While many, if not most, bias incidents rise to the level of a violation of the Discrimination Policy or the Bias-Related Harassment Policy, the presence of a violation is not necessary for an occurrence to be considered a bias-related Incident. An offender
may not be a student, may not be identified, may not be found responsible, etc. It is no less important to recognize, report, investigate and reconcile such incidents.
What is a hate crime?
A person commits a hate crime when he or she commits a specified offense of New York State Penal Law (PEN § 485.05 Hate Crimes) and either:
- intentionally selects the person against whom the offense is committed or intended to be committed in whole or in substantial part because of a belief or perception regarding the race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, religion, religious
practice, age, disability or sexual orientation of a person, regardless of whether the belief or perception is correct, or
- intentionally commits the act or acts constituting the offense in whole or in substantial part because of a belief or perception regarding the race, color, national origin, ancestry, gender, religion, religious practice, age, disability or sexual
orientation of a person, regardless of whether the belief or perception is correct.
St. Bonaventure University will report any known incidents categorized as a hate crime to the appropriate law enforcement agency in accordance with the Clery Act, and will follow standard university procedures outlined in the Code of Conduct under “Implementing
the Code of Conduct” whenever possible.
What is a bias incident?
St. Bonaventure University Definition of Bias Incident: A bias incident is any act committed against a person or property, not rising to the level of a crime, motivated by the offender’s conscious or unconscious bias against a person or group’s
perceived race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, religion, socioeconomic class, nation of origin, age, veteran status or marital status.
Bias incident management and response
When a bias incident report is received, an initial assessment of the report is done to determine whether the reported incident rises to the level of a hate crime. Once the initial assessment is complete, a response team will be appointed based on
the incident reported, the reporting party (if known), and the responding party (if known). The appointed response team will review the report and determine and execute a proper course of action.
The university will notify reporting individuals within 24 hours of receipt of the report of the following information:
- Acknowledgement of receipt of the report
- Determine safety concerns
- Options for reporting party to include:
- Speaking with the chair of the Council on Discrimination and Harassment
- Student complaint procedures
- Speaking with the university ombudsperson
- Code of Conduct procedures
- Other university resources available
- Provide a copy of Bias Related Harassment and Discrimination Policy (if student is reporting)
- Information about what is happening with the report and general timeline for further information
The President’s Committee on Equity and Inclusion shall be responsible for monitoring cases, reporting information to the president and his council, and community response as a whole if warranted. The committee should also analyze and detect
trends and areas of concern, and incorporate these into strategic planning.
Bias incident reporting and complaint procedures
St. Bonaventure University strongly encourages the reporting of all bias incidents on campus or at university-sponsored events or activities occurring off campus. If you witness a crime or act of violence on campus, contact Safety & Security immediately
at 716-375-2525. If off campus, call 911.
The incident reporting form, linked below, is not an immediate alert, but a means to alert campus officials of incidents or issues we may not be aware of, or provide supporting documentation for incidents/crimes that have occurred.
Bias incident reporting form
Student complaint policy & procedures