Education & Training

Sexual Misconduct Planning, Prevention & Title IX Support/Training

Between Title IX, the Violence Against Women Act, and the Clery Act, schools have myriad training obligations around sexual misconduct. Training is too often seen as a check-the-box rote exercise—but it doesn’t have to be. Rankin sees training as an opportunity to engage your community and get students, faculty, and staff motivated to support survivors and create a caring and inclusive campus culture. We offer a variety of training for all of your campus populations: responsible employee/”mandatory reporter” for student employees (including specific training for RAs) and full-time employees; Athletic Department programs for employees and for student-athletes to meet NCAA compliance responsibilities; student-athlete Title IX training for NCAA compliance; general Title IX, sexual harassment, or sexual assault education; and hearing board/decision-maker/advisor training that meet the federal regulatory requirements.

Athletics

The NCAA requires a lot from institutions, from small Division III schools to the biggest programs in the Power 5. Rankin can help you look at your sexual misconduct obligations in a holistic manner. Whether providing the required trainings to department coaches, staff, and students or evaluating past reports to help identify larger conduct and culture issues, Rankin can help you meet—and exceed—your requirements. Additionally, schools are obligated to comply with the Title IX requirements around participation—we can work through the three-prong test evaluation for your institution, including handling the assessment around student interest.

Title IX Coordinator Assessment Education

When state and federal governments mandate climate surveys and prevention programming, it often falls on Title IX practitioners to implement them—with no explanation of how to do it. Rankin provides the training and education to give Title IX folks a base of knowledge on understanding what makes a good instrument, how to pair it with qualitative research, and the best methods of programmatic assessment.

Title IX Compliance/Operations

Need a detailed examination of your Title IX office or sexual misconduct efforts? Rankin offers different approaches to evaluate your current work:

• • Policy/Procedure and Response Structural Review: Whether you need a basic review of your operations or a detailed examination of your structure, we can recommend ways to revise your policies, procedures, or overall systems.
  • Communications Review: The communications sent from Title IX Offices and other front-line sexual misconduct responding offices are often targeted for being overly legal or overly long, overwhelming the recipients. Not only can Rankin review and revise your communications, but we can provide a host of templates for offices to use.
  • Reporting System: How do your reporting structures center victim care and increase comfort in disclosing to your institution? Every school is different, but there are some common mistakes in approach that complicate the reporting process or overwhelm victims. “Mandatory reporting” doesn’t need to be compliance-forward; it can be a vehicle for student care.
  • Title IX Prevention Structure: Does your school have a comprehensive prevention strategy? Given the renewed interest from the Department of Education, this is an essential area for attention—and strategy. This is best when paired with data analysis, but when a school isn’t thinking comprehensively and dynamically about prevention, it creates a real weakness in overall Title IX work. Rankin can help you develop a multi-year, multi-office plan to address sexual misconduct and victimization rates.
  • Title IX Materials and Education: Schools often struggle with translating Title IX and sexual misconduct work to their community. Rankin can create infographics, flow charts, and explainer videos about your work. These kinds of materials can go a long way toward making students and the larger community feel like their institution wants them to report or understand the investigations—and repair broken trust.

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion

Rankin Climate offers diversity, equity, and inclusion as a multipronged approach that is rooted in social justice and challenges systemic barriers that hinder access at all levels. Our goal is to help foster and cultivate a culture that intentionally supports, welcomes, and values the various identities held by individuals inclusive of include race, ethnicity, gender and gender identity, age, religion, language, disability status, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, geographic region, and more.