Confidentiality
Last update: August 10, 2020
When a member of the Western Connecticut State University (“WCSU” or “University”) community receives a disclosure and/or report of discrimination, harassment and/or sexual misconduct/violence, all reasonable steps will be taken by the designated WCSU Title IX Coordinator (and known affiliates) to preserve the privacy of the reported victim while promptly investigating and responding to the report. While the University will strive to maintain the confidentiality of personally identifiable student and/or employee information reported, which information is subject to privacy requirements of the Family Education Rights Privacy Act (FERPA), the University must also fulfill its duty to protect the campus community.
The University has a variety of campus-based confidential resources that are as follows:
WCSU Office of Counseling Services
WCSU Office of Health Services
WCSU Office of Pastoral Counseling
Center for Empowerment and Education (formerly the Women’s Center of Greater Danbury)(on-site satellite office in White Hall Building of the Midtown Campus)
The identified WCSU and affiliate staff member(s) are individuals whose official responsibilities include providing mental health counseling to members of the WCSU community as well as off campus counseling and psychological services, health services providers, member(s) of the clergy, and the Center for Empowerment and Education. The personnel of these WCSU centers and offices are bound by state statutes and professional ethics from disclosing information about reports without written releases.
Information provided to a confidential resource by a victim of discrimination, harassment and/or sexual misconduct/violence or the person reported to have been the victim of discrimination, harassment and/or sexual misconduct/violence cannot be disclosed legally to any other person without consent, except under very limited circumstances, such as an imminent threat of danger to self or others or if the reported victim is a minor. Those who wish to obtain the fullest legal protections and disclose in full confidentiality, that individual must speak with (either) the WCSU Chief Diversity Officer/Title IX Coordinator and/or any of the above-listed confidential resource(s). The University will provide a list of such confidential resources in the College or University’s geographic region to victims of discrimination, harassment and/or sexual misconduct/violence.
Where it is deemed necessary for WCSU to take steps to protect the safety of the reported victim and/or other members of the campus community, the University will seek to act in a manner so as not to compromise the privacy or confidentiality of the reported victim of discrimination, harassment and/or sexual misconduct/violence to the extent reasonably possible. Therefore, the Chief Diversity Officer/Title IX Coordinator, as well as members of the WCSU Police Department and the Director for the WCSU Office of Judicial Affairs have the ability to issue temporary no contact orders to protect all involved parties from any form of contact during the commission of an investigation.