Title IX and Sexual Misconduct FAQs

Call 911 or RISD Public Safety’s emergency line at 401 454-6666. You are not alone. Public Safety will connect you with a support network and guide you through your options.

Then do the following as immediately as possible:

• Get yourself to safety.
• Don’t shower or try to clean yourself up.
• Call someone you trust. You should not be alone if you can reach someone you know.
• Get medical attention. Among your available options and resources, call Public Safety’s emergency line for help from the department’s EMTs.
• Depending on the nature of the assault, you should consider your future safety and that of others. Consulting a Title IX coordinator may help you lay out a path to do so.
• Your experience may have a longterm impact. Counseling and Psychological Services may be able to help you with any emotional repercussions from your experience.

Here’s the short answer. Most of the resources listed below are available 24/7.

Confidential off-campus services

• Women and Infants Hospital (401 421-4100): on-call Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE)
• Miriam Hospital (401 793-2500)
• Rhode Island Hospital (401 444-4300)
• Day One Sexual Assault Resource Center (800 494-8100)

Private options on campus

• RISD Public Safety (401 454-6666): Public Safety maintains professional discretion in dealing with any information related to a sexual assault. They can contact counselors who are available 24/7.
• You can talk to your resident advisor (RA), who will then contact an area coordinator. Area coordinators are trained to respond to situations like this.

They will keep your information as confidential as possible. However, they are expected to contact a professional who can provide further help.

Local law enforcement

• Providence Police emergency line (401 272-1111)

We handle this on a case-by-case basis. If your case progresses to a sexual misconduct proceeding, we can make provisions to separate the complainant and respondent during the hearing. Processes outside the school, such as those in the criminal justice system, may require this. RISD will support and accompany you when you meet with outside authorities for explanation and details of their process.

Reporting is your decision and we want you to do what is best. We encourage you to contact a Title IX Coordinator to file a report or pursue informal guidance so we can inform you of support options available to you.

Please keep in mind that although it can be emotionally difficult, filing a complaint with a Title IX Coordinator, Public Safety or the Providence Police can help prevent sexual misconduct from happening in the future. Filing a report can help secure peace of mind as well as help prepare or make authorities aware of repeat offenders. Deciding not to file a complaint might hinder RISD from taking appropriate action.

Also note that RISD faculty and staff must refer sexual misconduct matters to a Title IX Coordinator or to Student Affairs. This ensures that students are made aware of support options and that RISD can assess any potential safety risk.

Since RISD must under law address any incidents of sexual assault, and make all efforts to prevent future occurrences, referrals by faculty or staff could result in an investigation. Someone will contact you before any official inquiry begins.

If you do not file a report, please see what resources are available to you.

Since sexual misconduct is a form of prohibited behavior, RISD is obligated under law and policy to address it when it happens to a member of our community. We do allow students to offer input as to how they would like the situation handled.

There are cases in which our need for additional information prompts an investigation. We hope you understand that our ability to address such conduct helps to improve our campus climate overall and prevent future incidents of sexual misconduct.

If you’re not sure, that’s OK. Life is often not black and white. Even if you just want to talk, our Title IX coordinators as well as staff in Counseling and Psychological Services are available for you. They can help you figure out what you should do.

Ask us. You can inquire completely anonymously, by phone or in person. Our conversation will be a private and we will not pressure you to do any more than you are comfortable with.

Not from us. We follow your lead when it comes to letting parents know unless there is an imminent threat to your health or safety. In this case we will first discuss all options with you.

If you want, we can talk with your parents about anything that might be going on, but this is totally up to you.

While every case is different, we will work to help you eliminate or minimize contact with the respondent. Upon report of a situation or during investigation, all parties are cautioned to avoid direct contact, at the risk of adjudication.

There are many support measures that might be offered depending on the situation, which might include other housing or academic remedies. The Title IX Coordinators work with you to identify the best course of action.

We might offer one or more support measures depending on the situation, including housing or academic remedies. A Title IX coordinator will work with you to identify the best course of action.

In some cases, the respondent will be moved to a different residence hall or removed from a residence or from campus entirely, pending the outcome of the case. Unless you’re notified that RISD has removed the respondent, you should prepare for the possibility that you’ll see them on campus.

Inform a Title IX coordinator and/or Student Affairs as soon as possible if you are in classes with the student or if they live in the same residence hall as you. In any situation, you should avoid direct contact with that person and vice versa.

Yes, you can make a report about anyone you believe has violated RISD’s policy on sexual misconduct, stalking or domestic/dating violence. Being in a relationship doesn’t change what’s considered a sexual offense. Even in a preexisting relationship, consent is required for every action, every time.

It’s important to report all incidents or egregious types of behavior, even if you’re unsure of whether or not it violates RISD policy. If you find yourself in a situation like this, please contact a Title IX coordinator.

You may choose to go to the hospital or not. It’s your decision. A hospital can perform a forensic exam, offer STD/STI medication and pregnancy testing and/or give you options if you are at risk for pregnancy.

We encourage you seek medical care within 72 hours, as many remedies are time sensitive. Please see resources and support for a list of local hospitals.

At Women and Infants Hospital and Rhode Island Hospital a sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) will document your account of the assault, perform necessary medical exams, tests or treatments, and collect crucial, time-sensitive evidence (within 72 hours of the assault), using the Rhode Island Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kit (known as a rape kit). This will follow a brief exam by an emergency room physician.

The SANE exam specifically documents and collects forensic evidence (photos, written documentation, specimen collection and evaluation for drug-facilitated sexual assault) and provides preventative treatment for STDs and HIV as well as emergency contraception. The SANE may also treat minor injuries.

The forensic exam usually takes 4–6 hours. A friend can stay with you throughout the exam. You can opt to decline any portion of the exam or treatment. Nothing is done without your consent.

Women and Infants also offers any sexual assault victim support from a trained advocate at Day One, a local rape crisis center. The advocate and the SANE provide emotional support, crisis intervention and referrals for followup support, counseling and/or treatment.

No. The police are notified but you have the right to refuse to speak with detectives or report the crime. You are also not obligated to report the incident to the police in order to have evidence collected.

If you decide to press charges, you still have the option of speaking with the police at a later date.

Physical evidence collection by the SANE or ER physician should take place within 96 hours of the time of the sexual assault. In order to preserve evidence at the scene of the assault, leave any sheets, towels, etc., for police to collect. The sooner this evidence is collected, the better.

• a ride from a friend
• personal vehicle
• Public Safety transport (call 401 454-6666)
• taxi (taxi vouchers are available 24/7 from Public Safety for emergency situations)
• RIPTA bus (many lines travel from near campus to all local health care facilities)

Don’t shower. It’s the first thing most victims want to do, and that’s understandable. But a shower will remove important evidence.

By going to a SANE emergency room, you can preserve evidence of the assault—even if you’re unsure whether you plan to press criminal charges.

If you decide to go to the ER, try to preserve any physical evidence. If possible, do not:

• shower or bathe
• go to the bathroom
• remove any barrier contraceptive devices
• douche
• change clothing
• eat
• brush teeth or use mouthwash

If you wear the same clothes to the hospital as during the sexual assault, you should bring a change of clothing. If you already changed clothing, you should place the clothing you wore at the time of assault in a clean paper bag (grocery bag) or clean sheet and bring it to the hospital with you. (Plastic bags render forensic evidence useless.)

Please share any suggestions or additional questions you may have so that we can continue to help members of the RISD community access the most helpful information possible in the future.