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Sexual Harassment in Education
Legal Definitions for Sexual Harassment in Education

Similar to the definitions established in employment law, the U.S. Department of Education has defined
two types of sexual harassment in their Guidance under Title IX:  

    "Quid Pro Quo Harassment--A school employee explicitly or implicitly conditions a student's
    participation in an education program or activity or bases an educational decision on the
    student's submission to unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or other
    verbal, nonverbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Quid pro quo harassment is equally
    unlawful whether the student resists and suffers the threatened harm or submits and thus
    avoids the threatened harm.

    Hostile Environment Sexual Harassment--Sexually harassing conduct (which can include
    unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal, nonverbal, or physical
    conduct of a sexual nature) by an employee, by another student, or by a third party that is
    sufficiently severe, persistent, or pervasive to limit a student's ability to participate in or benefit
    from an education program or activity, or to create a hostile or abusive educational environment."

More Statistics on Sexual Harassment in Education

A survey conducted by the AAUW (2002) on 2064 students in 8th through 11th grade:

  • 83% of girls have been sexually harassed
  • 79% of boys have been sexually harassed
  • 38% of the students were harassed by teachers or school employees
  • 36% of school employees or teachers were harassed by students
  • 42% of school employees or teachers had been harassed by each other

In their recent study (2006) on sexual harassment at colleges and universities, the AAUW reported:

  • 62% and of female college students and 61%  of male college students report having been
    sexually harassed at their university.
  • 66%  of college students know someone who was harassed.
  • 80% of reported sexual harassment is peer-to-peer
  • 51% of male college students admit to sexually harassing someone in college, with 22%
    admitting to harassing someone often or occasionally.
  • 31% of female college students admit to harassing someone in college.

In their recent study, the AAUW reported the following impact on the students who had been harassed:  

Physical and emotional:

  • 68% of female students felt very or somewhat upset by sexual harassment they experienced;
    only 6% were not upset.
  • 57% of female students who have been sexually harassed reported feeling self-conscious or
    embarrassed.
  • 55% of female students who have been sexually harassed reported feeling angry.
  • 32% female students who have been sexually harassed reported feeling afraid or scared.

Academics and achievement:

  • 16% of female students who have been sexually harassed found it hard to study or pay attention
    in class.
  • 9% of female students dropped a course or skipped a class in response to sexual harassment.
  • 27% of female students stay away from particular buildings or places on campus as a result of
    sexual harassment.

  Click here for more information on the effects of sexual harassment


A survey on stalking conducted by the National Institute of Justice on 223 colleges and universities:

  • 13% of college women had been stalked and average of two months
  • 3 out of 10 reported being injured physically or emotionally
  • In 10.3% of incidents, the victim reported that the stalker forced or attempted sexual contact


Under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) and it's regulations, no individual may
be discriminated against on the basis of sex in any education program or activity receiving Federal
financial assistance. Sexual harassment of students is a form of prohibited sex discrimination
under the circumstances described in the Department of Education Guidance.  Retaliation  against a
student who complains is also illegal.  The identity of any student who brings an harassment
complaint to an institution must be protected, by law.   If you are being sexually harassed at school,
visit our page for information on what you can do.  

Sources: 6, 7, 8, 11,12, 13, 15,16, 23,24, 25, 26, 47, 55, 56, 59,69, 80

For more information on sexual harassment in education, see to the Resource Center at the support
forum.
The Problem

Sexual harassment is common at every stage of education.  Verbal and physical harassment begins in
elementary school, and 4 out of 5 children experience some form of sexual harassment or bullying.  
Eight out of 10 will experience this at some point in their school lives, and roughly 25 percent will
experience this often.  Boys are more likely to physically harass and bully others, or to be physically
bullied themselves.  Girls are more likely to use, and experience, verbal and psychological harassment
and bullying.  Six out of 10 students will experience some form of physical sexual harassment.

Sexual harassment is also common in higher education.  In the Report Card on Gender Equity, the
National Coalition for Women and Girls in Education (NCWGE) reported that 30 percent of
undergraduate students, and 40 percent of graduate students, have been sexually harassed.

Students who do not fit classic stereotypes of maleness or femaleness are often targeted.  For example,
boys who do not fit the image of the "tough male" are often sexually harassed and bullied as they are
perceived to be gay.  Students who openly identify themselves as gay or lesbian are particularly
susceptible to being targeted for sexual harassment.

Certainly much of the sexually harassing behavior is student-on-student.  In the Report Card, the
NCWGE reported that, of students who have been sexually harassed, 90 were harassed by other
students.  And in their 2006 report on sexual harassment in higher education, the American Association
of University Women, (AAUW) reported that 80% of students sexually harassed were targeted by other
students.    

Typical examples of peer harassment in schools:  

  •    sexual comments, jokes, gestures or looks
  •    sexual messages or graffiti on bathroom walls or locker rooms
  •    spreading sexual rumors
  •    showing sexual pictures, photographs, illustrations, email or text messages or notes
  •    calling someone gay or lesbian using derogatory terms
  •    spying on someone while they are showering or dressing at school
  •    flashing or mooning someone
  •    spanking, touching, grabbing or pinching in a sexual way
  •    pulling someone's clothes in a sexual way; or pulling their clothes down or off
  •    brushing up against someone in a sexual way
  •    blocking or cornering in a sexual way
  •    forcing kisses or forcing other unwelcoming sexual behavior other than kissing
  •    having names listed in slam books with derogatory sexual comments

School Rituals:  Sexual harassment can also occur as part of rituals or ceremonies, such as when
members engage newcomers in abusive or sexually explicit rites as part of hazing or initiation. Such
traditions have been used historically as forms of male bonding, such as in team sports and
fraternities.  However, it is becoming increasingly common for girls and women's groups, such as in
clubs, sororities, and sports, to engage in similar ceremonies with similarly abusive and sexualized
rituals.  Some of these girls "just in fun" hazing ceremonies have been so brutal, they have made news
headlines.

Reports of Sexual Harassment in Education

Similar to sexual harassment in the workplace, most students who experience sexual harassment do
not report what is happening.  In a recent survey by the American Association of University Women
(AAUW),   In it was  found that  only 7 % of students say they reported sexual harassment to a faculty
member or other college employee.   Almost no one spoke with a college employee who they knew was
a Title IX officer. Thirty-five percent  told no one, not even a friend.  

Backlash, retaliation, and victim-blaming

Many of the same backlash and retaliation patterns that occur in the aftermath of workplace harassment
occur in school harassment situations.  Students can be stigmatized or shunned if they experience
sexual harassment.  SHS is hearing from girls as young as twelve who have been branded "the school
whore" after being sexually harassed by their peers.   Students can be targeted for retaliation if they
report sexual harassment, by both their peers and school employees.  Sexual Harassment Support was
founded by a former graduate student who has suffered  years of retaliation and stalking by professors
in the aftermath of sexual harassment by professors.  

In her article on female students harassed by teachers in higher education, Naomi Wolf writes:

    "Not one of the women I have heard from had an outcome that was not worse for her than
    silence. One, I recall, was drummed out of the school by peer pressure. Many faced bureaucratic
    stonewalling. Some women said they lost their academic status as golden girls overnight;
    grants dried up, letters of recommendation were no longer forthcoming. No one was met with a
    coherent process that was not weighted against them. Usually, the key decision-makers in the
    college or university—especially if it was a private university—joined forces to, in effect, collude
    with the faculty member accused; to protect not him necessarily but the reputation of the
    university, and to keep information from surfacing in a way that could protect other women. The
    goal seemed to be not to provide a balanced forum, but damage control."
"The silence
surrounding
sexual
harassment  is
incongruous in
light of the last
two noisy
decades of
higher
education."

--Billie Wright
Dzeich
Recommended:
Read Naomi Wolf's
story of her sexual
harassment
experience while a
student at Yale, and
her  attempts to be
heard by her alma
mater.  (New York
Magazine Article)
A support community for anyone who has experienced sexual harassment.
Sexual harassment by teachers

Sexual harassment by teachers and professors does occur and this can have serious, sometimes
devastating, consequences for the recipient.  Indeed, this type of sexual harassment can have the most
serious consequences of all because Education is one of  the few arenas where victims (students)
have absolutely no power, and no advocates.   Approximately 15% of students will be sexually abused by
a member of the school staff during their school career.   In a survey of high school graduates, 17.7% of
males and 82.2% of females reported sexual harassment by faculty or staff during their school careers.  
Approximately 14% of those surveyed said they had engaged in sexual intercourse with a teacher.  In a
survey conducted by the AAUW in 2000, it was reported that roughly 290, 000 students had been
targeted for physical sexual abuse by school employees between 1991 and 2000.
Many educators see no problem with bringing sex into the classroom, or sex into a student-teacher
relationship.  Some teachers believe that students learn more efficiently in a "sexually charged
atmosphere."   One educator has written that the "some of the most exciting work in education today" is
being done by teachers and students in sexual relationships.  Many teachers even go so far as to argue
it is the teacher's responsibility to "guide students to maturity" even in their sexuality and sexual
experiences.  Regarding his calculated and serial seduction of his female undergraduate students, one
university professor proclaimed he felt it his duty, rationalizing, "They hang on to their virginity too long."  
(For more, see Sexual Harassers)
Sexism is often a factor, particularly in harassment of female students.  Academic departments for fields
that have traditionally excluded women can show a higher rate of sexual harassment of female students
and faculty.   Moreover,  sexist or sexualized environments (environments were profanity, sexualized
graffiti, viewing Internet porn, sexual jokes, etc., are common) will show some of the highest incidents of
sexual harassment.

Many believe it is the power imbalance between students and teachers that is the primary cause for
harassment by teachers.  Teachers have as much power as parents because their authority can have
such pronounced impact not only on a student's current quality of life, but on their entire future, as well,
even into adulthood.  Stop Educator Sexual Abuse and Misconduct (S.E.S.A.M.E.) promotes  a strong
statement regarding sexual contact between students and teachers:  "SESAME believes the power
imbalance between a teacher and student (of any age) creates a climate that can facilitate sexual
exploitation behavior by the teacher, behavior that is psychologically equivalent to incest."

The dynamics of sexual harassment often involve an aggressor who holds a position of power over the
victim, and this is especially intense in a student-teacher relationship.  Relying on the teacher as a
model of right and wrong, a student may doubt their own reaction to the situation.

Like peer harassment, most complaints about teachers' behavior tend to center around what is felt to be
inappropriate talk in a class or discussion, such as using sexist or sexual references to make a point.
However, some teachers will ask for sexual favors in exchange for grades or academic opportunities, or
will downgrade a student who is not "attentive enough" to the teacher--both are examples of quid pro
quo harassment (see below).  Others have used the pretense of an academic advisory session, or
one-on-one instruction, to take advantage of a student behind closed doors.  Indeed, a teacher may use
the guise of professional concern or interest to mask  that they are actually stalking a student and/or
planning a seduction.  (see The Silent Treatment )
The causes of sexual harassment and exploitation by teachers and
professors can be complex.   Relationships between students and
teachers are often quite intimate and intense, particularly in higher
education where so many students work closely with their professors.
 Students share common passions and interests with their teachers,
and are dependant on their teachers' approval for academic success,
opportunities, and career success.  They will talk to their teachers
about personal issues, such as problems at home, or with
boyfriends/girlfriends.   Teachers often relish the admiration they
receive from their students, and they can grow accustomed to the
power they have in the relationship.  Such closeness can blur the
professional boundaries and lead people--both school employee and
student alike--to step over the line.  

Like workplace harassment, politics can be a catalyst for sexual
exploitation and sexual harassment.  Consequently, problems
caused by poor management, workplace bullying,  frustration,  
job/financial insecurity, etc., can create hostile environments that leak
over into the student-teacher relationship.  Personal problems can be
a factor, and sexual harassment and exploitation of students can be
symptoms of the effects of life traumas such as divorce, or death of a
spouse or child.   
Many educators see no problem with bringing sex into the classroom, or sex into a student-teacher
relationship.  Some teachers believe that students learn more efficiently in a "sexually charged
atmosphere."   One educator has written that the "some of the most exciting work in education today" is
being done by teachers and students in sexual relationships.  Many teachers even go so far as to argue
it is the teacher's responsibility to "guide students to maturity" even in their sexuality and sexual
experiences.  Regarding his calculated and serial seduction of his female undergraduate students, one
university professor proclaimed he felt it his duty, rationalizing, "They hang on to their virginity too long."  
(For more, see Sexual Harassers)

Sexual harassment in higher education:  In higher education, the issue of sexual harassment has
been met with a resistance-to-change by many seasoned professors.  Because of our modern,
politically-correct conscience,  academic institutions are increasingly under fire for infringing on the
academic freedoms traditionally guaranteed for professors, and sexual harassment policies and
legislation are considered by many to be in violation of these freedoms, particularly the right to free
speech.   Moreover, the power structure tends to encourage the exploitation of students for their
assistance and labor in a professor's academic work.  However,  this attitude can become distorted in
the minds of many professors, and can encourage them to sexually exploit their students, as well.   Most
unfortunately, access to students for sexual purposes is considered by many to be one of those
protected academic freedoms and "perks" that go along with being a professor, and is a  "right" that
many simply do not want to give up.