- Listen
- Tell you what they heard to ensure that they have it right
- Ask you if you are interested in developing a plan of action, which might include involving other faculty or staff members, or other university support systems as appropriate
- Do what they said they were going to do to support you to the best of their ability
- Follow-up with you in a reasonable time frame, even if it’s just to “check-in”
If you are meeting with a member of the faculty or staff to voice a concern, you are welcome to bring someone with you for support. If you do not have someone you feel you can ask to attend in support, you may request that the department provide a faculty or staff member to be a third person in the meeting. Contact: Cathy Feely (clfeely@illiois.edu). If possible, make this request when scheduling the meeting; if concerns arise during a previously scheduled meeting, you and the faculty or staff member are invited to reconvene at a later time in order to include a third party.
Faculty and staff will try to follow up with you within 30 days, either to see how you are doing or to give you more information about something you discussed.
If you are a Graduate student, and your concern is specifically related to your labor as a teaching or research assistant (as opposed to issues surrounding coursework or production), you may also contact the GEO: https://www.uiucgeo.org/contact. They may provide other resources or act as a liaison.
A NOTE ON MANDATORY REPORTING
Situations that are covered by Title IX, mandatory reporting regulations or fall under other Illinois codes of conduct and other directives will be reported to the appropriate office even if they are made anonymously. Faculty and staff are required to report all incidents of threats to harm self or others, sexual misconduct, suspected abuse of minors, or violations of state law.
A NOTE ON ANONYMOUS CONVERSATIONS
Sometimes a student may want to remain anonymous. This could take the form of an unsigned note sent to a teacher or supervisor or a student bringing forward an incident on behalf of another student or representing a group. It is difficult to take direct action when an anonymous report is received, usually because without the names of the concerned parties there are limits into how specifically something can be addressed. We may not be able to follow-up or make visible any steps taken in response to the report. Anonymous statements can generally be addressed by indirect group actions like sending an email to the entire class to remind them about a policy rather than addressing and working with a specific individual to effect a change while still preserving anonymity. Regardless of the situation, when you make an anonymous report, the recipient will:
- Document the situation as fully as possible
- Communicate with relevant parties as much as possible, even if it is in a general way
- Bring the situation forward to advisers or supervisors as appropriate
- Suggest resources to the person who reported the situation that might be of help
- When possible, follow-up about the situation with the person who reported it