provide information about the accommodations only to those who need to know in order to make the accommodations effective.
In response to 34 C.F.R., Part 106.45(b)(10) of the 2020 Title IX Final Rule, AMDA is required to publicly share all materials used to train Title IX personnel at the University. Any materials used to train Title IX Coordinators, Investigators, Adjudicators, and any person who facilitates an Informal Resolution process, will not rely on sex stereotypes and will promote impartial investigations and adjudications of Formal Complaints of Prohibited Conduct. All staff in the Office of Title IX, Investigators, Adjudicators, and any person who facilitates an informal resolution process will receive training on: the definition of sexual harassment and Prohibited Conduct; the scope of the Colleges' education program or activity; how to conduct an investigation and grievance process including hearings, appeals, and informal resolution processes (as applicable); and how to serve impartially, including by avoiding prejudgment of the facts at issue, conflicts of interest, and bias. Investigators will receive training on issues of relevance to create an investigative report that fairly summarizes relevant evidence. Adjudicators will also receive training on any technology used at a live hearing and on issues of relevance of questions and evidence, including when questions and evidence about the Complainant's sexual predisposition or prior sexual behavior are not relevant. Also, the trainings will include external and internal members of the Title IX team. The College will continue to post access to training materials through this website to the extent necessary to comply with Title IX.
The Title IX regulations (34 C.F.R.C.F.R. part 106) further require AMDA to publicly provide information on these trainings starting August 14, 2020. A list of trainings attended by these individuals is available. This list includes all trainings attended post-August 14, 2020. The list consists of the materials used in training, all of which are provided for public review. These trainings are both internal and external.
Additionally, this list will include training materials from external and internal Title IX team members. You may read AMDA's policy in its entirety here. These materials will be kept for seven years and can be viewed here.
Title IX prohibits a school from discriminating against a student based on the student’s pregnancy, childbirth, false pregnancy, termination of pregnancy, or recovery from any of these conditions. Title IX also prohibits a school from applying any rule related to a student’s parental, family, or marital status that treats students differently based on their sex. If you have a concern, don't hesitate to get in touch with the Title IX Coordinator at esmith@amda.edu. Please review the Know Your Rights FAQ sheet here.
