While Ivy Tech Community College is making advancements in moving toward a safe work and learning environment for the LGBTQ community, it is still facing issues of discrimination.
The college has announced a new transgender-inclusive policy for students and faculty, but is also facing a lawsuit for allegedly discriminating against a faculty member based on her sexual orientation.
Kimberly Hively, a former faculty member at Ivy Tech, alleged in 2014 that she was not promoted due to her sexual orientation after working for the institution for 14 years.
Hively filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana against South Bend, Indiana-based Ivy Tech, claiming the school was violating Title VII of the Civil Rights Act by discriminating against her due to her sexual orientation — a form of sex discrimination.
Ivy Tech successfully moved the trial court to dismiss Hively’s claim, arguing Title VII does not protect employees from anti-gay discrimination. Lambda Legal, Hively’s representation, argued several court rulings and a recent decision by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission support Hively’s contention that sexual orientation discrimination is sex discrimination and the dismissal should be reversed, according to their case summary.
The Seventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals granted en banc review in the case, where the court will hear the employment discrimination appeal.
Jeff Fanter, senior vice president for student experience, communications and marketing, said Ivy Tech denies Hively’s allegations.
“Ivy Tech recognizes the importance of this issue and will continue to conduct its operations in a manner that is consistent with its statement of values and its policies prohibiting discrimination,” Fanter said.
Ivy Tech released a new policy this week to protect transgender and gender nonconforming students and faculty from discrimination, according to a press release.
The policy guidelines require all school records to reflect the student’s gender and name, allow students to use the facilities that match their gender identity, and grant transgender and gender nonconforming students the right to express their gender identity openly or keep it private, as well as to be addressed by the name and pronouns that correspond to their gender identity.
It also protects them from administrators, faculty or staff from revealing an individual’s transgender status or gender non-conforming presentation to others unless the individual requests or consents to such disclosure.
Chris Paulsen, campaign manager of Freedom Indiana, said the new policy is fully inclusive.
“It’s the strongest policy in the state, actually,” Paulsen said. “It discusses both gender pronouns, name changes. It’s very strong. We’re pretty happy.”
The policy went into effect July 1 and was announced last week. Fanter said Ivy Tech values and embraces diversity. He said the college follows an equal opportunity policy that explicitly prohibits employment discrimination based upon a person’s sexual orientation.
Paulsen said in the release the college still has room to grow.
“We hope that they will take every step possible to ensure that no LGBT person is ever discriminated against,” Paulsen said.
Fanter said the policy provides a framework for transgender individuals and campus leaders.
“It builds upon Ivy Tech’s position of national leadership in higher education by signifying that our LGBTQ students and employees are of vital importance,” Fanter said. “This advances Ivy Tech’s goal of preparing Indiana residents to learn, live and work in a diverse and globally competitive environment.”
He said various academic, student and human resource leadership groups endorsed the policy for review and adoption by Ivy Tech’s president’s executive council, which approved the policy at its meeting June 21.
He said Ivy Tech hopes to build upon its current position of national leadership in higher education by signifying its LGBTQ students and employees are of vital importance.
Paulsen said the policy about sexual orientation is good, as well as this new policy on gender identity.
“We’ve seen that over 70 percent of Hoosiers think there should be full protection,” Paulsen said. “Obviously, the citizens of Indiana want this.”
