- Revised Sexual Violence Policy
- About the Consultation Process
- Work Plan and Timeline
- Miscellaneous Documents
Revised Sexual Violence Policy
Following a broad and inclusive consultation process to review the Carleton Sexual Violence Policy, the Board of Governors approved the revised policy (PDF, 831 KB) at its meeting on June 9, 2022.
As part of our commitment to a transparent review process, all feedback received throughout the consultation process has been made available on the feedback received web page.
A history of all outreach activities that took place during this review, including communications, information and feedback sessions and consultation meetings, is available on the community outreach record web page.
We are committed to ensuring a safe, supportive and healthy campus for everyone, and to providing support to anyone affected by sexual violence.
The policy is one of many initiatives underway to combat sexual violence, and our work is far from over. Throughout the consultation process, we received a lot of feedback on sexual violence prevention and education on our campus. This feedback has been shared with the Sexual Violence Prevention and Education Committee (SVPEC) to help inform ongoing updates to the sexual violence prevention and education strategy, Honouring Each Other: Building consent cultures on campus, together.
Carleton University would like to thank the entire community for their engagement in this important process.
About the Consultation Process
After a robust consultation process in 2018-2019, Carleton University reviewed and made significant revisions to the Sexual Violence Policy. As we approached 2022, we were required to review the policy again,
to fulfill the provincial mandate as per Bill 132, but also because policy review every three years helps us to ensure our policy is as responsive and supportive to the community as possible.
The last review of the Policy enhanced survivor support and clarified elements of the policy that were critical for the requirement for procedural fairness.
In order to address the ongoing feedback received since the last review of the Sexual Violence Policy, consideration was given to clarify the Policy in the following areas:
- Review the provisions on interim measures and confidentiality
- Review section 6.5 (a) for survivor-centric considerations
- Clarify section 9.4 and the steps of investigation
- Review the objectives of the Sexual Violence Prevention and Education Committee
- General updates to titles, department names, etc
To do this in the most collaborative way possible, Equity and Inclusive Communities (EIC), in partnership with the Office of the Vice-President (Students and Enrolment) (OVPSE), have consulted on
the following work plan. After taking into consideration the feedback received, we will be implementing the work plan as described below. Feedback on the Sexual Violence Policy can be submitted via the
anonymous feedback form or by emailing svpolicy@carleton.ca.
To provide a transparent review process, all feedback submitted has been made available on the feedback received web page. Members of the Carleton community are encouraged to keep up to date on the review process on this website.
Work Plan and Timeline
Process Consultation Phase
| Action | Responsible | Timeline | Status |
| Post work plan for input and public consultation about timelines, process, and areas of the work plan | EIC and OVPSE | October 18 – 29, 2021 | Complete |
| Feedback on the consultation process can be given in meetings, or online through: carleton.ca/sexual-violence-policy | EIC and OVPSE | October 2021 | Complete |
Listening Phase
| Action | Responsible | Timeline | Status |
| Provide identified policy areas for clarification of language and process to the Campus Community, and open an online feedback form about these areas, as well as any other areas that may not be previously identified and general comments, for those who wish to participate digitally | Message to the community
Supported by EIC and OVPSE |
November 2021 | Complete |
| Reach out to key stakeholder groups including labour unions, student governments and student groups to receive feedback | EIC | November 2021 | Complete |
| Host information and feedback sessions for students, faculty (including contract instructors, sessional lecturers, teaching assistants, etc.), staff (including academic and administrative staff), and senior administration.
Student consultations will include closed sessions for:
Additional closed sessions will be made available upon request for any key stakeholder groups including labour unions, student governments and student groups. Requests can be submitted to svpolicy@carleton.ca |
EIC and OVPSE | November 2021 – January 2022 | Complete |
Tactical Phase
| Action | Responsible | Timeline | Status |
| Compile feedback from each event, as well as digital feedback, and sort through responses applicable to the Policy or strategy | EIC and OVPSE | January 2022 | Complete |
| Assess proposed changes for legal, procedural, and collective agreement impacts; continue to sort through the possible revisions | EIC and OVPSE in partnership with key stakeholders | January – February 2022 | Complete |
| Pull actionable tactics not applicable to the policy into Honouring Each Other: A Campus Strategy on Sexual Violence Prevention, in partnership with key stakeholders | Sexual Violence Prevention and Education Committee | January – February 2022 | Complete |
Drafting Phase
| Action | Responsible | Timeline | Status |
| Release draft of the policy to the community for digital feedback | EIC and OVPSE | Mid-February – March 2022 | Complete |
| Host information and feedback sessions for students, faculty, staff, and administration to review the new draft of the policy.
Any closed sessions will be made available upon request for any key stakeholder groups including labour unions, student governments and student groups. Requests can be submitted to svpolicy@carleton.ca |
EIC and OVPSE | March 2022 | Complete |
Fine-Tuning Phase
| Action | Responsible | Timeline | Status |
| Review and include applicable feedback | EIC and OVPSE | April 2022 | Complete |
| Pull actionable tactics not appropriate for the policy into Honouring Each Other: A Campus Strategy on Sexual Violence Prevention, in partnership with key stakeholders | Sexual Violence Prevention and Education Committee | April 2022 | Complete |
Finalization Phase
| Action | Responsible | Timeline | Status |
| Release final draft of Sexual Violence Policy to the Board of Governors for approval | OVPSE | June 9, 2022 | |
| Release revised and updated Honouring Each Other: A Campus Strategy on Sexual Violence Prevention | Sexual Violence Prevention and Education Committee | June 2022 |