Sexual harassment is a violation of law and impairs girls' and women's access
to educational resources. Romantic and/or sexual relationships between coaches and
athletes are regarded as an abuse of professional status and power.
Under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and Title IX of the Education Amendment
of 1972, sexual harassment is illegal sex discrimination. Consistent with the Guidelines
of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the federal agency charged with
the enforcement of Title VII, sexual harassment in the context of athletics and
fitness is defined as follows:
Sexual harassment consists of unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors,
and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature when:
- Submission to such conduct or communication is made either explicitly or implicitly
a term or condition of an individual's status in a course, program, or activity;
- Submission to or rejection of that conduct by an individual is used as a factor
in decisions affecting that individual; or
- Such sexual conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an
individual's' work, educational or athletic performance, or of creating an intimidating,
hostile, or offensive environment for working, learning, or the development of athletic
skills.
Romantic and/or sexual relationships between coaches and athletes compromise the
professional integrity of the coach and educational mission of athletics. Coaches
exercise power over athletes, whether in giving them praise or criticism, deciding
about their playing time, evaluating them, making recommendations that further their
athletic goals, or conferring any other benefits on them. Romantic and/or sexual
relationships between coaches and athletes are wrong when the coach has professional
responsibility for the athlete. Such situations greatly increase the opportunities
for a coach to abuse his/her power and sexually exploit the athlete. Voluntary consent
by the athlete in such a relationship is suspect, given the fundamentally unequal
nature of the relationship. Moreover, other athletes and coaches may be affected
by such unprofessional behavior because it places the coach in a position to favor
or advance one athlete's interest at the expense of others and implicitly make obtaining
benefits contingent on romantic and/or sexual favors.
* adapted from Coaching Issues, Women's Sports Foundation
Guidelines for Coaches
- Coaches have the duty and responsibility to establish and maintain an educational
and athletic environment free of sexual harassment
- Coaches have a duty and responsibility to take seriously all incident or complaints
of sexual harassment.Included in this is a responsibility to make sure the problem
is resolved.
- Coaches should pursue training and educational experiences that enhance coaches'
understanding of issues surrounding sexual harassment and romantic coach/athlete
relationships.
Guidelines for Athletes
- An athlete should be encouraged to immediately report an incident she believes
is a form of sexual harassment by a coach or fellow athlete.
- All efforts will be made to prevent retaliation and to solve the problem in a way
that allows the athlete to continue her/his athletic career at UCSB successfully
and without discomfort.
The following is a partial list of offices at UCSB where Sexual Harassment incidents
and or concerns can be discussed. For additional contacts access the list of
UCSB Sexual Harassment Contact People.
- Human Resources/Labor Relations
(805) 893-4119
- Sexual Harassment Complaint Resolution/Title IX Officer
(805) 893-2546
- The Women's Center
(805) 893-3778
To read the UC SYSTEMWIDE Sexual Harassment policy:
http://www.ucop.edu/ucophome/coordrev/policy/PP121404policy.pdf
* adapted from Coaching Issues, Women's Sports Foundation