Title IX changes

Dear students, faculty and staff,

On Wednesday, May 6, 2020, The U.S. Department of Education released the Final Rule on new regulations to Title IX of the Education Amendment of 1972. Title IX protects people from discrimination based on sex in education programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance. Title IX states that:

No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance.

We are currently reviewing these new regulations alongside other federal and state laws to make any necessary changes to our policy and process to be compliant by August 2020. Any changes will be communicated with our community as soon as possible.

Let us state unequivocally: it is the position of the Regis University, as a Jesuit Catholic University, that sexual misconduct in any form is a direct violation of our institutional values, which call on us to uphold “the sacred dignity of all individuals.”

The new 2020 Title IX regulations are a minimum threshold set by the federal government with which our university must comply. Regulations, however, do not reflect the threshold of our university community’s commitment to ensure safe and equitable access to a learning environment free from discrimination based on sex, which includes sexual misconduct.

Regis University will continue to work to prevent, respond to, and remedy any incidents of sexual misconduct experienced by our community, and continue to:

• Provide a prompt, fair and equitable process for complaints of sexual misconduct

• Provide confidential resources and supports to all students, staff and faculty

• Prioritize the physical and emotional health of our community, as well as provide medical support when it is needed

• Provide education to our community on resources, prevention and policy

• Provide training for professional staff and administrators on processes and skills to reduce re-traumatization and harm

• Support and advocate for the rights of all students, faculty,and staff under Title IX, regardless of sex and gender identity

• Support and advocate for the rights of all minoritized and/or protected populations in our community

• Continue our commitment to sexual misconduct prevention work to create a university culture of consent and respect

Our community values call upon us to remember that while federal regulations may change, our community responsibility to prevent and respond to sexual misconduct remains and extends well beyond rules and mandates.

Our community and country are navigating the coronavirus pandemic, and now major changes in regulation on sexual violence on college campuses. During this time of potentially heightened concern and emotion, we encourage you to care for yourself and your loved ones by accessing these confidential resources as needed:

• The Regis University Victim Advocacy and Violence Prevention (VAVP) department serves students, staff and faculty at Regis University by providing advocacy support services as well as training and education regarding preventing and addressing interpersonal violence (sexual assault, relationship violence and stalking). Please contact: Alison McCarthy, Assistant Director of Victim Advocacy & Violence Prevention at 303.458.4029 or amccarthy001@regis.edu.

• The Blue Bench 24 Hour Hotline: 303.322.7273 (off-campus resource for victim advocacy support services)

• The Office of Counseling and Personal Development: 303.458.3507

• University Ministry: 303.458.4153

Resources about the upcoming changes

These resources can help you understand our current policy (which remains in effect until further notice), and the new regulations released by the Department of Education. 

Regis University Non-Discrimination and Sexual Misconduct Policy

Regis University Equal Opportunity & Title IX Compliance

U.S. Department of Education Final Rule on Title IX Regulations

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to:

Carole Goddard, she/her/hers (not confidential)
Equal Opportunity & Title IX Coordinator
Cgoddard001@regis.edu

Human Resources provides guidance on Safer at Home order, potential to return to work on campus

Dear Colleagues:

As we navigate through the various orders regarding COVID-19, we will continue to define our return to campus approach in shorter increments to ensure not only compliance but more importantly, the health and safety of our employees and our entire Regis community. The following guidelines will be in effect through the end of May, unless we receive new state and/or city guidance that require additional changes.

The City and County of Denver has ended the Stay at Home order as of May 8. Beginning May 9, we will be under the City’s Safer at Home Order.

As Denver moves from an emergency response phase into one of relief and recovery, we are still being urged to stay at home unless absolutely necessary.  With this directive, the majority of staff will continue to work from home.  Only those individuals identified as essential staff or who have been approved through their Vice President or the Provost, will be allowed to return to campus.  We continue to take this cautious approach to ensure the ongoing health and safety of both the Regis community and the community at large.

As we begin to incrementally increase the current number of employees on campus, we must remain diligent in adhering to the following required Safer at Home guidelines:

• Maintain six-foot separation between employees and discourage shared spaces

• Avoid meetings or groups of more than 10 employees, clients, or customers

• Whenever possible, staggered schedules for those staff working on campus

• Implement symptom monitoring protocols

• Require employees with symptoms to stay home

• Accommodate employees who are vulnerable individuals

• Provide flexible options for employees with child or elder-care obligations 

We will comply with Governor Polis and Mayor Hancock’s orders to work from home for any operations that can be done remotely as well as continue with our strategies of staggered work schedules for those required and able to work on campus.

Primary Building Access

For those working on campus, the following buildings will be accessible as follows: 

Clarke Hall, Claver Hall, Loyola Hall, Main Hall and the Pomponio Science Center will have building access hours Monday through Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.

The buildings should be entered and exited via the following doors*:

• Clarke Hall – South entrance, single door.

• Claver Hall – East side entrance near the plaza that faces the parking lot (the card access door that goes in from the east side next to the large classrooms to the south of the door).

• Loyola Hall – West side entrance to the building.

• Main Hall – Northeast ground-level entrance. This is the entrance on the east side of the center stairs on the north side (across from art room 134 and the legal office).

• Pomponio Science Center – North entrance by the DeSmet statue.

*Signage will be available on external doors directing to those that are open.

Except as noted above, all campus buildings, classrooms and event spaces will remain locked. If you need access outside of what is noted above you will need to follow the current protocol and contact Campus Safety, 303-458-4122. 

Wellness Screenings

To ensure we are following the symptoms monitoring guidelines we will ask employees that will be working on campus to complete our Wellness Screening Verification form each day before coming to campus. If an employee has a temperature or at least two of the noted symptoms, that individual is not authorized to come on campus that day. The completed form should be returned to Human Resources, HRInfo@regis.edu.

Face Covering (Mask) Requirements

As of Wednesday, May 6, 2020, Mayor Hancock has issued an order that face coverings are mandatory in certain circumstances. Employees working on campus should have a mask available to wear if they are not able to adhere to the six-feet separation guidelines and/or are meeting with other employees and/or students. Please see Face Covering/Mask Guidelines & FAQs for additional guidance.

Enhanced Cleaning

During the Stay at Home Order, our custodial staff conducted enhance cleaning operations for all buildings. Starting next week, we will clean all bathrooms in unlocked facilities in the morning and mid-day we will restock and wipe down the bathroom and entrances to the suites and designated access to the facility.

Offices will get cleaned once a week except for VP and above and that is daily. If the signs on the doors are still on the doors when custodial staff come in to inspect the space, they will not be cleaning those spaces. If the sign is removed, custodial staff will clean once a week and note the date the clean occurred.

To assist in this area, we can each be personally responsible to practice the required hygiene protocols, which includes washing our hands thoroughly with soap and water frequently. The soap in all buildings is anti-bacterial soap.

Please refer to Additional Employee Guidance for previous information provided regarding other COVID-19 protocols.

Starting next week, I will be working on campus Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I look forward to seeing you again soon (even if from a distance). Please feel free to contact me with any additional questions you may have regarding the new Safer at Home order.

Be well and stay healthy!

Best,
Liz Whitmore

Regis University’s fall semester to start early, end on-campus classes by Thanksgiving

University shares plans for ensuring campus safety

DENVER – Regis University has announced it will welcome students back to its Denver-area campuses this fall but will start classes early and end on-campus classes before Thanksgiving. The Jesuit Catholic University also announced initial mitigation plans to respond to public health restrictions if needed due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Regis President John P. Fitzgibbons, S.J., announced the plans today, which were shared in letters to students, parents and employees.

“We are committed to keeping our community as safe as possible while providing an optimal campus experience,” Fitzgibbons said. “Rest assured, we will continue to adhere to expert public health guidance.”

Many of Regis’ students are enrolled in online degree and certificate programs, which will continue on the normal schedule. But for students in its on-campus, traditional, undergraduate and graduate programs and some of its health profession programs, classes will start a week early on Aug. 17, and on-campus classes will end Nov. 20. A traditional, two-day fall break will be canceled. After the Thanksgiving break, finals will be conducted online Nov. 30 to Dec. 6.

This schedule will provide the same amount of instruction time to students but allow them return home before the forecasted peak activity for the flu in December, which is likely to coincide with a second wave of COVID-19.

Fitzgibbons said the University was encouraged by the strong state and local response to the virus and their work now to ramp up testing capacity and public health staffing to be well prepared for any future wave.

The University also is preparing by adopting “test, trace and separate” mitigation plans to implement as needed to ensure a safe campus. If needed, any of the following measures could be adopted based on guidance from the public health department and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:

• Adjust the size of in-person classes and gatherings;

• Permit “super hybrid” classes that students may attend in person or remotely;

• Adjust the number of personnel who work on campus or remotely;

• Implement social distancing protocols, including the wearing of masks; and

• Restrict entrances and exits to buildings, with temperature checks.

In addition, all of its on-campus classes will have an online home, which will allow a swift conversion to all or partial online instruction if necessary. Thanks to Regis’ 30 years of experience with distance education, the University was able to convert to online instruction smoothly this spring and maintain strong student participation, said Regis Provost Janet Houser.

Established in 1877, Regis University is a premier, globally engaged institution of higher learning in the Jesuit Catholic tradition that prepares leaders to live productive lives of faith, meaning and service. One of 27 Jesuit universities in the nation, Regis has extensive online program offerings and three campus locations in the Denver metro area with more than 8,000 enrolled students. For more information, visit www.regis.edu.