By Kathleen Acuff

Under a resolution agreement reached with the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights May 19, the Foothill-De Anza Community College District will add a definition of racial harassment and examples of prohibited conduct to its procedures for resolving student-to-student complaints of sexual harassment and discrimination.

The policy action is the ultimate outcome of a November 2003 men’s soccer game at American River College in which players of the host school allegedly made racial slurs to Hispanic Foothill College players and assaulted one of them.

A draft of the school’s revised policy is due at the OCR by the end of September. The agreement, signed by Jane Enright, district vice chancellor of human resources and equal opportunity, does not admit fault.

The OCR will monitor the process outlined in the agreement. The district is to conduct an orientation Dec. 31 to train administrators to handle complaints of racial harassment and take appropriate action if the harassment is by students of d to another school during a district or Foothill event.

The district must give the OCR comprehensive documentation by Jan. 31 describing the orientation and listing participants.

“We’ve always prided ourselves on being inclusive and welcoming and having a no-

tolerance policy on harassment,” Chancellor Martha Kanter said Friday. “We will provide as much training as we need and continue to update the board of trustees in public meetings. The board is as directly involved and as concerned as I am that we move ahead and have the most current policies.”

The OCR determined that, after the alleged student-to-student racial harassment at the game, the district failed to comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits institutions and organizations that receive federal money from treating participants in their programs differently on the basis of race, color or national origin.

Foothill players said that American River players made several obscene remarks and racial slurs to Mexican and Brazilian members of the Foothill team during the game and assaulted a Brazilian Foothill player after the game. Foothill soccer coach Vava Marquez, the assistant coach, players and a parent who had attended the game told Foothill Athletic Director Sue Gatlin of harassment. Foothill began an investigation, then deferred it to the Commission on Athletics. Members of the Foothill team complained to the OCR that the college did not respond appropriately and effectively. The OCR investigation concluded that the school’s response was inadequate.

The OCR instructed the school and the district to “take all feasible steps within their authority” to respond when their students are harassed. “Such steps may include notifying the other college of the allegations in writing and making a formal request that the other college investigate the allegations” and reply in writing to describe the steps it takes.

Enright was unavailable for comment at press time. Kanter said the college immediately notified American River of the harassment by “many phone calls” but not by letter. She said Foothill will send a formal notification letter if another such situation occurs.

According to the OCR report, the athletic director, the dean of student affairs and activities, the vice president and the president successively met with the students from Nov. 26, 2003, to March 17, 2004. A fifth and final discussion took place in a district board meeting held April 19, 2004.

“While there was conflicting evidence about how many students raised the issue of the harassment in meetings, and to what extent the meetings focused on the harassment, it was clear that harassment was mentioned to at least three Foothill officials and to the district board. … Despite these interactions, the district and Foothill failed to conduct any inquiry,” the report stated.

In reaching a decision in the case, a team of OCR investigators, led by David R. Rolandelli of the San Francisco regional office, interviewed the complainants, students, district administrators, current and former Foothill staff, and the parent who had attended the game, in addition to reviewing a variety of documents.

Rolandelli referred the Town Crier’s questions to the OCR’s Office of Public Affairs in Washington, D.C., where press contacts were unavailable for comment, as was the press liaison in the Office of the Secretary of the Department of Education.