Teacher launches lawsuit against college

Montreal (CUP) - A Dawson College teacher who claims he was maligned by the college with accusa- tions of sexual harassment is launching a $200,000 law- suit for defamation of char-

acter.

Psychology teacher Mark Cummins said he is suing director of personnel Eric Bernier, as well as New School co-directors Greta Nemiroff and Pat Powers. Cummins alleges they de- famed his character when they asked him to leave the New School and undergo

psychiatric evaluation last semester.

The complaints stemmed from Cummins allegedly touch- ing female students on the knees or shoulder, and com- ments he made to a female student at a party.

Cummins said the fe- male student told him she was looking for volunteers to fulfill a fantasy and that he responded if he was not married with two children, he would volunteer.

Under the college’s sex- ual harassment policy, all

formal complaints must be directed to the ombudsman or the college nurse. When a case involves a teacher, it is sent to the director of personnel.

“I have no idea what he is thinking about,” said Greta Nemiroff, denying

that they maligned -Cum- mins, “I did exactly what the college said and they directed the student (who filed the first case) to Eric Bernier.”

Both Powers and Ne- miroff claimed that all pro- cedures had been followed, and that the case had been properly handled.

Cummins, who was given a medical leave of ab- sence from the New School in late October, said he was asked to have a psychiatric examination and was subse- quently told not to return to the New School, regard- less of the outcome of the exam.

Toronto (CUP) — In a dramatic move, the Uni- versity of Toronto Gov- erning Council has voted overwhelmingly to the administrations pro- posed Sexual Harassment Policy.

reject

A motion to refer the policy back to the adminis- tration passed a vote of 25 to 7 March 6, and is consid- ered to be a major victory for student and staff groups who considered the policy to be too weak.

“This is a victory for the victims of sexual harassment,” said Brian Burchell, full-tile un- dergraduate representative to Governing Council who presented the ‘refer back’ motion to Council.

The motion instructs Provost Joan Foley, who is responsible for the ad- ministration’s policy, to re- evaluate the policy’s four- month limit for launching grievances. The time-limit has been a major stum- bling block between vari-

Let them wear tweed Il

ous campus constituencies who have been negotiating a code over the past three years.

The U of T Faculty As- sociation had recently lob- bied for a two-month limit, while a coalition of student

' and staff groups have lob-

bied heavily for a six-month code.

“Council sent a clear message that they won’t settle for anything less than

six months,” said Terry

Johnson, Liaison Officer for the Association of Part- time Undergraduate Stu- dents. “I was elated after the meeting,”

UFTA Vice-president and chief sexual harassment negotiator, Hank Rogers, however, was quite disap- pointed at the results.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen,” he said. “The problem is now with the Provost. Governing Council’s vote may mean that there will be no policy for several years.”’s

He also stated that the sexual harassment charge was not filed until two days after he was asked to leave.

Cummins said the com- plaints were compiled te- gether and taken out of context. He denied that any of the attention he gave students or staff had been sexual.

“My complaint is not with the sexual harassment policy per se, but when

things I did fall under that (policy), I wonder what doesn’t,” he said.

One of the main com- plaints was from a student who, according to Cum- mins, asked him privately whether he ever “checked her out.”

The student, who was in Cummins’ Human Sexu- ality course titled ‘Secrets’, said she had mentioned in a discussion of body image that she felt she was attrac- tive but that her “bum was too fat.”

Cummins said_ that when she approached him

privately, he told her that

cial number of complaints but that he understood it was more than one.

he did notice her and said “sometimes when I look at you I notice that you have a nice bum.”

He maintained that the . remarks were not sexual.

Attempts to contact students involved in the case were unsuccessful and Nemiroff said she would recommend against them coming forward to talk to the press.

“(Students would be)

' putting themselves in seri- ous point of liability,” she said.

“If somebody says that their nose is ugly, if I care about them, (I would say) your nose is fine.” When asked whether he still felt this had been an appro- priate response, Cummins replied, “Perfectly, given the context.”

Cummins, who said he “doesn’t give a damn” about the money involved in the case, but only wants to pay his lawyer’s fees, ex- pects to file his civil action suit soons

A source close to the case said up to five com- plaints may have been filed against Cummins.

Cummins said both Bernier and Nemiroff refused to tell him the cru-

Sexual Harassment Research

by Don Mazer & Beth Percival

UPEI Dept.

Psychology

Two weeks ago a num- ber of UPEI students re- ceived a questionnaire in the mail. What they got was a survey about sexual harassment. It’s a research project we, both _ profes- sors in the Psychology De- partment, have undertaken with funding from the Grant in Aid of Small Universities at UPEI. We’ve distributed questionnaires to a random sample of students and to faculty. Next we'll be sur- veying staff to complete the picture of the perceptions and experiences of those who study and work in the university community.

In recent years there ~

has been a _ growing in-

terest within universities

about people’s experiences of what they regard as unwelcome and unwanted

_how different people de-

Project At UPEI

fine it. People are given descriptions of a variety of incidents and we ask whether or not they would call each one sexual ha- rassment. The survey also asks for perceptions of how commonly they occur, and whether or not people have had the experiences. A wide range of opinion is being sought, and, of course, complete confiden- tiality and anonymity are.

assured. We would like to en-

behaviors, comments, and gestures of a sexual na- ture. Sometimes these be- haviors are referred to as sexual harassment. Re- cently the Netted Gem ran a full page article about a study of sexual harassment at Simon Fraser University, and UPEI has a Presiden- tial Committee on Sexual Harassment. The commit- tee is preparing a draft pol- icy on sexual harassment

for our university that in- cludes procedures for deal- courage those students who ing with complaints and received the questionnaire an educational component. to complete and return The adoption of a policy them, and to thank those will, no doubt, be a sub- who have already returned ject of interest’ and debate them. Your cooperation on campus in the near fu- is very much appreciated ture. That makes this a and is essential to the suc- particularly important time cess of the project. If to study sexual harassment you didn’t receive one but at UPEI. would be willing to fill one

At present there is no out, you may pick up a clear, agreed upon defini- questionnaire from either of tion of sexual harassment, us, Prof. Beth Percival or so one of the things ad- Prof. Don Mazer at the dressed in the survey is Psychology Department in Memorial Halls

=— Thursday, April 9th 1987