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Employee Handbook
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Effective: August 2022
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1768512.2!
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Welcome to Knox!
Table of Contents
Our Mission 1
General Employment Information 2
Union Employees 2
Faculty 3
Staff Introductory Period 3
Notice of Non-Discrimination 3
Policy Against Discrimination, Harassment, and other Forms of Bias 4
Gender Transitions 6
Reasonable Accommodation for Disabilities 6
Pregnancy and Childbirth 6
Nursing Mothers 6
Religious Accommodations 7
Requesting an Accommodation 7
Reporting Discrimination or Harassment 7
Immigration Law Compliance 12
Open Door Policy 12
Background Checks 12
Requests for Employment Verification or References Regarding Current or Former Employees
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Bulletin Boards 13
Inspection of Work Areas 13
Employment of Relatives 13
Parking / Automobiles 13
Personal Mail 14
Loss of Personal Items 14
Employee Records 14
Resignation and Eligibility for Rehire 14
Compensation and Hours 14
Your Compensation 14
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Work Week, Pay Periods and Pay Day 15
Inclement Weather 17
Time Away from Work 19
Absence Notification 19
Paid Vacation 21
Personal Days - Hourly, Non-Exempt Employees 22
Sick Days - Hourly, Non-Exempt Employees 22
Sick/Disability Leave – Salaried, Exempt Employees 23
New Parent Leave 24
Holiday Pay 24
Family and Medical Leave 25
Military Leave 36
Illinois Family Military Leave 37
Jury Duty 37
Leave to Vote 38
School Visitation Leave 38
Illinois Victim’s Economic Security and Safety Act 38
Bereavement Leave 40
Disability or Personal Leave 41
Other Employee Benefits 42
403(b) Employee Savings Plan 42
Employee Assistance Program 42
Group Benefits Package 42
Social Security and Medicare 43
Unemployment Compensation 43
Workers’ Compensation 43
Employee Conduct and Performance 43
General Standards 43
Attendance 44
Confidentiality 45
Conflict of Interest 45
Dress and Grooming 46
Driving on College Business 46
Drugs and Alcohol 46
Housekeeping 48
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Knox Information Security Policy 48
Securing College Data 51
Data Incident Response Plan 54
Media Policy 57
Knox Cellular Services Policy 58
Knox College Policy on Acceptable Use of Information Technology 59
Equipment Policy 65
Investigations 65
Outside Employment 66
Personal Cell Phones and Electronics 66
Smoking 66
Transportation 66
Violence in the Workplace 67
Work Performance 67
Statement on Romantic or Sexual Relationships Between Students and Knox College
Employees 67
Protection of Minors 69
Animals on Campus 69
Safety and Security 70
Employee Safety 70
Injury Reporting Procedures 70
Safety Training 71
Personal Protective Equipment 71
Fire Prevention 71
Hazard Communication Program 71
Emergency Procedures 72
Weapons and Firearms on Campus 72
Appendix A, Complaint Process through Illinois Department of Human Rights / Illinois
Human Rights Commission 73
Appendix B, Pregnancy Rights 74
Appendix C, Employee Rights under FMLA 75
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Our Mission!
Knox College is a community of individuals from diverse backgrounds challenging each other to
explore, understand and improve ourselves, our society and our world. The commitment to put
learning to use to accomplish both personal and social goals dates back to the founding of the College
in 1837. We take particular pride in the College's early commitment to increase access to all qualified
students of varied backgrounds, races and conditions, regardless of financial means.
Today, we continue to expand both the historic mission and the tradition of active liberal arts learning.
We provide an environment where students and faculty work closely together and where teaching is
characterized by inviting and expecting students to pursue fundamental questions in order to reach
their own reflective but independent judgments. The mission is carried out through:
Our curriculum: Combining inquiry in traditional as well as newer disciplines with the integrative
perspective of interdisciplinary work; building from basic skills of writing, reading, calculating and
critical analysis to opportunities for sophisticated student research and creative expression.
The character of our learning environment: Encouraging the critical exchange of ideas, challenging our
students with high expectations and persistent demands for rigorous thinking within a supportive and
egalitarian environment, characterized by the informality and openness that mirrors our Midwestern
surroundings.
Our residential campus: Encouraging the personal, cultural and intellectual growth of our students in a
reflective, inclusive, and engaged campus community through supportive residential opportunities,
numerous student organizations, a wide array of creative activities and cultural programming, and
opportunities for intercollegiate and recreational sports.
Our community: Reaffirming and extending our ongoing commitment to a diverse community of
students, faculty and staff with each new hiring and admission.
Our aims throughout are to foster a lifelong love of learning and a sense of competence, confidence
and proportion that will enable us to live with purpose and to contribute to the wellbeing of others.
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General Employment Information
This Handbook contains a general description of some basic Knox policies and benefits as they
currently exist. It replaces and supersedes all previous Employee Handbooks or policy manuals and all
other policies or communications that may have been issued in the past on the subjects covered in this
Handbook. You are expected to read and be familiar with the information in this Handbook and to
comply at all times with its contents.
The information contained in this Handbook is presented as a matter of general information only. This
Handbook is not a contract or agreement, and its contents should not be interpreted as a contract or
agreement between Knox and you. There may be occasions where, based upon the circumstances,
Knox will not follow the policies and procedures stated in this Handbook, or may change or terminate
any of those policies or procedures, with or without notice. No representative of the College, other
than the President of the College or an Officer of the College, has any authority to enter into an
individual contract of employment with you, and any such contract must be in writing.
This Handbook is not all-inclusive and should be used as a guide only. If you have any questions about
your employment with Knox or what we expect of you, you should talk to the Office of Human
Resources, your department head or your immediate supervisor. Unless specified otherwise in a
written contract, such as the collective bargaining agreement or appointment letters for faculty, all
employees have an “at will” employment relationship with Knox. This means that you have the right
to terminate your employment at any time, with or without cause or advance notice, and Knox has the
same right.
We want to do everything we can to make sure you understand the issues that are covered in this
Handbook. If you need assistance in order to understand any of the provisions of this Handbook,
please contact the Office of Human Resources, your department head and your supervisor.
Union Employees
Certain employees of the College are represented for purposes of collective bargaining by a union.
Employees within a union bargaining unit are covered by a written union contract, also known as a
“collective bargaining agreement.” Union-represented employees will be provided information
regarding the union and the union contract at the time of hire or at the point they transfer into a
bargaining unit position. The College is committed to honoring the collective bargaining agreement
between the College and the union. For union-represented employees, that contract determines your
pay rate and other terms and conditions of employment with the College. Many of the policies and
benefits described in this Handbook apply to both union and non-union employees. However, if there
is any discrepancy between the information contained in this Handbook and matters contained in a
collective bargaining agreement, the provisions of the collective bargaining agreement will control. In
addition, this Handbook is not intended to and does not confer any benefits, compensation or rights of
any kind to union-represented employees that are greater or extend beyond those required by the
collective bargaining agreement.
If you are a union-represented employee, we encourage you to consult with your supervisor if you
have any questions about the collective bargaining agreement and its impact on your employment with
the College.
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Faculty
Faculty!provisions!are!most!often!set!forth!by!the!College’s!Bylaws,!Faculty!Regulations!or!the!
Faculty!Handbook,!however,!some!elements!of!the!Employee!Handbook!still!may!apply.!!
Staff Introductory Period
The introductory period is intended to give new employees the opportunity to demonstrate their ability
and also gives them the ability to ensure the position is a good fit. Knox College uses this period to
evaluate employee capabilities, work habits, and overall performance. All new and rehired employees
work on an introductory basis for the first 90 calendar days after their date of hire. Inadequate
performance during the introductory period may lead to termination of employment before the end of
the introductory period. An employee must complete the introductory period before they may be
considered for another position on campus.
Notice of Non-Discrimination
In keeping with its commitment to equal rights since it was founded in 1837, Knox College
particularly welcomes applications from members of underrepresented groups. Knox College does not
discriminate on the basis of sex, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, race, color, creed, national
or ethnic origin, religion or religious affiliation, sexual orientation or preference, age, marital or family
status, disability, veteran status, or other status protected by applicable federal, state, or local law in
admission, financial aid, employment, athletics, or any other aspect of its educational programs or
activities. In addition, Knox College is prohibited by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972
and its accompanying regulations from so discriminating on the basis of sex.
The College official responsible for coordinating compliance with this Notice of Non-Discrimination is
the Director of Title IX and Civil Rights Compliance. Any inquiries regarding Title IX or the College's
policies that prohibit discrimination and harassment should be directed to the Director of Title IX and
Civil Rights Compliance identified below. The coordinator will be available to meet with or talk to
students, staff, and faculty regarding issues relating to this Notice of Non-Discrimination and the
College’s policies and procedures.
Director of Title IX and Civil Rights Compliance
Old Jail 12 | Campus Box K-209
337 South Cherry Street
Galesburg, IL 61401
Phone: 309-341-7751
Email: [email protected]
For information about legal recourse and the investigative and complaint process available through the
Illinois Department of Human Rights and the Human Rights Commission, please see Appendix A.
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Policy Against Discrimination, Harassment, and other Forms of Bias
Knox College does not discriminate, and will not tolerate discrimination or harassment, on the basis of
sex, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, race, color, creed, national or ethnic origin, religion or
religious affiliation, sexual orientation or preference, age, marital or family status, disability, veteran
status, or other status protected by applicable federal, state, or local law in admission, financial aid,
employment, athletics, or any other aspect of its educational programs or activities. Reasonable
accommodation will be provided to persons with disabilities, consistent with state and federal law.
A. Harassment
Harassment, whether verbal, physical or visual, that is based on any of these characteristics, is a
form of discrimination. This includes harassing conduct affecting tangible educational benefits,
interfering unreasonably with an individual's academic performance, or creating what a reasonable
person would perceive is an intimidating, hostile or offensive environment.
Harassment can include verbal or non-verbal behavior that demeans or stereotypes individuals in a
harmful way. While the College is committed to the principles of free inquiry and free expression,
discrimination and harassment identified in this policy are neither legally protected expression nor
the proper exercise of academic freedom. Sexual harassment is prohibited by Title VII of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964 and the Illinois Human Rights Act.
Examples of discrimination and harassment may include, but are not limited to:
• refusing to offer educational opportunities to someone because of the person's protected status;
• making a grading decision because of the person's protected status;
• jokes or epithets about another person's protected status;
• teasing or practical jokes directed at a person based on their protected status;
• the display or circulation of written materials or pictures that degrade a person or group based
upon a protected characteristic; and
• verbal abuse or insults about, directed at, or made in the presence of an individual or group of
individuals in a protected group.
B. Bias Incident
This is an incident of discrimination or harassment prohibited by this Policy and based upon a
protected characteristic as listed in this Policy.
C. Statement on Academic Freedom and Freedom of Expression
According to the Knox College By-Laws, faculty are afforded academic freedom and Knox is
committed to this principle. In addition, faculty, staff, and students have rights of free expression.
What this means is that the teacher is entitled to full freedom in research and in publication of its
results, subject to the adequate performance of other academic duties. The teacher is entitled to
freedom in the classroom in discussing a subject, but must be careful to avoid introducing
controversial matters that have no relation to his or her subject.
The Knox liberal arts education understands that vigorous discussion and debate is fundamental to
the College and to higher learning. This policy is not meant to stifle teaching methods or infringe
upon academic freedom or freedom of expression. The protections of academic freedom must be
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carefully considered in all reports of bias involving faculty. The fact that speech or a particular
expression is offensive is not, standing alone, sufficient basis to establish a bias-related incident. If
such speech or expression takes place in the teaching context, it typically also must be persistent,
pervasive, and not germane to the subject matter in order to be a bias incident under this policy.
D. Employee Duty to Report Information on Discrimination and Harassment, including
Bias Incidents
To enable the College to respond effectively and to address violations of its Policy all College
employees (except those employees identified in the Confidential Reporting section below) must,
within 24 hours of receiving the information, report information they have about alleged or
possible discrimination and harassment, including sex discrimination, sexual harassment, sexual
misconduct, interpersonal violence or stalking, to the appropriate College official or any Title IX
Coordinator. Based on the alleged Policy violation, the College official will evaluate the
information received and determine what further actions should be taken. College officials
receiving reports alleging acts of discrimination or harassment based on sex, gender identity or
expression, sexual orientation or preference will refer those reports to the Title IX Coordinator.
Any questions or comments concerning the Policy addressing discrimination or harassment on the
basis of other categories listed above should be directed to the appropriate College official listed
above.
E. Confidentiality
All reports will be handled with discretion, care and sensitivity and the College will make every
effort to respect requests for confidentiality, but the College's ability to investigate and take
appropriate action may be limited if individuals do not provide identifying information or request
confidentiality. In addition, there may be circumstances when the College determines that it must
investigate a particular matter to help protect the learning and working environment at Knox
despite a request for confidentiality.
F. Retaliation
It is a violation of College Policy to retaliate in any way against a person or persons because they
have opposed any practices forbidden under the “Policy Against Discrimination and Harassment”
or have filed a report, assisted, or participated in any manner in an investigation or proceeding
under this Policy Against Discrimination and Harassment. This includes action taken against a
bystander who intervened to stop or attempt to stop a bias-related incident. Retaliation may take
many forms, and may include intimidating, threatening, coercing, or in any way discriminating
against an individual because of the individual's complaint or participation. Action is generally
deemed retaliatory if it would deter a reasonable person in the same circumstances from opposing
practices prohibited by this Policy. The College will take immediate and responsive action upon
receiving any report of retaliation and may pursue disciplinary action as appropriate.
G. Records Maintenance
The College will maintain documentation and records regarding alleged bias-related incidents and
their resolution in a manner that protects the confidentiality of the parties involved, complies with
the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), Illinois Personnel Record Review Act,
and to the extent possible excludes personally identifiable information about victims of bias
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incidents. If a student, faculty, or staff member has been found responsible for a bias-related
incident, this finding remains a part of that student’s or employee’s conduct record.
H. Changes in this Policy
The College reserves the right to make adjustments and changes in this policy at any time. Any
questions or comments concerning the above Policy can be directed to the appropriate department
supervisor/director, the Office of Human Resources, the Provost’s office, the Office of the Vice
President for Student Development, or any Title IX Coordinator.
Gender Transitions
The College recognizes that restroom access may be a particular concern for employees who have
made a transition in their public gender identity or are undergoing such a transition. Once an employee
has begun living and working full-time in the gender that reflects their gender identity, they will be
permitted access to the restroom and (if applicable) locker room facilities consistent with their gender
identity.
The College will work with employees who are undergoing a gender transition to identify appropriate
restroom arrangements during the transition process and to identify and address any other issues or
concerns that may arise in connection with the transition. Transitioning employees will not be required
to have undergone or to provide proof of any particular medical procedure (including sex reassignment
surgery) in order to have access to facilities designated for use by a particular gender.
Reasonable Accommodation for Disabilities
Knox is committed to complying fully with all applicable federal, state, and local laws that are
designed to promote equal opportunity in employment for qualified persons with disabilities. Knox
will make reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals when required by law, unless doing so
would result in an undue hardship as defined by applicable law. Such accommodations may include
but are not limited to time away from work, modifications to an employee’s work environment, special
equipment, reassignment of non-essential job duties, or transfer to other open positions for which the
employee is qualified.
Pregnancy and Childbirth
In addition to providing time off for pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions under its Family and
Medical Leave policy (page 27), the College will provide reasonable accommodations to employees
when needed due to pregnancy, childbirth, or related conditions to the same extent that
accommodations are provided for other medical conditions or disabilities, and to the extent required by
applicable law, unless doing so creates an undue hardship for the College. Information regarding
pregnancy accommodation rights under Illinois law is included in Appendix B.
Nursing Mothers
The College supports mothers who choose to breastfeed, and will provide reasonable unpaid break
time and a suitable private location for expressing breast milk during the work day. The College will
also comply with all applicable federal, state and local laws relating to nursing mothers in the
workplace.
Employees who wish to make arrangements for break time and a private location to express milk
during the work day should contact the Office of Human Resources.
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Religious Accommodations
The College respects the freedom of religion, and will grant employees reasonable accommodations
when needed to avoid conflicts between work duties and their religious beliefs, if it can do so without
undue hardship. Employees seeking time off for religious observances should provide as much
advance notice of their need for time off as possible, as it may not be possible to honor last-minute
requests. Employees may be required to use available leave time, if any, to cover absences for
religious observances. Requests for additional leave or other accommodations will be evaluated on a
case-by-case basis.
Requesting an Accommodation
If you require a reasonable accommodation for a disability, due to pregnancy, childbirth or a related
condition, for religious reasons, or for any other reason provided by applicable law, you should
promptly bring the matter to the attention of the Office of Human Resources. The College will require
you to provide documentation or information supporting your request. If you seek an accommodation
due to a medical condition, the College may also require you to be evaluated by a health care provider
designated by the College. If an accommodation is needed, the College will work with you to
determine what accommodation is appropriate. The College is generally not required to provide an
accommodation that would result in an undue hardship for the College. Additionally, please note that
even where the College is required to provide a reasonable accommodation; it is not obligated to
provide the specific accommodation that you request if another accommodation would also be
effective.
Employees who are granted reasonable accommodations will generally be required to perform all
essential job functions and to meet the same performance standards and expectations with respect to
those job functions as required of similarly situated employees, unless otherwise provided by
applicable law.
Reporting Discrimination or Harassment
If you become aware of discrimination or harassment in violation of the policies stated above, you
must immediately report the matter to the Office of Human Resources.
The College will conduct a prompt and thorough investigation of all complaints of harassment or
discrimination, following the Investigation Procedures below.
• Investigation
In accordance with our Reporting Protocol, the Human Resources (“HR”) Office is responsible for
investigating complaints that a staff or faculty member, or third party, violated the College’s Policy
Against Discrimination and Harassment. Complaints against a student or guest of a student should
be directed to the Dean of Students.
Complaints under the College’s Policy Against Sex Discrimination, Sexual Misconduct and
Interpersonal Violence are resolved according to the Investigation & Resolution Procedures for
Allegations of Sex Discrimination, Sexual Misconduct, and Interpersonal Violence. Alleged
conduct that implicates both the Policy Against Discrimination and Harassment and the Policy
Against Sex Discrimination, Sexual Misconduct and Interpersonal Violence will also be addressed
under the Investigation & Resolution Procedures for Allegations of Sex Discrimination, Sexual
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Misconduct, and Interpersonal Violence, with the understanding that the College reserves the right
to make any modifications to the procedures used to provide for a prompt and equitable resolution.
All reports of conduct by a faculty or staff member that is inconsistent with the College’s Policy
Against Discrimination and Harassment will be investigated in a prompt, thorough, and impartial
manner. Investigation will commence as soon as practicable following receipt of the complaint by
HR. Investigations will be conducted as expeditiously as possible and are usually completed within
60 days, though this may vary based on the availability of witnesses, the scope of the investigation,
or unforeseen circumstances. Depending upon the circumstances, the investigation may be
conducted by a member of the HR staff, by another appropriate College official, or by a qualified
third-party investigator. The Associate Vice President of Human Resources will designate the
investigator. If the complaint alleges misconduct by the Associate Vice President of Human
Resources, the President will designate the investigator.
During an investigation, reporting parties will have the opportunity to describe their allegations and
present supporting witnesses or other evidence. The responding party (the person complained
about) will be informed of the allegations against them and will have an opportunity to respond to
each allegation, present their evidence supporting their position, and propose relevant witnesses.
The investigator will review evidence presented and will meet with additional witnesses identified
by the reporting party, the responding party, third parties, as determined appropriate by the
investigator. In some instances, the investigator may identify and communicate with witnesses that
were not identified by the reporting party, responding party, or third parties. All parties involved in
the investigation are expected to cooperate and provide truthful information throughout the
investigation process. Any participant in an investigation who believes the investigator has a
conflict of interest should contact one of the individuals in writing listed under the Appeals section,
below.
Support Person/Legal Counsel
Reporting parties and responding parties may be accompanied to any investigation interview by
one advisor. An advisor is a support person who is present to provide support to a reporting party
or responding party throughout an investigation. An advisor may not speak, write, or otherwise
communicate with an investigator on behalf of the reporting party or responding party. Advisors
who do not abide by these guidelines may be excluded from the process. Advisors cannot be a
witness or party in the matter or a related matter, a family member of the reporting party or
responding party, or an attorney. A union representative may serve as an advisor, where applicable.
Confidentiality
The purpose of the College’s Policy Against Discrimination and Harassment is to provide the
College community with a positive working and educational environment that is free of
discrimination and harassment. Complaints of violations of this policy will be investigated in a
manner that is consistent with this goal.
The College cannot promise complete confidentiality in its handling of discrimination and
harassment complaints. The College makes every reasonable effort to handle inquiries, complaints,
and related proceedings in a manner that protects the privacy of all parties. Each situation is
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reviewed as discreetly as possible, with information shared only with those who need to know
about it to investigate and resolve the matter.
In certain circumstances, and upon explicit request to Human Resources, the College may choose
to address discrimination or harassment concerns and stop problematic behavior without revealing
to the alleged responding party the identity of the reporting party involved in the investigation.
However, this is not possible in most matters, as situations typically require the disclosure of the
reporting party’s identity to fully investigate the matter and to give the responding party a fair
opportunity to respond to the allegations against them.
Throughout its proceedings, the College will be sensitive to the wishes of the reporting party.
Nevertheless, the College is committed to ensuring an environment free of discrimination and
harassment. The College reserves the right to take appropriate action in such circumstances, even
in cases when the reporting party is reluctant to proceed with an investigation or requests
anonymity.
Interim Measures
The College may take interim measures in response to a complaint of a violation of the Policy
Against Discrimination and Harassment when it deems such measures necessary to protect the
health, safety or wellbeing of members of the College community.
Examples of interim measures include reassignment of job duties, transfer to another office or work
area, directives to refrain from contact with certain individuals or certain areas of the campus, or
suspension pending completion of an investigation. Any interim measures will be taken in
compliance with applicable contractual rights including but not limited to any collective bargaining
agreements.
• Resolution
At the conclusion of an investigation, the investigator will determine whether the
preponderance of the evidence indicates that the responding party violated the Policy Against
Discrimination and Harassment. The investigator will provide their findings and any recommended
actions to the appropriate College office. The reporting party and the responding party will be
notified, in writing, of the outcome of the investigation upon its conclusion.
When a violation of the Policy Against Discrimination and Harassment is found, the College’s
response is based on several factors, including the severity of the conduct, and aims to prevent
further policy violations. In addition, the College may recommend steps to address the effects of
the conduct on the reporting party and others. Violators of the policy will be subject to disciplinary
action, up to and including termination of employment, in accordance with relevant College
policies, collective bargaining agreements, and other contractual commitments.
If a member of the staff is determined by the investigator to be responsible for a violation of the
College policy, HR will provide findings to the responding party's supervisor(s), who will
cooperate with HR to identify what sanctions or corrective actions should be imposed on the
responding party, in accordance with the procedures set forth in the Staff Handbook.
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If a member of the faculty is determined by the investigator to be responsible for a violation of
the College policy, HR will provide findings to the Dean of the College. Any sanctions or
corrective actions imposed will be determined in accordance with applicable provisions of the
Faculty Handbook, Knox College Bylaws, and Faculty Regulations.
If anyone other than a member of the Knox College faculty or staff are determined by the
investigator to be responsible for a violation of the College policy, the findings will be provided
to the third party’s employer (when applicable) and the appropriate College office for further
action consistent with the findings.
• Appeals
The reporting party or responding party may request a reconsideration of the case in accordance
with the following procedures.
Staff Employed Under a Union Contract
Staff members employed under a collective bargaining agreement may appeal a finding in
accordance with the grievance and arbitration procedures provided in the relevant contract.
Non-Union Staff, Students, and Third Parties
Appeals must be submitted in writing within five calendar days of the date of the written
notification of the findings or, if sanctions are imposed, the determination of sanctions.
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Appeals by non-union staff members, student reporting parties, and third parties must be submitted
to the Associate Vice President of Human Resources (AVP-HR). The AVP-HR, or the AVP-HR’s
designee, will review the appeal. An appeal must be in writing and specify the basis for the appeal.
The allowable grounds for appeal are as follows:
o New evidence or information sufficient to alter a finding;
o Alleged deviation from the investigation and resolution process in a way that substantially
altered the outcome of the case or influenced the nature of the sanction;
o The sanction is disproportionate with the violation.
The decision on an appeal will be issued as expeditiously as possible, usually within 45 days,
though this may vary based on the scope of the appeal or unforeseen circumstances. The reviewer
may review the full case, beyond the aspects of the case outlined in the request for appeal. If the
reviewer does not find that any of the three grounds for appeal are present in the case, the original
outcome will be upheld. If reviewer finds that any of the grounds for appeal are present in the case,
they may uphold the original finding, remand the case to the original investigator for
reconsideration, convene an entirely new investigation, or recommend reconsideration of the
sanction or other corrective actions. A final outcome on an appeal is not subject to further appeal.
Faculty
Termination of a tenured faculty member for Cause, as defined in the College’s bylaws, will be
carried out in accordance with the procedures specified in the Bylaws, including any appeal rights.
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Other appeals by a faculty member of the outcome of an investigation under this procedure must be
submitted in writing to the Office of the Dean of the College within five calendar days of the date
of the written notification of the findings or, if sanctions are imposed, the determination of
sanctions. The Dean of the College or the Dean of the College’s designee will review the appeal.
An appeal must be in writing and specify the basis for the appeal. The allowable grounds for appeal
are as follows:
o New evidence or information sufficient to alter a decision;
o Alleged deviation from the investigation and resolution process in a way that substantially
altered the outcome of the case or influenced the nature of the sanction;
o The sanction is disproportionate with the violation.
The decision on an appeal will be issued as expeditiously as possible, usually within 45 days,
though this may vary based on the scope of the appeal or unforeseen circumstances. The reviewer
may review the full case, beyond the aspects of the case outlined in the request for appeal. If the
reviewer does not find that any of the three grounds for appeal are present in the case, the outcome
will be upheld. If reviewer finds that any of the grounds for appeal are present in the case, they may
uphold the original finding, remand the case to the original investigator for reconsideration,
convene an entirely new investigation, or recommend reconsideration of the sanction or other
corrective actions. A final outcome on an appeal is not subject to further appeal.
Cross-Appeals
If multiple parties submit appeals under the foregoing sections to different reviewers (e.g., a
student reporting party appeals to the AVP-HR while a faculty member appeals to the Dean of the
College), or if the outcome of an appeal may affect a party from a different classification (e.g., a
student submits an appeal in a matter involving both a faculty and staff member) the President of
the College (or designee) may designate a reviewer or reviewers to review and decide the appeal.
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Modifications
The College reserves the right to modify these procedures in its sole discretion. These Complaint
Resolution Guidelines do not confer any legal or contractual rights on any party that do not
otherwise exist under applicable law.
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• Non-Retaliation
The College will not retaliate against any person for making a good faith complaint under this
policy, regardless of the outcome of the investigation. Similarly, the College will not retaliate
against any person for providing truthful information in connection with an investigation under this
policy, or who requests a reasonable accommodation due to a disability or their religious beliefs.
(Note that reporting harassment or discrimination, cooperating with an investigation, or requesting
a reasonable accommodation will not insulate an employee who has otherwise violated College
policy or failed to meet the College’s legitimate performance expectations from appropriate
corrective action.) Any employee of the College who retaliates against another employee for
utilizing in good faith the procedures in this policy will be subject to discipline, up to and including
termination.
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If you become aware of retaliation against anyone for reporting discrimination or harassment or
providing truthful information as part of an investigation under this policy, you must immediately
report such conduct using the reporting procedure set forth above. Because false accusations may
have serious impact on the person accused, any employee who makes a report of harassment or
discrimination that he or she knows to be false will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and
including termination.
Immigration Law Compliance
The College is committed to employing only individuals who are authorized to work in the United
States and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of citizenship or national origin.
As a condition of employment each new employee must complete the Employment Eligibility
Verification Form 1-9 and present true and accurate documentation establishing identity and
employment eligibility. Former employees who are rehired must also complete the form.
All employees must maintain their legal ability to work in the United States as a condition of continued
employment. Violation of this policy, either by a new employee or by management, is unacceptable
and may lead to discipline, up to and including termination. The College takes its I9 duties seriously.
Any employee who violates this policy has no authorization to do so by the administration.
Open Door Policy
At the College, we value the suggestions of employees and want you to share your ideas with us.
Through mutual cooperation and constant communication, we can identify and develop best practices
in performing our jobs. We also want to have the opportunity to correct any misunderstandings or
complaints that you may have. Your first step in resolving workplace issues should normally be to
discuss the matter with your department head or your supervisor. If the issue is not satisfactorily
resolved, or you are not comfortable discussing the issue with your department head or your
supervisor, you may bring the issue directly to the attention of the Office of Human Resources.
Background Checks
The College conducts background checks upon applicant as part of the offer of employment. We will
comply with all applicable federal, state, and local laws relating to such background checks.
Requests for Employment Verification or References Regarding Current or Former Employees
During the course of business, it is fairly common to receive inquiries from outsiders such as potential
employers and lenders for various information regarding current or former employees. In the event of
such an inquiry, the College generally limits its response to confirm dates of employment and position
held. If you receive a telephone call, letter or any other request for employment verification or
references about a current or former employee of the College, you should immediately direct the call to
the Office of Human Resources with no further response. If you are asked for a letter of
recommendation or to be a professional reference for a former employee, please consult with Human
Resources prior to providing information.
Bulletin Boards
The College maintains bulletin boards to keep you informed. The bulletin boards are an important
source of information and are to be used solely by the College to post information regarding policies,
governmental regulations and other matters of concern to employees of the College. You should
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develop a habit of checking the bulletin boards regularly so that you will be familiar with the
information posted there.
Inspection of Work Areas
The College respects your privacy and has no interest in prying into your personal property. However,
at times it may be necessary for the College to inspect areas within College facilities and any items
brought onto campus. This may occur, for example and without limitation, if you are unavailable and
your supervisor needs to find a document that you were working on, or if there is suspicion of
employee misconduct.
All items on the College’s property are subject to inspection at any time, for any reason, and without
further notice. Specifically, the College may at any time inspect (as may be applicable) your office,
desk, workstation, locker, toolbox, file cabinet(s), or any other workplace area. In exigent
circumstances, this may also include automobiles, briefcases, purses, lunch boxes, gym bags, pockets,
and other personal items. Illegal or unauthorized items (e.g., stolen or missing property) discovered in
any such inspection may be taken into custody and turned over to law enforcement authorities if
appropriate.
The College retains duplicate sets of keys or combinations for locked areas such as desks, lockers and
the cabinets. Just as you should not use your work computer to store any information that you wish to
keep private, you should not bring any confidential or private information or belongings onto College
property.
Employment of Relatives
The College has no general prohibition against hiring relatives of other employees. However, a few
restrictions have been established to avoid compromising the integrity of the College’s management
structure. While the College will accept and consider applications for employment from relatives,
relatives generally will not be hired or transferred into positions where they directly or indirectly
supervise or are supervised by another relative. Employees may need to recuse themselves from
making decisions regarding resources, salaries, or other sensitive topics when a family member is
involved.
Parking / Automobiles
Please use caution when parking your vehicle. If you use your personal vehicle for transportation to
and from work, you must maintain minimum required insurance on the vehicle, so that coverage is in
place in case of an accident on the College premises or in the course of performing duties for the
College. If you damage any vehicle or property while driving your car in the parking lot or on College
premises, you must immediately report the incident to the Office of Campus Safety.
Please always lock your car and take the keys. The College assumes no responsibility for damage to or
theft from your car while on College premises or conducting business for the College.
Personal Mail
College postage meters and letterhead may not be used for any purpose other than official College
business. All mail that is delivered to the College is presumed to be related to our business. Mail sent
to you at the College may be opened by office personnel and routed to your department.
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Loss of Personal Items
Employees should maintain control of their personal property at work at all times. If you find any
personal property that appears to be lost, you should either return it to its owner or turn it into your
department head. If you lose anything while at work, check with Campus Safety. The College assumes
no responsibility for loss, damage to or theft of your personal belongings on College premises.
Employee Records
If changes occur in your name, marital status, address, number of dependents for tax purposes, phone
number or your designated emergency contact, or other personal information, please notify the Office
of Human Resources of these changes so that your employment records may be kept up-to-date.
Beneficiary changes for insurance and other employee benefits must also be reported to become
effective. Campus Safety must be notified if there is any change to personal vehicle so a new parking
pass may be issued.
Resignation and Eligibility for Rehire
When employees decide to leave their positions, the College expects employees to put their resignation
in writing and to provide the College with at least two weeks’ notice of their intention to resign. In
some circumstances, the College may opt to waive this notice period and accept a resignation effective
immediately.
You may not be considered for re-employment with the College if you have resigned with less than
two weeks’ notice (unless the College agrees to waive the notice requirement), or if your previous
employment with the College was terminated as a result of unsatisfactory work performance,
misconduct, or violation of any College rules or policies.
Compensation and Hours
Your Compensation
Your pay rate is determined on an individual basis and may be modified at any time by the College
based upon a number of considerations, such as job duties, market standards for comparable jobs, the
College’s overall business condition and your individual job performance, attendance record and
conduct.
Some College employees are paid a salary, which is intended to compensate them for all hours worked
during any given workweek. Other employees are paid on an hourly basis. Your initial pay rate will be
communicated to you in writing at the time of hire, and any subsequent modifications will be
communicated at or near the effective date of the change.
• Overtime
Due to the nature of our operations, it is sometimes necessary for employees to work beyond their
normal work schedule on a given day or week. Although the College will attempt to fill overtime
needs on a voluntary basis, any employee may be required to work beyond their typical work hours
when the need arises.
Certain employees, referred to as “non-exempt” employees, are eligible for overtime pay at the rate
of one and one-half times their regular rate of hourly pay for all hours worked in excess of 40 hours
in a given week. Non-exempt employees may not work overtime hours unless specifically
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discussed in advance with their supervisor or department head. Paid time away from work such as
vacation, sick leave and paid holidays is not considered work time for purposes of calculating
overtime pay for a particular week.
Other employees, referred to as “exempt,” are not entitled to additional compensation for working
overtime. Rather, their compensation packages are intended to compensate them for all hours
worked, including any overtime hours.
You will be notified whether you are an “exempt” or “non-exempt” employee upon hire or if your
status changes.
Failure to report for overtime duty, whether volunteered or assigned by the College, will be
considered under the College’s attendance and tardiness policy in the same manner as an absence
that occurs during regular working hours. Failure to work scheduled overtime or, in the case of
non-exempt employees, overtime worked without prior authorization from a supervisor or
department head, may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination.
Work Week, Pay Periods and Pay Day
• Work Week
The College’s work week begins at 12:00 a.m. each Sunday and runs through 11:59 p.m. on the
following Saturday.
Hourly, non-exempt employees are paid every other Friday according to the published biweekly
pay schedule. Salaried, exempt employees are paid monthly on the last working day of the month.
• Direct Deposit
Employees may elect to have their paychecks automatically deposited into their personal bank
accounts by designating an account for direct deposit. All employees are strongly encouraged to
take advantage of this convenience.
Contact the payroll office to begin receiving direct deposits or to change your account information.
All requests relating to direct deposits must be made in writing on the appropriate form, available
from the Office of Human Resources or payroll.
• Regular Business Hours and Your Schedule
The College’s regular business hours are 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Hours of work for our employees vary and may extend beyond these time periods each day.
Employees who have a SWW of 40.0 or 37.5 are eligible for Summer Hours. From the Monday
following Commencement through Labor Day, the regular work hours are reduced by 1/2 hour per
day. There is no reduction in pay or benefits because of these reduced hours.
Your work schedule will be determined by your department head. These hours may be changed
from time to time to fit the needs of the College.
• Recording Time
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All College employees are responsible for accurately recording their work time each and every day.
Non-exempt employees are required to record their work hours using the timekeeping system. If
you are a non-exempt employee, you must record hours worked per day. You must review your
time record for accuracy at the end of each pay period. If it is accurate you must approve it. If
there are any errors, you must promptly notify your department head of any errors. If you have any
questions about how to record your time, please ask the Office of Human Resources.
Exempt employees are required to maintain a daily record of their work hours and any vacation,
sick days, or other absences.
If for any reason you fail to record your time, you must immediately notify your department head
so that your time record can be corrected. You and your department head will be required to
document the corrected time entry and reason for any change.
Falsifying or tampering with time records, altering time records without authorization and approval
of management, working overtime without authorization, or failing to properly record your time
may result in disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment. Additionally,
errors or delays in recording your time may result in errors or delays in your paycheck.
• Salaried Exempt Employees
If you are an exempt employee paid on a salary basis, you will receive a fixed salary for each
workweek in which you perform any work. Deductions from your salary are permitted only under
limited circumstances.
If you believe that any improper deductions have been taken from your salary, you should
promptly report the matter to the Office of Human Resources so that the issue can be investigated
and, if necessary, corrected. If improper deductions are discovered, the College will take
appropriate measures to ensure that the error is not repeated.
• Reporting Errors or Problems
All employees are responsible for reviewing their pay stub each pay period and immediately
reporting any problems or errors to the Office of Human Resources so that they can be fixed. This
includes, but is not limited to, reporting incorrect salary deductions, missing time entries, or
missing overtime hours. Any employee who is asked, directed, or pressured to work “off the clock”
or to otherwise falsify a time or payroll record, or who becomes aware of such a situation, must
immediately report the matter to the Office of Human Resources.
The College will not retaliate against any person for making a good faith report under this policy,
regardless of the outcome of the investigation. Similarly, the College will not retaliate against any
person for providing truthful information in connection with an investigation under this policy in
any respect. (Of course, employees who are found to have violated College policies as a result of
an investigation may be subject to appropriate discipline for such violations.) Any employee of the
College who retaliates against another employee for making a report or participating in an
investigation under this policy will be subject to discipline, up to and including termination.
• Breaks and Meal Periods
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Employees scheduled to work at least 7½ hours in a shift are allowed one unpaid meal break. Your
department head will work with you to schedule your meal break. Any additional breaks will be at
the discretion of your supervisor. Break periods may not exceed 20 minutes per day and breaks are
encouraged when they do not interrupt the operations of the department.
Employees are expected to return to work on time from breaks. Additionally, non-exempt
employees are prohibited from performing any work during an unpaid meal period. If you are a
non-exempt employee and for some reason need to perform some work during your scheduled
meal period, you must first obtain authorization from your supervisor. You must ensure that your
time record accurately reflects any additional work time resulting from working through your
unpaid meal period.
Non-exempt employees are expected to refrain from taking other breaks during their work time. In
particular, the College does not permit “smoking breaks” aside from scheduled break times.
Inclement Weather
• Policy
As a residential college, Knox College is responsible for its on-campus students so the College
avoids full closure except in the most extreme conditions. However, there may be times when
weather conditions will cause the College to modify schedules, delay the opening of College
activities, to cancel classes and normal business hours, and/or to close the College early.
• Inclement Weather Impeding Travel o No announcement will be made by the College citing this
condition. This is invoked at the discretion of the department head and faculty when travel to/from
work may place the well-being of some employees at risk due to travel conditions which may be
unique to the location the employee will be traveling to/from work. These circumstances include
road maintenance conditions, delayed transit schedules or other transitory weather conditions
impeding travel. It is the responsibility of the employee to contact the department head to alert
them to this condition.
o Classes will be held at the discretion of faculty. o All departments and offices are open. o
Designated personnel (see below) may be scheduled as needed by their department head. o
Department head may approve modified work schedules or work from home for their
employees.
o Practices will be held at the discretion of the Athletic Director in consultation with the head
coach and/or sport supervisor.
• Delayed Opening or Early Closure o Classes and offices opening and closing times may be
adjusted in 2 hour increments. o Designated personnel may be scheduled as needed by their
department head.
o All departments and offices that do not provide direct student support will be open during the
reduced schedule.
o Department heads may approve modified work schedules or work from home for their
employees.
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o Offices that are responsible for care and well-being of students will be open: Campus Life,
Campus Safety, Dining Services, and Facilities Services.
• Partial Closure o All classes and labs are canceled for the day. o Events will be cancelled on a
case by case basis.
o Practices will be held at the discretion of the Athletic Director in consultation with the head
coach and/or sport supervisor.
o Designated personnel may be scheduled as needed by their department head.
o Departments and offices that do not provide direct student support will be open if possible.
o Department heads may approve modified work schedules or work from home for their
employees.
o Offices that are responsible for care and well-being of students will be open: Campus Life,
Campus Safety, Dining Services and Facilities Services.
• Full Closure o All classes, labs, and practices are canceled for the day. o All departments, and
offices are closed except for designated personnel. o Designated personnel may be scheduled as
needed by their department head. o All employees scheduled to work will be paid for time
scheduled.
o Benefited non-exempt staff identified as designated personnel, who work when the College is
officially closed under a full closure, will receive regular pay for the day closed and 1.5 times
their regular rate for all hours worked.
• Communications Plan
The following communication plan will be observed during delayed opening, early closure,
partial closure, and full closure. o A campus-bulletin email will be sent (current students,
faculty, and staff).
o A message will be posted on the College's web page as the first news item and to social media.
o A message will be posted on My.Knox homepage. o A message will be posted on the College
phone number (341-7000). o An all-campus Knox Alert will be sent to faculty, staff, and
students.
o Traditional media outlets, such as TV and radio will be notified. Employees are encouraged to
check College communications outlets first.
• Designated Personnel
Some administrative and support staff employees, due to the nature of their jobs, are identified as
"designated personnel" during times of inclement weather. These personnel will be identified as
such by department heads.
Benefited non-exempt staff identified as designated personnel, who work when the College is
officially closed under a full closure, will receive regular time for the day closed and 1.5 times
their regular rate for all hours worked.
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• Modified Work Schedule o During periods of inclement weather when the College remains open,
department heads will have the option of modifying the work schedule for employees who are
unable to make it to Campus.
o Department heads may permit staff to modify their normal work schedule to accommodate
weather situations by coming into work late and leaving early and making up the lost time.
This shall be done within the same pay period for non-exempt employees. Employees may
choose to be paid for unworked hours by using accrued personal or vacation leave. Employees
may take the hours off without pay and without the need to make up those hours.
o Questions regarding modified work schedules should be addressed to department heads. o
Questions from faculty related to closings and/or delays should be directed to the Dean of the
College.
o Questions from staff related to these closings or delays should be directed to Human Resources.
o The Dean of the College will make policy interpretations concerning the faculty. Human
Resources will make policy interpretations concerning staff.
• Classes and Other Academic Programming
If the College remains open during inclement weather, the decision to cancel classes is made by the
individual faculty member. It is the responsibility of the faculty member to arrange for the
notification of students. Individual faculty will also determine whether and when to reschedule
cancelled classes and to notify students.
Time Away from Work
Absence Notification
This applies to all forms of time off for any reason, including but not limited to paid vacation, paid sick
leave, Family and Medical leave Act (“FMLA”) leave, and other unpaid leave.
Generally speaking, whenever you will be absent from work, you must do two things, explained in
greater detail below: notify your supervisor and turn in a completed Leave Request Form to supervisor.
• Timing of Notification
In general, you are expected to provide as much notice of your absence as is practicable under the
circumstances. The following rules apply depending on how much notice you have of your
absence:
o Foreseeable Absences: If you know of your need for time off in advance, you must notify your
department head of your time off and submit a completed Leave Request Form as soon as
practicable under the circumstances. In most cases, this will mean the same day you learn of
your need for time off, or the next business day.
o Unforeseeable Absences: If you are unable to notify the College of your need for time off and
submit a Leave Request Form before the day on which your time off begins, you must notify
your supervisor to report your expected absence no later than 1 hour before you are scheduled
to begin work.
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If you are not reasonably able to call in no later than 1 hour before you are scheduled to begin
work, you must contact your department head as soon as practicable. If you are unable to call
personally, a spokesperson (such as your spouse, an adult family member, or another
responsible party) may call on your behalf.
o Leaving During the Work Day: If you must leave work for any reason before the end of your
scheduled work day, you must inform your supervisor before you leave and also submit a
completed Leave Request Form, if possible before you leave.
• Scheduled Absences
When scheduling time off, you will be expected to consult with your supervisor to work out a
schedule for leave that, to the extent possible, meets your needs without unduly disrupting the
College’s operations. Unless your absences have been scheduled and approved in advance by the
College, you must follow the notification procedure above for each day that you are absent, absent
extenuating circumstances that prevent you from doing so.
A doctor’s note may be required to return to work after missing three consecutive shifts/days due to
illness.
• What Information You Must Provide
Whenever you call in to report an absence, you must provide at least the following information:
o The specific reason for your absence, with sufficient information to allow the College to
determine whether your absence may qualify as FMLA or other legally protected leave;
o When your leave will begin and when you expect to return to work, including specific dates
and times of absences, if known; o A telephone number where you may be reached for further
information.
• Absences Are Not Automatically Approved
Although you are required to notify the College as soon as possible if you will be absent, tardy, or
leaving early, please understand that providing such notice does not mean that your request for
time off will be approved or that you will avoid discipline for excessive tardiness or absenteeism.
The College reserves its right to deny requests for time off in its sole discretion, except as required
by applicable law.
• Consequences for Failure to Report Absences
Failure to comply with this policy or to provide documentation or information requested by the
College in support of an absence may result in delay or denial of requested time off, loss of
vacation, sick leave or other pay, and/or discipline up to and including termination of employment.
If you fail to report for work without notifying your supervisor of your absence for three or more
consecutive workdays, it may be considered job abandonment. If you have abandoned your job,
you will be terminated and ordinarily not be eligible for rehire.
Paid Vacation
Knox encourages eligible employees to take vacation time away from work.
• Eligibility
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You are eligible to earn paid vacation only if you are a benefits eligible employee. You will be
informed if you are eligible for paid vacation upon hire. If your status changes, you will be notified
by the College.
• Earning Vacation
All benefits-eligible employees earn paid vacation while actively employed by the College.
Vacation is earned on a pro-rata basis each pay period throughout the fiscal year, according to the
following schedules:
o Hourly, Non-exempt Employees:
Years of Service:
Vacation Earned:
0 through 4
2 weeks
5 through 9
3 weeks
10 through 19
4 weeks
20 or more
5 weeks
The vacation accrual schedules above apply to 12-month employees. The specified accrual
rates are pro-rated for employees who are actively employed fewer than 12 months out of the
year.
o Salaried, Exempt Employees:
Benefits-eligible exempt employees receive four weeks of vacation per fiscal year. This
amount is earned on a pro-rata basis each pay period during the year, and is prorated for
employees who are actively employed fewer than 12 months of the year.
Employees may use vacation time before it has been earned, but when leaving employment at
the College, an employee will be paid out the vacation that has been earned. For example, an
employee terminates employment with the College on September 30. The employee will be
paid for 5 vacation days, as the employee worked for three months of the fiscal year.
• Maximum Accrual
o Hourly, Non-exempt Employees:
The College provides vacation to allow you to take time away from work, and encourages you
to use all of your available paid vacation. Accordingly, if you do not use your vacation, you
will cease earning vacation once you have accrued 1.5 times your current maximum accrual.
You will begin earning vacation again once you use some of your accrued vacation. For
example, an employee who is eligible to earn four weeks of vacation will cease earning
additional vacation once they have accrued six full weeks of vacation. If the employee uses two
weeks of vacation, they will begin accruing vacation again until they once again reach the
maximum accrual.
o Salaried, Exempt Employees:
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Exempt employees may carry-over half of their vacation (ten days) into the next fiscal year.
Any additional unused days will be lost.
• Using Vacation / Scheduling Absences
Whenever possible, you are required to schedule your absences, including any vacation, as far in
advance as possible under the circumstances. The College reserves the right to deny requests to use
vacation time for absences that are not scheduled in advance. If you wish to use vacation, you
should talk to your department head as soon as possible, and submit a Leave Request Form as
explained in the Absence Notification Policy on page.
While College will make every effort to grant your vacation request, it is possible that your request
may be denied depending on business needs. Additionally, in order to preserve essential services,
College may cancel previously-approved vacation requests or require that vacation be taken on
certain days.
• Unused Vacation
The College encourages all employees to use all of their vacation each year. Accordingly,
employees will not be entitled to any cash payouts for their unused vacation time during the course
of their employment.
If an employee leaves the College’s employment for any reason, the College will pay the employee
for any unused vacation that the employee has earned as of the employee’s separation date.
Personal Days - Hourly, Non-Exempt Employees
Full-time, hourly, non-exempt employees are given three personal days each year. These days are
accrued the first payroll of the year and must be used by the end of the year. The date personal leave
time must be used by varies from year to year. Employees are notified by memo in the fall of this
date. The date is also noted on the employee’s copy of the Biweekly Pay Schedule. If not used, the
personal time is lost. These days are pro-rated the employee’s first year of service and are accrued
after the employee’s probationary period. Ten-month employees receive only two personal days per
year
Sick Days - Hourly, Non-Exempt Employees
The College recognizes that employees may occasionally need to be absent from work due an illness,
injury or medical appointment, or to attend to the illness, injury or medical appointment of a family
member. For purposes of this policy, “family member” includes the employee’s child, spouse,
domestic partner, sibling, parent, parent-in-law, grandchild, grandparent, or stepparent.
Benefit-eligible non-exempt employees with a standard workweek of 37.5 hours will accrue 3.46 hours
per pay period, with a maximum accrual of 975 hours. The accrual rate and maximum accumulation
will be prorated for employees whose standard workweek is less than 37.5 hours per week. Sick leave
is paid out at the employee’s regular straight-time hourly rate of pay. Employees will not receive pay
for unused sick days upon separation from employment with the College.
• Conversion of Sick Leave to Personal Days
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On January 1 of each year, eligible employees may roll over up to three days of unused sick leave
to personal leave when the following conditions are met: a) the employee has used less than six
days of sick leave in the prior year, and b) the employee has a minimum balance of 40 sick days
accrued.
Employees may use Personal Days for any reason. Employees must provide as much advance
notice as possible under the circumstances before using a Personal Day. The College reserves the
right to deny use of a personal day if an employee fails to provide advance notice. Personal days
must be used no later than December 31 of the year in which they are converted from sick leave.
Personal Days not used by December 31 will be forfeited. Employees will be paid for any unused
Personal Days remaining upon separation of their employment.
• Sick Leave Pool
Employees who have accrued at least 40 sick leave days may donate up to ten days of their sick
leave accrual to a "leave pool" each calendar year.
The leave pool is available to provide paid leave benefits to employees who have exhausted all
available paid leave due to a catastrophic illness or injury (theirs or a family member’s) for which
sick leave could be used if available Employees may apply to use up to 30 days of paid leave from
the leave pool. To apply for leave pool benefits, an employee must submit a written request to the
Associate Vice President of Human Resources. The employee may also be required to submit other
documentation to verify their need for leave. The Associate Vice President of Human Resources
will determine whether to grant or deny the request.
In considering whether to grant or deny requests for benefits from the sick leave pool, the
Associate Vice President of Human Resources may consider factors including but not limited to the
number of days the requesting employee contributed to the leave pool; the total number of
available days in the leave pool; the anticipated volume of requests for benefits from the leave
pool; and the effect of the employee's request on the availability of leave pool benefits for other
participating employees.
Sick/Disability Leave – Salaried, Exempt Employees
Benefit-eligible exempt employees are eligible for up to 6 months of paid sick or disability leave under
the terms and conditions set forth below.
• Disability
For purposes of this policy, “Disability” means a non-occupational injury, illness, or other health
condition (including pregnancy and childbirth) that prevents an eligible employee from working for
more than five consecutive calendar days.
The College has sole and final discretion to determine whether an employee has a “Disability” as
defined by this policy.
• Certification
To receive benefits under this policy you may be required to provide satisfactory proof of
disability, including but not limited to a written certification from your healthcare provider
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regarding your health condition. The College may also require you to submit to examination by a
healthcare provider selected by the College. The College may require re-certification, additional
examinations or additional information at any time while benefits under this policy are being paid.
• Benefit
If your request for disability benefits is approved, you will receive your regular salary and benefits
up to a maximum of six calendar months in any 12-month period. The 12-month period used to
calculate entitlement to this benefit will be calculated on a “rolling” basis measured backward from
the date for which any short-term disability benefits are provided.
Benefits will cease if any of the following occurs:
o You return to work on a part-time or full-time basis.
o The College determines that you are able to return to work with or without reasonable
accommodation, whether or not you actually return.
o You qualify for disability benefits under any other policy or program, including but not limited
to disability benefits from the state or federal government, or benefits provided under any
insurance policy.
o The College receives information that you do not intend to or will not be able to return to active
employment with the College.
Payment of benefits under this policy will be made on regularly scheduled pay days, and will be
considered taxable wages, subject to applicable withholding and deductions.
• Exclusions and Limitations
Disability benefits will not be paid for any period of absence for which you receive workers’
compensation benefits, state or federal disability benefits, or disability benefits under any private
insurance policy. To continue receiving disability benefits under this policy, you must refrain from
engaging in any outside employment.
• Return to Work
Before returning to work, you will be required to provide a fitness-for-duty certification from your
health care provider.
New Parent Leave
Benefits eligible employees who are birth mothers shall receive up to ten weeks of paid leave
following the birth of a new baby. Benefits eligible employees other than birth mothers who become
parents shall receive up to five weeks of paid leave to be used within four months following the birth
or arrival of a new baby/child. The stipulations of New Parent leaves are adjusted for faculty, given
their teaching responsibilities (see Faculty Handbook). To be an “eligible employee,” you must be
benefits-eligible.
Holiday Pay
The College observes several paid holidays each year. Typically, these include:
• New Year's Day • Day after Thanksgiving Day
• Memorial Day (Floating Holiday) • Christmas Eve
• Monday after commencement • Christmas
• Independence Day • New Year’s Eve
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• Labor Day (Floating Holiday) • Flunk Day (1/2 day)
• Thanksgiving Day • Winter Break
Staff not required to work will receive regular pay during the Winter Break. Supervisors will determine
who is required to work during the break. Employees who are required to work during the break will
receive regular pay and time off at a later date. Hourly employees will be paid 1½ times their regular
rate of pay for hours worked that exceed their overtime threshold for the week.
Employees who work on a floating holiday are paid at their regular rate of pay, but receive an alternate
day off with pay during that calendar year. Hourly, non-exempt employees who are employed prior to
a floating holiday will receive personal time to account for the holiday. This time may be used on or
after the holiday.
The holiday schedule will generally be announced to employees before the start of each calendar year,
but may be adjusted from time to time according to the College’s business needs.
The College provides holiday pay to all benefit-eligible employees. Holiday pay for full-time
employees who are paid on an hourly basis is calculated based upon the employee’s straight-time
hourly rate of pay as of the date of the holiday, multiplied by the number of hours the employee would
ordinarily be scheduled to work on the holiday. Holiday pay for employees who are regularly
scheduled to work at least 20 but fewer than 40 hours per week will be pro-rated based upon the
employee’s scheduled hours, as compared to a full 40-hour workweek. For example, an employee who
is scheduled to work 20 hours per week will receive 4 hours of holiday pay, and an employee who is
scheduled to work 30 hours per week will receive 6 hours of holiday pay.
Holiday pay will not be counted as “hours worked” for purposes of calculating overtime for
nonexempt employees who work during a holiday week.
If a holiday occurs during a scheduled period of vacation, the employee will receive holiday pay, and
will not be charged for vacation.
Employees on an unpaid leave of absence are not eligible for holiday pay.
Family and Medical Leave
Knox is committed to compliance with the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (the “FMLA”).
The FMLA allows eligible employees to take up to 12 weeks of job-protected, unpaid leave per year
for certain specified reasons, and up to a total of 26 workweeks of leave to care for a family member
who is a “covered service member” recovering from injury or illness incurred during active duty
military service.
A description of your rights and responsibilities under the FMLA is included in Appendix C at the end
of this handbook.
The following is a description of the College’s specific policies and procedures relating to FMLA
leave. This policy is not intended to confer any contractual rights or other legal rights beyond those
provided by the FMLA, and does not alter the “at-will” status of any employee.
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• Eligibility
FMLA leave is available only to certain eligible employees. To be an “eligible employee” under
the FMLA, you must:
o have been employed by the College for a total of at least 12 months; and o have worked at least
1,250 hours for the College during the twelve months before the date on which your leave is to
begin; and
o Work at a location where there are at least 50 employees employed by the College within 75
miles.
• Reasons for FMLA Leave
If you are an eligible employee, you may take leave under the FMLA for the following reasons:
o For a serious health condition that makes you unable to perform the essential functions of your
job;
o For the birth of your child, and to care for your newborn child; o For the placement with you
of a child for adoption or foster care;
o To care for your spouse, child (who is under 18 years of age or incapable of self-care due to a
physical or mental disability), or parent (not a parent-in-law), who has a serious health
condition;
o To address “qualifying exigencies” that arise because your spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a
member of the Armed Forces who is on or has been notified of an impending covered active
duty deployment to a foreign country;
o To care for a spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin who is a “covered service member,”
while the covered service member is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy; is
in outpatient status; or is on the temporary disability retired list.
• Definitions
Eligibility for FMLA leave will be determined in accordance with the definitions set forth in the
FMLA and the applicable FMLA regulations in effect at the time your eligibility for leave is being
determined. The following definitions are summaries provided for your convenience, and are not
intended to modify the definitions set forth in the FMLA or the applicable regulations, to modify
any rights that may exist under the FMLA, or to create any right to leave not otherwise required by
the FMLA.
o Serious Health Condition
For purposes of the FMLA, “serious health condition” means an illness, injury, impairment, or
physical or mental condition that involves:
1) In-patient care (i.e., an overnight stay) in a hospital, hospice, or residential medical care
facility, or any period of incapacity or subsequent treatment connected with such in-patient
care; or
2) Any period of incapacity (i.e., inability to work, attend school, or perform other regular
daily activities due to the condition, treatment for the condition, or recovery from
treatment), that:
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a. Lasts more than three consecutive calendar days and involves one in-person treatment
by a health care provider, a nurse under direct supervision of a health care provider, or
by a provider of health care services (e.g., a physical therapist) under orders of, or on
referral by a health care provider that occurs (absent extenuating circumstances) within
seven days of the first day of incapacity, and either:
i. involves a second in-person treatment that occurs (absent extenuating circumstances)
within 30 days of the first day of incapacity; or
ii. results in a continuing regimen of continuing treatment under the supervision of a
health care provider; or
b. Is due to pregnancy or prenatal care; or
c. Is due to a chronic condition that requires periodic visits (at least twice per year) for
treatment by a health care provider, or by a nurse under direct supervision of a health
care provider, that continues over an extended period of time, and that may cause
episodic rather than a continuing period of incapacity (for example, asthma, diabetes,
epilepsy, etc.); or
d. Is due to a permanent or long-term condition for which treatment may not be effective,
but for which you or your family member are under the continuing supervision of (but
need not be receiving active treatment by) a health care provider; or
3) Any period of absence to receive multiple treatments (including any period of recovery
therefrom) by a health care provider or by a provider of health care services under orders
of, or on referral by, a health care provider for restorative surgery after an accident or other
injury, or for a condition that would likely result in a period of incapacity of more than
three consecutive, full calendar days in the absence of medical intervention or treatment,
such as cancer (chemotherapy, radiation, etc.) or kidney disease (dialysis).
Ordinarily, the common cold, the flu, ear aches, upset stomach, minor ulcers, headaches other
than migraines, routine dental or orthodontic problems, periodontal disease, etc., are examples
of conditions that do not meet the definition of a serious health condition and do not qualify for
FMLA leave.
With regard to substance abuse (including alcohol abuse), FMLA leave may be taken only for
treatment of substance abuse by or on referral from a health care provider. Absences caused by
the employee’s use of the substance, rather than for treatment, do not qualify for FMLA leave.
o Health Care Provider
For purposes of the FMLA, “health care provider” means:
• A doctor of medicine or osteopathy who is authorized to practice medicine or surgery (as
appropriate) by the state in which the doctor practices;
• Podiatrists, dentists, clinical psychologists, optometrists, and chiropractors (limited to
treatment consisting of manual manipulation of the spine to correct a subluxation as
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demonstrated by X-ray to exist), authorized to practice in the state and performing within
the scope of their practice as defined under state law;
• Nurse practitioners, nurse midwives, clinical social workers and physician assistants who
are authorized to practice under state law and who are performing within the scope of their
practice under state law;
• Christian Science practitioners listed with the First Church of Christ, Scientist in Boston,
Massachusetts;
• Any health care provider from whom the College or the College’s group health plan will
accept certification of the existence of a serious health condition to substantiate a claim for
benefits; and
• A health care provider listed above who practices in a country other than the United States,
who is authorized to practice in accordance with the law of that country, and who is
performing within the scope of his or her practice as defined under such law.
For purposes of the FMLA, “authorized to practice in the state” means that the health care
provider is authorized by state law to diagnose and treat physical or mental health conditions.
o Qualifying Exigency
For purposes of FMLA leave to address a “qualifying exigency” that arises because an
employee’s spouse, son, daughter, or parent is a member of the Armed Forces who is on or has
been notified of an impending covered active duty deployment to a foreign country, the term
“qualifying exigency” means the following:
• Issues that arise from the fact that a covered military member is notified of an
impending deployment to a foreign country seven or fewer days before the date of
deployment. Employees are eligible for leave for this purpose for a period of seven
calendar days beginning on the day the military member is notified of the impending
deployment.
• Attending military events and related activities, such as ceremonies, programs and briefings
sponsored by the military, military service organizations, or the American Red Cross, that
are related to the covered active duty deployment of a covered military member.
• Attending to childcare and school-related activities arising from a military member’s
covered active duty deployment, such as arranging for alternative childcare, providing
childcare on an urgent, immediate need basis (but not on a routine, regular, or everyday
basis), enrolling in or transferring a child to a new school or day care facility, attending
meetings with staff at a school or day care facility.
• Making financial and legal arrangements to address the covered military member’s absence
during a covered active duty deployment.
• Acting as the covered military member’s representative before a government agency for
purposes of obtaining, arranging, or appealing military service benefits while a covered
military member is on a covered active duty deployment and for a period of 90 days
following the end of the deployment.
• Attending counseling provided by someone other than a health care provider for oneself, for
the covered military member, or his or her child;
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• To spend time with a covered military member who is on short-term, temporary rest and
recuperation leave during the period of deployment. Eligible employees may take up to
fifteen days of leave for each instance of rest and recuperation.
• To attend to post-deployment activities, including official ceremonies and programs
sponsored by the military for a period of 90 days following the termination of a covered
military member’s active duty deployment, and to address issues arising from the death of a
covered military member while on covered active duty, such as recovering the body and
making funeral arrangements.
• Parental care (allows family members to take time off to arrange for care for parents of
military members who are incapable of self-care when the need for leave arises as a result
of active duty or a call to active duty. This cannot be used for routine day-today care).
• Additional activities as agreed upon by the College and the employee.
Exigency leave protections apply to family members of military members who are in reserve
units, retired Armed Forces and who are in the regular Armed Forces so long as the military
member is on or has been notified of an impending covered active duty.
For purposes of this section, “covered active duty” means:
• For members of the Regular Armed Forces, duty during deployment of the member with
the Armed Forces to a foreign country; or
• For members of the Reserve components of the Armed Forces (members of the National
Guard and Reserves), duty during deployment of the member with the Armed Forces to a
foreign country under a call or order to active duty in support of a contingency operation.
o Leave to Care for a Covered Service member
The following definitions apply to leave to care for a “covered service member”:
1) A “Covered service member” is either:
a. A member of the Armed Forces (including a member of the National Guard or
Reserves) who is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or therapy, is otherwise
in outpatient status, or is otherwise on the temporary disability retired list, for a serious
injury or illness, OR
b. A veteran of the Armed Forces (including the National Guard or Reserves) discharged
within the five-year period before the family member first takes military caregiver leave
to care for the veteran and who is undergoing medical treatment, recuperation, or
therapy for a qualifying serious injury or illness. A veteran who was dishonorably
discharged does not meet the FMLA definition of a covered service member.
2) A “serious injury or illness” means:
a. In the case of a current member of the Armed Forces, an injury or illness incurred in the
line of duty on active duty in the Armed Forces, or one that existed before the beginning
of the covered service member’s active military service, but that was aggravated by
service in the line of active duty in the Armed Forces, that may render the member
medically unfit to perform the duties of the member’s office, grade, rank, or rating; or
b. In the case of a veteran, an injury or illness that was incurred by the covered veteran in
the line of duty on active duty in the Armed Forces or that existed before the veteran’s
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active duty and was aggravated by service in the line of duty on active duty, and that is
either:
i. a continuation of a serious injury or illness that was incurred or aggravated
when the veteran was a member of the Armed Forces and rendered the service
member unable to perform the duties of the service member’s office, grade,
rank, or rating; or
ii. a physical or mental condition for which the veteran has received a U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs Service-Related Disability Rating (VASRD) of
50 percent or greater, and the need for military caregiver leave is related to that
condition; or
iii. a physical or mental condition that substantially impairs the veteran’s ability to
work because of a disability or disabilities related to military service, or would
do so absent treatment; or
iv. an injury that is the basis for the veteran’s enrollment in the Department of
Veterans Affairs Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers.
3) “Next of kin” means the nearest blood relative, other than spouse, parent, son or daughter, in
the following order of priority: blood relatives granted legal custody over the covered
service member by court decree or statutory provisions, brothers and sisters, grandparents,
aunts and uncles, and first cousins. If the covered service member has specifically
designated in writing another blood relative as his or her nearest blood relative for purposes
of military caregiver leave under the FMLA, that relative (and only that relative) will be the
covered service member’s next of kin. When no such designation is made and there are
multiple family members with the same level of relationship to the covered service
member, all such family members are considered the covered service member’s next of kin.
• Amount of Leave
Generally, eligible employees are entitled to take up to 12 weeks of leave in a single 12month
period for the reasons specified above.
For the purposes of this policy, the College will calculate the amount of FMLA leave available to
you using a “rolling” 12-month period measured backward from the date an employee uses any
FMLA leave. Available leave is determined by subtracting the number of weeks of FMLA leave
taken during this 12-month “look back” period from the 12-week total allowed.
Any leave taken for the birth or care of a child or the placement of a child for adoption or foster
care must be completed within one year after the date of birth or placement.
If both you and your spouse are employed by the College and eligible for FMLA leave, you will be
permitted to take only a combined total of 12 weeks of leave during a 12-month for the birth and
care of a child, the placement of a child for adoption or foster care, or to care for a parent (not a
parent-in-law) with a serious health condition.
Eligible employees are also entitled to up to 26 workweeks of leave in a single 12-month period to
care for a spouse, son, daughter, parent, or next of kin who is a “covered service member.” The
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12-month period for leave to care for a covered service member begins on the first day that an
employee takes leave to care for a covered service member. During this period, the employee is
entitled to a combined total of 26 workweeks of leave for any FMLA-qualifying reason, no more
than 12 weeks of which may be for reasons other than to care for a covered service member. This
leave is applied on a per-covered-service member, per-injury basis, meaning that an employee is
entitled to only one 26-workweek allotment of leave per covered service member (unless the
covered service member is later re-injured in the line of active duty). If both you and your spouse
are employed by the College and are eligible for FMLA leave, you will be permitted to take only a
combined total of 26 workweeks of leave during the single 12-month period for this reason.
• How to Request FMLA Leave
If you need to take time off for reasons that you believe qualify for FMLA leave, you must comply
with the College’s absence notification policy (see page ). Failure to comply with the College’s
absence reporting policies and procedures or to provide documentation or information requested by
the College may result in delay or denial of requested time off, and/or discipline up to and
including termination of employment.
• What Information Is Required
To request FMLA leave, you must provide at least the following information:
o The specific reason for your absence, with sufficient information to allow the College to
determine whether the FMLA may apply to your request;
o When your leave will begin and when you expect to return to work, including specific dates
and times of absences, if known;
o A telephone number where you may be reached for further information. Calling in “sick”
without providing further information is not acceptable.
As soon as practicable, you also must submit a completed Leave Request Form to your supervisor.
• Intermittent and Reduced Schedule Leave
When taking FMLA leave for your own serious health condition, to care for a family member with
a serious health condition, or to care for a covered service member, you may take FMLA leave on
an intermittent or reduced schedule basis, if the required health care provider’s certification
indicates that this is medically necessary. FMLA military family leave may also be taken on an
intermittent or reduced schedule basis when necessary due to a qualifying exigency.
If you require foreseeable intermittent or reduced schedule leave, you will be expected to consult
with Human Resources to work out a schedule for such leave that meets your needs without unduly
disrupting the College’s operations, subject to approval by the health care provider.
Likewise, if you need FMLA leave due to planned medical treatment for your own or a family
member’s serious health condition, you will be expected to consult with Human Resources to work
out a treatment schedule that best suits your needs and the needs of the College, subject to approval
by the health care provider. In some circumstances, the College may alter your existing job (while
maintaining existing pay and benefits), or may temporarily transfer you to a different position with
equivalent pay and benefits, to better accommodate your intermittent or reduced schedule leave.
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The College may consider requests for intermittent or reduced schedule leave due to the birth,
adoption or foster placement of a child, but is not obligated to grant such requests, and will do so
only at its sole discretion.
• Eligibility Notice
After you give notice of your need for FMLA leave, the College will provide you with a written
notice advising you whether or not you are an “Eligible Employee” under the FMLA. The College
will provide this eligibility notice within five business days after you give notice of your need to
leave, absent extenuating circumstances. If you later make another request for FMLA leave within
the same 12-month period, the College may elect not to provide another eligibility notice, unless
your status as an eligible employee has changed. Note that even if you are an “eligible employee”
under the FMLA, your request for leave may be denied if the College determines that your leave is
not for an FMLA-qualifying reason, or if you have exhausted all available leave under the FMLA.
At the same time as it provides the eligibility notice, the College will provide you with a written
notice advising you of any applicable rights and responsibilities relating to your requested FMLA
leave.
• Certification
It is your responsibility to provide the College with any information needed to determine whether
your leave qualifies as FMLA leave. The FMLA requires you to respond to reasonable requests for
information regarding your leave, and your failure to do so may result in delay or denial of your
requested leave. In addition, you may be required to provide the certifications described below. It is
your obligation to provide a complete and sufficient certification form to the College within 15
calendar days after the College requests it. If it is not practicable for you to provide a completed,
sufficient certification form within 15 days despite your diligent, good faith efforts to do so, you
must contact Human Resources to explain the situation.
If you return a certification form but it is incomplete (i.e., one or more items are left blank) or
insufficient (i.e., responses are vague, illegible, ambiguous, or non-responsive), the College will
notify you of the deficiency. You will then have 7 calendar days to provide a complete, sufficient
certification. If it is not practicable for you to provide a completed, sufficient certification form
within 7 days despite your diligent, good-faith efforts to do so, you must contact Human Resources
to explain the situation.
• Certification of a Serious Health Condition
If you are requesting FMLA leave due to your own serious health condition, or to care for a
family member with a serious health condition, you will be required to provide a health care
provider’s certification on a form that will be provided by the College.
Authentication and Clarification
The College may contact the health care provider to authenticate a completed certification form
by providing the health care provider a copy of the form and requesting verification that the
information contained on the form was written or authorized by the health care provider who
signed the document.
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Additionally, the College may request clarification of information on the certification form, and
may ask you to sign, or have your family member sign, a release form authorizing the health
care provider to communicate with the College for the purpose of clarifying the certification. If
the certification is unclear and you fail to provide a signed authorization or otherwise clarify
the certification, the College may deny your request for FMLA leave.
Second and Third Opinions
The College may require you to obtain a second certification at the College’s expense from a
health care provider designated by the College. If the second health care provider’s
certification differs from your health care provider’s certification, the College may require you
to obtain certification from a third health care provider, again at the College’s expense. The
third health care provider will be designated or approved jointly by you and the College. You
and the College are required to act in good faith to attempt to reach agreement on a third health
care provider. The third opinion will be final and binding.
Recertification
If you take leave due to your own or a family member’s serious health condition, you may be
required to submit a complete and sufficient recertification from your health care provider as
often as every 30 days in conjunction with an absence. If your health care provider’s initial
certification specifies that the minimum duration of the condition for which you are taking
leave is longer than 30 days, you may be required to submit a recertification in conjunction
with an absence when the minimum duration expires, or every six months, whichever is less.
You also may be required to provide a recertification if you request an extension of leave, the
circumstances described in the original certification have changed significantly, or the College
receives information raising doubt as to the stated reason for your leave or the continuing
validity of the previously-provided certification. The College will provide you with the
required recertification form when a recertification is required.
• Certification of a Qualifying Exigency
If you request FMLA leave due to a qualifying exigency arising out of the active duty
deployment of a member of the Armed Forces, you will be required to submit a complete and
sufficient certification form provided to you by the College, and to provide the documentation
requested therein. If the qualifying exigency for which you are taking leave involves a meeting
or appointment with a third party, the College may contact the third party for purposes of
verifying the meeting or appointment and the nature of the meeting or appointment. The
College also may contact an appropriate unit of the Department of Defense to request
verification that the covered military member is on active duty or call to active duty status.
• Certification for a Covered Service member
If you request leave to care for a covered service member with a serious injury or illness, you
will be required to obtain a certification from the service member's authorized healthcare
provider on a form provided to you by the College. Any one of the following may complete
this certification: A U.S. Department of Defense (“DOD”) health care provider; a U.S.
Department of Veteran’s Affairs health care provider; a DOD TRICARE network authorized
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private health care provider; a DOD non-network TRICARE authorized private health care
provider; or a non-military-affiliated health care provider.
The College may contact the health care provider to authenticate a completed certification form
by providing the health care provider a copy of the form and requesting verification that the
information contained on the form was written or authorized by the health care provider who
signed the document.
Additionally, the College may request clarification of information on the certification form, and
may ask that the covered service member sign a release authorizing the health care provider to
communicate with the College for the purpose of clarifying the certification. If the certification
is unclear and you fail to provide a signed authorization or otherwise clarify the certification,
the College may deny your request for FMLA leave.
If certification is provided by a non-military-affiliated health care provider, the College may
request a second or third opinion of a covered service member's serious injury or illness. In
this situation, the process above with respect to second and third opinions applies.
• Designation of FMLA Leave
The College will provide you with a written notice advising whether your leave will be designated
as FMLA leave. Absent extenuating circumstances, the College will provide this notice within five
business days after it receives sufficient information to determine whether your requested leave is
for an FMLA-qualifying reason. If the College does not provide the designation notice within the
time specified above, the College may retroactively notify you that time off will be designated as
FMLA leave if the delay in providing this notice does not cause you harm or injury, or if you and
the College agree that the time off will be designated as FMLA leave.
• While You Are on FMLA Leave
o Unpaid Leave and Substitution of Paid Leave
FMLA leave is generally unpaid. However, if you have any available unused paid leave
(including paid vacation and paid sick leave), your paid leave must be used concurrently with
your FMLA leave, and must be exhausted before any unpaid portion of your FMLA leave
commences. FMLA also runs concurrently with any paid disability leave for which you may be
eligible under the College’s disability leave policy. Likewise, if you are eligible for any other
disability benefits through workers’ compensation or a disability insurance policy provided by
the College, those benefits will run concurrently with your FMLA leave.
o Health Benefits
If you are enrolled in the College’s group health insurance plan and wish to continue this
coverage while you are on FMLA leave, you will be responsible for paying the employee share
of the premiums during any period of FMLA leave. The College will provide you with
instructions for paying health insurance premiums during your leave. The College will
continue to pay its share of the premiums for your group health insurance coverage while you
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are on FMLA leave, unless you notify the College of your intent not to return to work
following leave. If you do not pay your share of health insurance premiums while you are on
FMLA leave, you may be dropped from plan coverage until you return to work.
If you do not return to work upon completion of your FMLA leave, you may be required to
repay the College for any premiums paid by the College to maintain your group health
insurance coverage during your leave, unless the failure to return to work was due to the
recurrence or onset of a serious health condition or injury or illness of a covered service
member, which would otherwise entitle you to FMLA leave, or due to other circumstances
beyond your control.
o Other Benefits
Consistent with College policy for all types of unpaid leave, you will not earn PTO or other
benefits while you are on unpaid FMLA leave. Additionally, you will not be paid for holidays
that occur during any unpaid FMLA leave.
• Reporting Requirements During Leave
While on FMLA leave for a period of more than one work week at a time, you may be required to
contact Human Resources periodically to report on your status and confirm your intention to return
to work on the scheduled date.
You must notify the College of any change in your expected return to work date (i.e., if you will
require more leave than originally anticipated, or if you will return to work earlier than expected)
within two business days after you learn of such a change. If this is not possible due to an
unforeseen change in circumstances, you must notify the College of the change as soon as
practicable under the circumstances.
• Reinstatement at the Conclusion Of Leave
If you timely return from FMLA leave and used the leave for the stated purpose, you generally will
be reinstated to the same position you held when you began your leave, or to an equivalent position
with equivalent benefits, pay and other terms and conditions of employment. However, you may
not be reinstated if your employment would have terminated for reasons unrelated to your FMLA
leave, or if you are unable to perform any essential functions of your job (with or without any
required accommodations).
Additionally, the FMLA provides a limited exception to the College’s reinstatement obligation for
“key” employees. A “key” employee is a salaried, FMLA-eligible employee who is among the
highest-paid 10% of employees located within 75 miles of the work site in question. Under limited
circumstances where restoration to employment will cause substantial and grievous economic
injury to its operations, the College may deny reinstatement to a key employee after FMLA leave.
The College will notify you if you are a “key” employee at the time leave is requested, will notify
you if it decides to deny restoration, and will provide you a reasonable opportunity to return to
work after providing such notice.
Before returning to work from an FMLA leave for your own serious health condition, you may be
required to submit a certification from your health care provider that you are able to resume work.
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If requested, this certification must specifically confirm that you are able to perform the essential
functions of your position (with or without reasonable accommodations), as set forth in the job
description provided to you by the College.
• Prohibitions
Consistent with the College’s policy regarding all types of leave, the following conduct is strictly
prohibited in relation to FMLA leave:
o Engaging in fraud, misrepresentation or providing false information to the College or any
health care provider.
o Having other employment during the leave, without prior written approval from the College.
o Failure to comply with the employee’s obligations under this policy. o Failure to timely return
from the leave.
Employees who engage in such conduct will be subject to loss of benefits, denial or termination of
leave, and discipline, up to and including discharge.
• The College’s Commitment
The College will not interfere with, restrain, or deny the exercise of any right provided by the
FMLA, nor will it discharge or discriminate against any individual for opposing any practice or
involvement in any proceeding relating to the FMLA. (The College recognizes that some states
and localities have their own laws regarding family and medical leave. Where such laws apply and
provide greater family and medical leave rights than the FMLA, the College will comply with
those laws.)
Military Leave
Knox has the greatest respect for those who serve in the military, and fully supports employees who
choose to serve, including but not limited to those serving in the National Guard and Reserves.
If you need time off in connection with your military service, please contact the Office of Human
Resources as soon as possible in order to make appropriate arrangements. You are requested to
complete and return a Leave Request Form to your supervisor as soon as possible before your leave,
but your failure to do so will not result in denial of leave or reinstatement. You may be asked to
provide copies of your orders or other appropriate documentation. During your leave, you may, but are
not required to, use any available vacation.
Upon completing your military service, you will be reinstated to the full extent required by applicable
law. To be eligible for reinstatement, you must apply for reemployment within the time periods
provided by applicable law. Under federal law, the following time periods apply:
• If service is less than 31 days (or for the purpose of taking an examination to determine fitness for
service) - you must report for reemployment at the beginning of the first full regularly scheduled
working period on the first calendar day following completion of service and the expiration of
eight hours after a time for safe transportation back to your residence.
• If service is for 31 days or more but less than 181 days- you must submit an application for
reemployment no later than 14 days following the completion of service.
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• If service is over 180 days - you must submit an application for reemployment no later than 90 days
following the completion of service.
• If you are hospitalized or convalescing from a service-connected injury - you must submit an
application for reemployment no later than two years following completion of service.
Reemployment may be denied in certain circumstances, including the following:
• The College’s circumstances have so changed as to make reemployment impossible or
unreasonable
• Reemployment would pose an undue hardship upon Knox.
• Your employment prior to the military service was for a brief, non-recurrent period and there was
no reasonable expectation that the employment would have continued indefinitely or for a
significant period.
When applying for reemployment, you may be asked to provide military discharge documentation
establishing the timeliness of your application for reemployment, the duration of your military service,
and your honorable discharge from the military service.
If state or local law provide for greater reemployment benefits than those described above, the College
will comply with those laws to the extent applicable.
Illinois Family Military Leave
Under the Illinois Family Military Leave Act, eligible Illinois employees who are the spouses or
parents of a person called to state or federal military service lasting longer than thirty days are eligible
for leave up to 30 days.
To be eligible for leave under this Act, you must have worked for Knox for at least twelve months and
at least 1,250 hours in the twelve months immediately preceding the requested leave. Furthermore, you
must first exhaust all of your accrued paid vacation and paid sick leave before you are eligible for
family military leave under the Act.
Jury Duty
The College strongly encourages all employees to fulfill their civic obligation to serve jury duty. In
order to request time off for jury duty you must provide a copy of the jury summons to your
department head within 10 days after the summons is issued.
In order to reduce the of loss of income as a result of jury duty, College will provide pay to benefit
eligible employees for work hours missed due to jury duty.
Exempt employees paid on a salaried basis who require leave for jury service will continue to receive
their salary for any week in which they perform work.
Leave to Vote
If your scheduled work hours begin fewer than two hours after polls open, and end fewer than two
hours before polls close, you may take up to two hours of leave with pay between the opening and
closing time of the polls in order to vote. To take leave to vote, you must notify your department head
at least one day before the election. The College will specify the time for your voting leave.
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School Visitation Leave
Employees who have been employed for at least 6 months and who have exhausted all accrued
vacation may take up to eight hours of unpaid leave during a school year to attend school conferences
or classroom activities related to the employee’s child that the employee cannot schedule during
nonworking hours. You may not take more than four hours in one workday under this provision.
To take this leave, you must give the College at least seven days’ notice of the need for school
visitation leave. Where the need for the leave is an emergency, 24 hours will suffice.
Upon completion of the school visitation, you must obtain documentation of the visit from the school
administrator and provide a copy to the College. If you do not provide the College with documentation
of the school visit within two working days of the visit, you may be subject to disciplinary action.
Illinois Victim’s Economic Security and Safety Act
The Illinois Victims’ Economic Security and Safety Act, (“VESSA”), provides unpaid leave and certain
other benefits to eligible employees who are, or whose family or household members are, victims of
domestic or sexual violence. It is the policy of Knox to comply fully with VESSA.
• Leave Entitlement
Knox permits employees who are, or whose family or household members are, victims of domestic
or sexual violence (as defined below) to take up to 12 work weeks of unpaid leave during a rolling
12-month period, measured backward from the date on which any leave is taken. Available leave
is determined by subtracting the number of weeks of VESSA leave taken during the 12 month
“look back” period from the 12 week total allowed.
A “family or household member” includes any person related by blood, or by present or prior
marriage, and any other person who shares a relationship through a son or daughter.
Specifically, an employee may take VESSA leave to:
o Seek medical attention for, or recovery from, physical or psychological injuries caused by
domestic or sexual violence to the employee or employee’s family or household member;
o Obtain victim services for the employee’s or employee’s family or household member; o
Obtain psychological or other counseling for the employee or the employee’s family or
household member;
o Participate in safety planning, including temporary or permanent relocation or other actions to
increase the safety of the victim from future domestic or sexual violence; or
o Seek legal assistance to ensure the health and safety of the victim, including participating in
court proceedings related to the violence.
VESSA leave may be taken intermittently or on a reduced work schedule. Employees may request
further information about these options from the Human Resources Department.
Whenever an employee is granted leave for reasons which would entitle the employee to leave
under VESSA, the leave will be counted against an employee’s 12-week VESSA leave entitlement.
Any FMLA leave taken by an employee will also be counted against the employee’s available
leave under VESSA. VESSA leave will be counted against an employee’s available leave under the
FMLA if the reason for the VESSA leave would also entitle the employee to take FMLA leave.
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• Requesting Leave
Employees who wish to take VESSA leave must notify their supervisor and Human
Resources of their intent to take leave at least 48 hours before the start of the leave, unless such
notice is not practicable. Reasonable accommodations will be made in terms of any notice
required. Employees must contact Human Resources to obtain the proper paperwork and forms for
requesting leave. Employees may be required to provide certification that VESSA leave is being
taken for one of the purposes listed above, and that the employee or employee’s family or
household member is a victim of domestic or sexual violence. Such documentation may include a
sworn statement from the employee, documentation from a victim services organization, attorney,
member of the clergy, or medical or other professional from whom the employee or the employee’s
family or household member has sought assistance; a police or court record, or other corroborating
documentation. If employees do not provide this information, VESSA leave may not be granted
and/or maintained and their absence may be considered unexcused.
• Pay and Benefits During VESSA Leave
VESSA leave is unpaid. However, employees may elect to use accrued, unused sick or PTO
concurrently with VESSA leave to receive pay for the leave period. Employees may elect to
continue their health and life insurance coverage during VESSA leave. Employees on
VESSA leave will not be charged more than other employees for health insurance premiums.
Employees on unpaid VESSA leave will be instructed on how to pay their share of the insurance
premiums during leave. Employees who fail to pay insurance premiums in a timely manner as
instructed during VESSA leave may be dropped from coverage until they return to work at the
conclusion of the VESSA leave.
If an employee informs Knox of an intent not to return to work from VESSA leave, or otherwise
fails to return to work upon completion of the leave, Knox may recover from the employee the
premiums paid by Knox during the leave to maintain the employee’s group insurance coverage,
unless the failure to return to work was due to the recurrence or onset of a serious health condition,
or was otherwise beyond the employee’s control.
• Reporting During Leave and Return From Leave
During VESSA leave, employees will be required to maintain contact with Knox to verify their
status and their intent to return to work. The employee is responsible for timely requesting any
desired extension of a previously-approved VESSA leave. Extension of a leave should be
requested, if practicable, at least forty-eight hours before the expiration of the initial leave.
An employee who timely returns from VESSA leave will generally be reinstated to the same
position that the employee would have held had the employee not taken leave, or to an equivalent
position with equivalent benefits, pay and other terms and conditions of employment. An
employee’s use of VESSA leave will not result in the loss of any employment benefit that the
employee earned or was entitled to before using VESSA leave.
However, an employee has no greater right to reinstatement or to other benefits and conditions of
employment than if Knox had continuously employed the employee during the VESSA period.
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Therefore, an employee who would have been terminated, laid off or reassigned had he or she been
on active status may not be reinstated.
• Reasonable Accommodation
Knox will provide reasonable accommodations to otherwise qualified employees who have known
limitations resulting from circumstances relating to being a victim of domestic or sexual violence,
as defined below, unless doing so would impose an undue hardship upon the operations of Knox.
Employees who require a reasonable accommodation under this policy should notify Knox and
must cooperate with Knox’s efforts to determine whether an accommodation is necessary, and, if
so, to identify an appropriate accommodation.
• Confidentiality
Knox will comply with VESSA’s requirements regarding the confidentiality of information relating
to an employee’s request for leave or accommodation under this policy.
• Prohibited Conduct
Knox will not tolerate discrimination or harassment against any employee because of such
employee’s actual or perceived status as a victim of domestic or sexual violence, or family or
household member of a victim of domestic or sexual violence. Employees who feel that they have
been subjected to discrimination or harassment in violation of this policy must immediately report
such discrimination or harassment.
Additionally, Knox will neither retaliate nor tolerate any form of retaliation against any employee
for making a good-faith request for leave or accommodation under this policy or exercising any
right under VESSA. If any employee believes that he or she has been retaliated against for
exercising his or her rights under this policy or the FMLA, the employee must report such conduct.
Because false accusations may have serious impact upon the person accused, an employee who
makes a complaint that he or she knows to be false will be subject to disciplinary action, up to and
including termination of employment.
• Management’s Responsibilities
Supervisory personnel who are notified that an employee requires leave or a reasonable
accommodation for the reasons specified above must notify Human Resources. Supervisors must
cooperate with the Office of Human Resources with respect to the administration of this policy.
Bereavement Leave
Knox provides paid bereavement leave to benefit-eligible employees when needed due to the death of
an immediate family member.
If you are eligible, you may take up to five working days off with pay to handle family affairs and
attend the funeral. For purposes of this policy, an “immediate family member” means your
partner/spouse, parent, stepparent, sibling, child, stepchild or grandchild, or any of these relationships
by marriage or domestic partnership. In addition, the employee may use up to five days of accrued
sick leave if additional time is needed for bereavement of the aforementioned family members. Three
days is allotted for parent-in-law, step parent-in-law, grandparent, or step-grandparent. One day with
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pay may be taken in the event of a death of other relatives. The College may grant time off, without
pay, to attend the funeral of closer friends and neighbors. Personal or vacation time may be used for
this purpose and will require supervisor approval.
In the event of a death of an employee’s child, the College will provide the employee with leave in
accordance with the Illinois Child Bereavement Act. Under the Act an employee may receive up to a
maximum of two weeks (10 working days) of unpaid bereavement leave. An employee who
experiences the death of more than one child during a twelve-month period may be entitled to up to six
weeks of bereavement time. Employees who are otherwise eligible for paid leave (e.g., vacation,
personal days, etc.) may use such paid leave concurrently with any unpaid leave under this provision.
Disability or Personal Leave
The following conditions and procedures apply to any leave of absence not expressly provided for
elsewhere in this handbook.
The College reserves full discretion to determine whether to grant a disability or personal leave, unless
such leave is required by applicable law. Requests for leaves of absence under this policy will be
evaluated based upon all relevant factors including the employee’s personal situation, the College’s
business needs, the effect of the leave on the College’s operations, and the likelihood that the leave
will enable the employee to successfully return to work at the College.
• Personal Leave
Personal leaves may be provided for miscellaneous reasons of an unusual type. Employees
requesting personal leaves must give adequate advance notice before the start date of the leave.
Employees must use all accrued PTO during the personal leave. The use of PTO or any other paid
time off does not extend the leave beyond the length of time originally approved.
• Disability Leave
Disability leave may be granted where a health care provider certifies that an employee is unable to
work due to illness, injury, accident, or other qualified condition (including pregnancy and
childbirth). In order to apply for such a leave, the employee and the employee’s health care
provider must submit proper documentation. The College may require further certification of the
employee’s inability to work from a health care provider at any time during the leave, and may also
require the employee to be examined by another health care provider selected by the College.
Employees on disability leave will not be permitted to return to work until they have submitted a
written release to return to work from the employee’s health care provider.
Unless specifically designated otherwise, leaves of absence under this policy are unpaid.
Employees requesting a leave must apply in advance. If the leave request is granted, the College
will continue to provide group health insurance benefits to currently-covered employees during the
leave at the employee’s expense. The employee must make arrangements with College for advance
payment of the health insurance premium for the leave period. Except to the extent required by
applicable law, no other benefits will be paid or accrue during the leave period, and no paid time
off will be provided.
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Leaves of any type will generally not be extended beyond twelve (12) months from the employee’s
last day of work. Employees on a leave who do not return to work on or before the expiration of the
twelve (12) month period will be terminated from employment with the College, unless a moderate
extension of this period constitutes a reasonable accommodation for a disability as defined by
applicable law, or unless otherwise required by law. Employees terminated under this provision can
reapply for employment with the College at a future date if they wish, but future employment with
the College is not guaranteed.
Employees who fail to return from leave on the date approved by College without applying for an
extension of leave will be regarded as having voluntarily resigned their employment with the
College effective as of the last day actually worked. Employees who return from a leave on the
date approved by the College may be restored to their former job, or to a comparable job, if
available. If the employee’s former job or comparable job is no longer available, the employee may
be assigned to any other job, provided there is an open position and the employee has the skill and
ability to perform the job. If the College determines that conditions do not allow the reinstatement
of the employee to any position, then the employee will be terminated.
Any employee who engages in fraud, misrepresentation, or who provides false information to
College, its insurance carrier or to a health care professional in connection with any leave or leave
request, or holds other employment during the leave without prior approval of College, will be
immediately terminated.
Employees on approved leave will not be charged with absences for the days missed during the
leave. Employees who wish to apply for a leave of absence or want information about leaves and
leave request forms should contact the Office of Human Resources. Leaves must have appropriate
advance approval to be valid.
Other Employee Benefits
403(b) Employee Savings Plan
As an important piece of its overall wage and benefit package, College offers a 403(b) savings plan for
eligible employees. Details and enrollment information will be provided to eligible employees upon
hire. For more information, please contact the Office of Human Resources.
Employee Assistance Program
The College offers an Employee Assistance Program that can provide you with assistance and referrals
for a wide range of issues, such as child care, elder care, housing, drug and alcohol problems, and
others. You can contact the EAP directly at (800) 383-7900.
Group Benefits Package
The College offers a variety of benefits to eligible employees, including coverage under the College’s
group health insurance plan. Detailed information regarding coverage option will be provided to
eligible employees. Please contact Human Resources for further information.
Social Security and Medicare
The College also matches your weekly mandatory contributions to the federally-funded Social Security
and Medicare programs. These programs provide income and medical benefits in the event of
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disability or retirement. Additional information regarding these benefits can be obtained from your
local Social Security Office.
Unemployment Compensation
Under certain circumstances, state and federal law may provide you with income during periods of
unemployment. The College pays for this protection as required by applicable law.
Workers’ Compensation
The College provides a comprehensive Workers’ Compensation insurance program at no cost to
employees. This program covers most injuries or illnesses sustained in the course of employment that
require medical, surgical or hospital treatment. Subject to applicable legal requirements, workers’
compensation insurance provides benefits after a short waiting period or, if the employee is
hospitalized, immediately.
Employees who sustain work-related injuries or illnesses should inform their supervisor immediately.
Failure to notify the College of a work-related injury as soon as possible may result in disciplinary
action up to and including termination.
Neither the College nor the insurance carrier will be liable for the payment of workers’ compensation
benefits for injuries that occur during an employee’s voluntary participation in any off-duty
recreational, social or athletic activity sponsored by the College.
Employee Conduct and Performance
General Standards
The College strives to provide a safe and pleasant workplace and expects all employees to observe the
College’s rules and policies and to respect their fellow employees and management. If an employee
engages in inappropriate conduct or exhibits unsatisfactory performance, the employee will be subject
to corrective action. Corrective action is generally issued in the form of a warning, an unpaid
suspension from work, or immediate termination. An employee may also be placed on probation,
during which specific conduct and/or performance expectations must be satisfied. The College will
determine the appropriate level of corrective action in each situation depending upon all pertinent
circumstances, including the severity of the offense, the employee’s previous work record and length
of service, disciplinary action taken in other comparable situations, and any mitigating or aggravating
factors. Any misconduct or infraction of a College policy may result in immediate termination. There
is no requirement that an employee receive a warning or suspension before being terminated. Where
action short of termination is deemed appropriate by management, corrective action is not intended to
punish for punishment’s sake, but rather to serve as a method to modify or change the behavior of an
employee whose performance or conduct does not meet the College’s standards.
While a complete list of all potential misconduct is not practical, the following are examples of
conduct that will result in corrective action, up to and including immediate termination:
• Being threatening, intimidating, disrespectful, or assaulting any member of the College
community.
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• Theft of cash or property of any member of the College community or anyone else on College
property.
• Violation of safety rules or failure to use safety devices as instructed.
• Abuse, damage, or destruction of College property or the property of anyone else present on the
College’s premises.
• Operating a vehicle on College premises or while conducting College business without a current
and valid driver’s license and required insurance.
• Failing to immediately report a lost or misplaced key (to College or to a vehicle) or duplicating or
loaning a key for any reason.
• Any violation of the College’s ethics and conflict of interest policies.
• Possession of a firearm or weapon in your car or on your person on College property.
• Dishonesty, including but not limited to falsifying any information or providing incomplete
information to College either verbally or on any College record, report, employment application,
benefit application, time report or any other document.
• Fighting on College property.
• Gambling on College property.
• Engaging in or attempting to commit any unlawful act on College property; such matters will also
be referred to criminal authorities where appropriate.
• Defacing, destroying or removing signs, notices, postings or other literature posted by the College.
• Failure to report job-related injuries when they occur, no matter how slight, or falsely reporting or
filing workers’ compensation injury claims.
• Conducting personal business during working time.
• Engaging in pranks or horseplay.
• Poor work performance.
• Absenteeism or tardiness.
• Sleeping while on duty.
• Waste or unauthorized personal use of College equipment or supplies.
• Violation of College policies regarding equal employment opportunity or harassment.
• Failure to comply with any other policy or procedure set forth in this Handbook, or any policy or
procedure otherwise communicated by College.
Again, the above list is intended only to provide examples of conduct that will result in corrective
action. It is not all-inclusive, and employees may be subject to discipline up to and including
termination for any misconduct in the workplace, in the sole judgment of management.
Attendance
To fulfill our obligation to our students, and in fairness to your fellow employees, you are expected to
report for work when scheduled. Punctuality and regular attendance are essential to the proper
operation of the College. A good attendance record also helps you establish a good working reputation
and increases your opportunities for advancement. Because of your importance to the College, any
unauthorized absence presents a hardship. Excessive, repeated absenteeism or tardiness is not
acceptable.
Absence for three consecutive days with no notice to College will be considered a voluntary
resignation and will result in termination of employment. In addition, if you fail to report your absence
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in advance, you may not be eligible for paid leave for the day(s) missed. Repeated absences or
tardiness may result in disciplinary action, up to and including termination, even if you call to report
the absence or tardiness. In addition to providing the basis for disciplinary action, absenteeism and
tardiness may be considered in determining wage or salary adjustments, bonuses, eligibility for
promotion, and other benefits of employment.
Confidentiality
Like any organization, the College must maintain confidentiality of various records and proprietary
information, including but not limited to information relating to students, alumni, employees, donors,
and other members of the College community. The College requires that all employees keep and
maintain any and all confidential information in the strictest of confidence. Additionally, all employees
are strictly prohibited from using, copying, or disclosing confidential information except as necessary
to perform their job duties for the College. Furthermore, employees are prohibited from removing
confidential information from College premises or transmitting or downloading any confidential
information to their personal computers, cellular telephones, or other electronic devices, unless they
receive specific authorization from College in advance.
Confidential information includes: all student records; confidential personnel files and other
information regarding employees that the College is obligated to maintain as confidential, such as
employee medical information; donor records and information; attorney-client privileged information;
and any other information designated as confidential by the administration of the College or the Board
of Trustees. This policy does not preclude you from disclosing, if you choose to do so, records or
information regarding your own employment, or from discussing terms or conditions of employment
with other employees.
All employees are expected to strictly comply with this important policy both during and after their
employment with College and are further expected to return any and all confidential information in
their possession or control immediately upon termination of their employment with College.
As a condition of employment, employees will also be required to sign a separate agreement with the
College regarding the protection of College information. Violation of this agreement will also be
ground for discipline, up to and including termination of employment.
Conflict of Interest
In order to maintain a sense of fairness among all employees and with our vendors and customers, and
to avoid the appearance of impropriety, we have established the following rules and procedures to
prevent a conflict of interest:
While you are employed by the College, you may not have a financial or ownership interest in an
outside concern that does business with the College, except where the ownership consists of securities
of a publicly-owned College regularly traded on a public stock market. Similarly, you may not be a
director, supervisor, employee or consultant of, or render services to, any outside concern that does
business the College without advance written approval from Human Resources.
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You should not accept gifts or other goods or services of more than nominal value from any vendor
that provides goods or services to the College. If you have questions on whether a gift, goods, or
services is acceptable, please discuss with your supervisor or Human Resources.
If you have any questions about this Conflict of Interest policy, you should contact Human
Resources. If you think you may have a conflict that is prohibited by this policy, it is your
responsibility to notify Human Resources of the conflict. If there is an actual or apparent conflict, you
may be required to take appropriate action, such as declining or discontinuing competing employment,
to resolve the conflict as a condition of maintaining your employment. Violating this policy may result
in discipline up to and including termination of employment.
Dress and Grooming
All employees are expected to report to work dressed in clean, professional-looking attire appropriate
for their job duties. Employees who fail to observe these guidelines may be required to leave work
until they can return appropriately attired and groomed.
Additionally, employees may be expected to wear traditional business attire for certain events. Consult
with your supervisor if you have any questions about what attire is appropriate.
Driving on College Business
All employees who drive on College business are required to have and maintain a valid driver’s license
as a condition of employment with the College. If your driver’s license is suspended or lost, you are
required to immediately notify the College. If your job duties require you to drive, the suspension or
revocation of your driver’s license may result in termination of your employment.
Employees are not permitted to drive College vehicles without advance authorization from their
supervisor. If you drive a College vehicle as part of your work-related duties, the College will
reimburse you for tolls paid or other reasonable expenses incurred.
While driving on College business, employees are required to comply with all applicable traffic laws
and regulations, including posted speed limits. Any citation or fine issued to an employee while
driving College-owned vehicle is the responsibility of the employee and will not be reimbursed by the
College.
While driving on College business, employees should avoid any situation which may lead to distracted
driving, including but not limited to: eating, talking on mobile phones, texting, sending or reading e-
mail, or otherwise using any mobile electronic device, even if such use is permitted by local traffic
laws.
Drugs and Alcohol
The federal government has enacted two phases of legislation aimed at preventing substance abuse.
The first phase, called The Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988, requires Knox College to establish a
policy on drug use by employees, including student employees, and to take additional steps toward
maintaining a drug-free workplace. The second phase of legislation, called The Drug Free Schools and
Communities Act Amendments of 1989, requires the College to implement a program aimed at
preventing the use of illicit drugs and the abuse of alcohol. We have adopted policies and related
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programs, which comply with the legislation, as a prerequisite to receiving any federal funds,
including grants, contracts, and participation in federally funded or guaranteed student loan programs.
• Purpose and Goal
The College is committed to protecting the safety, health and wellbeing of all members of the
College community. We recognize that alcohol abuse and drug use pose a significant threat
to our goals. We have established a drug-free workplace program that balances our respect for
individuals with the need to maintain an alcohol and drug-free environment.
We encourage employees to voluntarily seek help with drug and alcohol problems. If you or someone
you love needs help with a substance abuse problem, you can contact the Employee Assistance
Program: Precedence Inc., (800) 383-7900
• Prohibited Conduct - Drugs
No employee may use, possess, manufacture, distribute, sell, purchase, or be under the influence of
illegal drugs during working hours, while on College premises, while conducting any business for
the College, in any College vehicle, while traveling in connection with College business, or at any
other time or place that may affect their employment with the College or College’s business or
operations.
Illegal drugs are those drugs or controlled substances the possession of which is unlawful under
federal, state, or local law, and includes prescription drugs obtained without a lawful prescription
or that are used in a manner inconsistent with prescription directions.
The legal use of prescribed drugs is permitted on the job so long as it does not impair an
employee's ability to safely and effectively perform the essential functions of the job.
• Alcohol
Employees are free to drink alcohol, if they choose, on their personal time, so long as this does not
affect their work for the College. However, employees should be aware of the potential negative
health effects of alcohol consumption. Consult the EAP for further information.
Employees are prohibited from reporting to work or working with alcohol in their system such that
their performance or conduct is impaired. Alcohol use off-the-job that impairs performance or
conduct on-the-job is prohibited.
The College may sponsor or employees may attend gatherings or events at which alcoholic
beverages are available, such as holiday parties or customer receptions. Responsible, moderate
consumption of alcohol at a College-sanctioned gathering or event where alcoholic beverages are
offered will not be regarded as a violation of this policy. However, the consumption of alcohol is
never required and employees may always elect non-alcoholic beverage options. Employees who
consume alcohol at business-related or College-sponsored gathering or event must behave
professionally and appropriately at all times, and must obey all applicable laws and ordinances.
Being under the influence of alcohol will not constitute an excuse for any inappropriate conduct,
poor work performance or violations of College policies or the law. Employees who have
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consumed alcohol at such a gathering or event may not perform any work for the College or
operate any College-owned or leased vehicle or equipment while under the influence of alcohol.
Knox College strictly prohibits serving alcohol to individuals under 21 years of age. Employees
who are under the age of 21 are strictly prohibited from possessing or consuming alcohol on
campus or at any College-sponsored event, regardless of location. Any College employee who
provides or serves alcohol to a person who is under 21 years of age will be subject to discipline, up
to and including termination of employment.
• Notification of Convictions
Any employee who is convicted of a criminal drug violation in the workplace must notify the
College in writing within five calendar days of the conviction. The College will take appropriate
action within 30 days of notification.
Housekeeping
We take pride in the appearance of our facilities. Each employee is expected to do their part to
maintain the cleanliness of our campus and buildings and to maintain a neat work area. In addition,
you should take proper care of your computer any other office or desk equipment.
Please keep your desk or work area free of files when you leave for the evening. We ask that each
employee be responsible for cleaning their office, desk equipment or work area on a regular basis.
Please make certain that your desk or work area is in good order so that the job of the cleaning service
is made easier. Don't leave anything on the floor. If you wish, place all your work materials on the top
of your desk; the cleaning service will generally not disturb the surface of your desk.
Knox Information Security Policy
• Purpose of Policy
Information and information systems are critical college resources and assets. Knox College has
adopted these information and computing policies to safeguard the College’s constituents,
investments, to preserve the confidence and goodwill of the Knox Community and to comply with
state and federal law.
• Policy
The protected data and information maintained by the College must be handled and managed in
accordance with state and federal law and College policy. All employees are expected to know and
adhere to this policy and other policies and procedures incorporated by reference. Violations may
lead to revocation of system access privileges and/or disciplinary action including termination of
employment.
The use of any Knox College data or information, in any format, for any purpose other than
conducting College business is strictly forbidden. Unacceptable uses include sharing the data with
groups, organizations, or activities that are not College sponsored or approved, use of data for
personal gain, use of data to satisfy personal curiosity, removing data or reports from the campus
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except in the required performance of College duties, or use by individuals outside of their normal
job responsibilities.
• Procedures
Knox College utilizes access controls, audit records, and other physical and technical security
measures to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of the College’s information.
Information can be stored and transmitted in a variety of ways, including but
not limited to email, portable electronic storage devices, paper files, audio or video files, fax,
telephone, and interpersonal communications. The College owns all data, produced, stored, or
processed, by information systems owned or operated by or on behalf of the college. While the
College maintains ownership of data, individual operating units or departments may have
stewardship responsibilities for particular portions of that data or data sets.
Employees who access or create data and information must follow guidelines and procedures for
Securing College Data. Whenever possible, paper files should not contain protected or confidential
data. When it is absolutely necessary, paper files must be attended or kept in a secured, locked area
and disposed of properly (shredded) when no longer required. Protected or confidential data should
not be taken off campus without permission of the assigned area’s information security liaison.
When taken off campus it should be never be left unattended. If absolutely necessary to leave in a
vehicle, it must be secured in the trunk or locked compartment inside the vehicle.
• Notifications for Data Breach of Personal Information:
Illinois Personal Protection Act (815 ILCS 530) requires that “Any data collector that owns or
licenses personal information concerning an Illinois resident shall notify the resident at no charge
that there has been a breach of the security of the system data following discovery or notification of
the breach. The disclosure notification shall be made in the most expedient time possible and
without unreasonable delay, consistent with any measures necessary to determine the scope of the
breach and restore the reasonable integrity, security, and confidentiality of the data system.”
The law defines “personal information” as: “an individual’s first name or first initial and last name
in combination with any one or more of the following data elements, when either the name or the
data elements is not encrypted:
o Social Security number;
o driver’s license number or state identification card number; or
o account number or credit or debit card number, in combination with any required security code,
access code, or password that would permit access to an individual’s financial account.
o Medical Information.
o Health Insurance Information.
OR
o A username or e-mail address, when in combination with a password or security question and
answer would permit access to an online account….”
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If an employee of Knox College has reason to believe personal information or any other type of
protected or confidential data may have been been improperly disclosed, the steps in this Data
Incident Response Plan should be followed immediately.
• Types of Protected or Confidential Data:
Knox College classifies data into three categories:
o Protected: The unintended disclosure of Protected Information may cause the College to
become subject to litigation, fines, substantial financial harm, the inability to participate in
some federal and state sponsored programs, and severe or irreparable harm to the reputation of
the institution. Protected data is defined, it’s appropriate use, and standards for protection are
delineated by state and federal regulations such as FERPA, HIPAA, GLBA, Illinois Personal
Protection Act and others. Data elements in this group include, but are not limited to, Personal
Information, social security numbers, student ID numbers, credit card numbers, medical
information, bank account numbers, grades, date and/or location of birth, driver’s license
information, ACH (automated clearing house) numbers, tax return information, credit rating,
income history, loan payment history, passport information, and coursework.
o Confidential: The unintended disclosure of Confidential data may result in harm or
embarrassment to an individual or group of individuals. This data is not protected under state or
federal regulations. However, Knox College has determined that this information be private and
be accessed only by those with authorized access and a business reason to access it. This data
may include employee evaluation data, salary information, employee ID numbers, review files,
or statistical studies of Knox College constituents that has not been sufficiently disaggregated
to prevent the discovery of the identity of those in the study sample.
o Public Data: This data that is created and maintained by the College that may be disclosed to
the public.
• Other Related Knox College Policies, Procedures, Federal Regulation for Protected or
Confidential Data:
o Securing Campus Data
Office Responsible: Information Technology Services
Program Coordinator: Mike Cokel, Systems Administrator
Summary: Knox guidance for protecting electronic information and account access
o Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA)
Office Responsible: Financial Aid
Program Coordinator: Leigh Brinson, Director of Student Financial Services
Summary: To protect consumer information from threats in security and data integrity.
o Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA)
Office Responsible: Registrar’s Office
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Program Coordinator: Registrar
Summary: Educational Institutions must grant and protect certain rights relating to educational
records.
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o Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
Office Responsible: Finance and Administrative Services
Program Coordinator: Paul Eisenmenger, Vice President of Finance and Administrative
Services
Summary: To protect the privacy of personal health information
o Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards (PCI DSS)
Office Responsible: Finance and Administrative Services
Program Coordinator: Allyson Curry, Staff Accountant
Summary: Anyone who processes credit card payments must follow laws set by credit card
companies.
o Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA)/Red Flag Rules
Office Responsible: Finance and Administrative Services
Program Coordinator: Sara King, Controller
Summary: We must be able to detect red flags for identity theft in instances where we issue
credit.
o Copyright Laws
Office Responsible: Dean of College
Program Coordinator: Faculty
Summary: All employees of the College are expected to follow laws that protect copyrights.
Securing College Data
This document is intended to provide guidelines to safeguard digital data. All employees are expected
to know and adhere to the policies that safeguard digital information and data in order to comply with
state and federal regulations, as well as College policies.
• Assignment of Information Security Liaison
Each office, department, or division that has access to Protected or Confidential Data (PCD) shall
appoint an individual to serve as the Information Security Liaison. This individual is responsible
for managing the access to Protected and Confidential data and ensuring that PCD within their
office area is maintained in compliance with State and Federal regulation and College policy. This
individual shall be responsible for determining the need for and coordinating access to PCD for
individuals within their respective office. The Security Liaison will conduct an annual audit and
review of their respective area for:
o Physical security. (Require a use of locked file cabinets, locked offices, etc.) o Employee
training o Use of encryption for electronic transmission of protected or confidential data o
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Annual review with employees of incident response and reporting program o Proper disposal
methods used to destroy protected or confidential information.
• Employee Responsibilities
Individuals who are given rights to access or use college data are responsible for maintaining the
privacy of PCD. An individual granted access to PCD agrees to abide by College policy and state
or federal law and regulations governing access to, use, and protection of such data. All individuals
with access to PCD shall be required to complete annual training in order to retain access to PCD,
network and computer access to Knox resources. New employees shall be required to complete
training within 30 days of beginning work at Knox. Failure to comply with training requirements
shall result in immediate suspension of network and computer access to Knox resources.
To maintain security of the College’s data and information the college retains the authority to:
o restrict or revoke any user’s privileges,
o inspect, copy, remove, or otherwise alter any data, program, or other system resource that may
undermine these objectives, and
o take any other steps deemed necessary to manage and protect its information systems and the
data and information held within those systems.
This authority may be exercised with or without notice to the involved users. Knox College
disclaims any responsibility for loss or damage to data or software that results from its efforts to
meet these security objectives.
Procedures
• Inventory of Protected and Confidential Data
Offices and departments that store or process Protected or Confidential data shall document and
provide an annual report of the data they have access to, individuals in their respective areas that
have access, provide a risk assessment, and summary of business processes and associated security
safeguards to the chairperson of the Information Systems Council on or about August 1st. The
chairperson of the Information Systems Council shall deliver an annual report and inventory of
Protected and Confidential Data to the Chief Information Officer annually, on or about October
1st.
• File and Information Privacy
All information residing on, provided by or derived from Knox resources , on Knox servers,
computing and server resources an under contractual obligation to College, desktop or laptop
computers , mobile devices, electronic or optical storage media is considered College property.
Individuals accessing Knox systems and networks from any device consent to the monitoring and
auditing of their activities in the course of systems maintenance or security related investigation as
prescribed in the Knox College Policy for Acceptable Use of Information Technology Resources.
In order to conduct the College’s business and assure compliance with College policies and the
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law, the College may need to monitor or review digitally stored information. If such monitoring
reveals possible evidence of criminal activity, the College may provide it to law enforcement.
• Cloud Storage and Computing Services
The Internet is sometimes referred to as the “cloud” and “cloud computing” is the array of Internet-
based services, often available to the public, for gathering, storing, processing and sharing
information. Some cloud services, such as those offered by Apple or Google, may be free to end-
users. For the general user who wants a convenient, Internet-based solution for storing or sharing
personal information, cloud computing may provide a reasonable option. College information must
not be stored, shared, or otherwise processed by a cloud computing service unless the service
enters into a legally binding agreement with Knox College to protect and manage the data
according to standards and procedures acceptable to the College. If you are unsure if a service has a
relationship with Knox College contact Information Technology Services.
Should you ever need to store or share Knox information in a manner that is not currently provided
by Knox, contact Information Technology Services and an attempt will be made to devise a
solution or procure a solution that will meet this need.
• Data Storage Guidelines
The table below provides guidance on various classifications of digital information and permissible
locations where it may be stored. Policy and Guidance for secure storage of physical documents
and information is delegated to the security liaison overseeing the functional area.
Protected
Information
Confidential
Information
Public
Information
Knox Sponsored Cloud
Services
x
x
x
Knox Departmental Disk and
Document Storage
x
x
x
Knox Provided Personal
Computer
x
x
Personal equipment and
Mobile devices
x
Examples of Knox Sponsored Cloud Services are Google Drive, Slate, CSO, and other similar
cloud based services to which Knox has a formal contractual arrangement for services. Knox
Departmental Disk and Document Storage are servers provided by Knox College Information
Technology Services that are available on the Internet or campus network. These systems include
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the Jenzabar CX and JX systems, the Knox Department File Server (departments.knox.edu) and the
Knox Docushare Server (docushare.knox.edu). Knox provided personal computers furnished by the
College to employees. These may be either desktop or laptop devices computing devices. Personal
equipment and mobile devices should not be used to store Protected or Confidential information.
These devices may use other services to access Protected and Confidential information.
Smartphones, tablets and computers used to access College data from home are examples of this
type of equipment.
Data Incident Response Plan
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• The Importance of Securing Electronic Data
Much of the data stored or transmitted via Knox’s computing equipment and network is
confidential. Unauthorized access to this data may constitute a violation of federal statutes such as
the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), the Health Insurance Portability and
Accountability Act (HIPAA), Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA) and other laws and College
policies designed to protect privacy. A breach in data security that compromises personal
information can lead to identity theft, putting members of the Knox community at risk and
exposing the College to litigation. Unauthorized access to other confidential data, though not
usable for identity theft, may nonetheless have serious legal, financial, or public relations
implications for the College.
• Preventing Data Breaches
The duty to secure protected or confidential data (PCD) is shared by all members of the Knox
community. PCD should not be accessed, copied, stored, downloaded, transmitted, or used unless
it is essential for College business. When PCD is no longer required it should be securely disposed
of. Every effort should be made within and between offices and departments to minimize the
volume and numbers of copies of PCD.
PCD should not be stored on laptops or other mobile devices for longer than necessary and should
be encrypted at all times. Devices and physical storage devices that contain PCD, whether mobile
or not, should be secured by authentication, encryption, and/or well as by physical means (security
cables, locked cabinets, etc.). PCD should be under the physical control of the custodian at all
times. If it is required that PCD be left unattended, it should be securely stored in a locked
container such as a hotel room safe, trunk or glove compartment of an automobile.
Care should be taken to ensure PCD is not left unattended or unsecured on desks, work surfaces
and computer screens. When leaving an area, lock the computer, remove PCD from work surface
and store in locked container, or close and lock the door of the office.
• The Chain of Responsibility
Under certain circumstances, confidential electronic data –– such as student names, email
addresses, or other information –– may need to be conveyed to individuals or groups who are not
employees of the College. These may be vendors, contractors, professional organizations,
(internal) student organizations, or others. In these circumstances, the College must require the
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recipient of the data to abide by the same (or stricter) guidelines to protect the data from
unauthorized access or abuse. This chain of responsibility must extend to any third parties (or
beyond) to whom the confidential data might be further conveyed.
Individuals and offices who are stewards or custodians of PCD shall have sufficient knowledge of
the volume, access methods, location, and nature of the data in their care to assist in determining
the scope of a breach. For example, the volume and type of PCD exposed, storage location and
access methods to the PCD, and details on method of storage (encrypted or clear text).
• Responding to Digital Data Security Breaches
Despite explicit guidelines for securing confidential electronic data, breaches may still occur. At
such times, it is important that the College respond as quickly and professionally as possible.
Computer thefts, should be reported immediately to the Director of Campus Safety (x7979 or 309-
341-7979). Campus Safety will assess the nature of the breach and will secure and attempt
recovery of any physical assets.
Campus Safety will notify the Vice President for Information Technology Services, Vice
President for Finance and Administrative Services, and the Vice President for Communications of
any suspected data breach. These individuals will determine the appropriate response and may
utilize the Breach Response Guidelines and Procedure outlined in this document.
• Breach Response Guidelines and Procedure
1. Documentation (Campus Safety)
• identification of the person reporting the breach (name, contact info, etc.)
• basis for belief that a breach has occurred
• location, timeframe, equipment, and/or other details of breach
• preliminary identification of confidential data that may be at risk
• identification and recovery of physical assets
2. Communication
• Vice President for Communications
• Vice President for Information Technology Services
• Vice President for Finance and Administrative Services
• Director of Campus Safety (physical access to facilities and/or physical assets)
• President and other senior officers (depending on sensitivity, scope of nature of data
exposed)
• Legal counsel (depending on sensitivity and scope of data exposed)
• Law enforcement (depending on the nature/scope of theft)
• Beazley (Data Breach insurer and access to services retained by Knox to assist with breach
notification and forensics)
• If credit card data has been breached, notify bankcard holder within 24 hours of confirmed
breach discovery
3. Investigation
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• Identify if there is an ongoing vulnerability and take immediate steps to redress
• Conduct preliminary forensic analysis. Retain outside assistance as required.
• Prepare inventory of data at risk
• Determine if exposed data were encrypted
• Identify security measures that were defeated and by what means
4. Assessment
• Identify affected individuals at risk of identity theft or other harm
• Assess financial, legal, regulatory, operational, reputational and other potential institutional
risks
5. Remediation
• Implement password changes and other security measures to prevent further data exposure
• Determine if corrupted data can be restored from backups; take appropriate steps recover
data and restore business functions.
• Determine if risk associated with exposed data can be neutralized by changing account
access, ID information, or other measures
6. Notification
Based on regulatory requirements and other factors, Senior Officers, in consultation with legal
counsel if needed, determine whether notifications are required (or advisable) for:
• Government agencies
• Affected individuals
• Knox community
• Business partners
• Public
If Senior Officers determine that notifications are needed:
• The Vice President for Information Technology Services will notify Beazley who will
coordinate notifications to affected individuals. Unless directed otherwise by law
enforcement, such notifications will be made without delay.
• The Vice President for Finance and Administrative Services will notify government
agencies and business partners.
• The Vice President for Communications will coordinate notifications to the Knox
community, the public, and others as necessary.
Communications will address the following points:
• Nature and scope of breach
• General circumstances of the breach (e.g., stolen laptop, hacked account or database
etc.)
• Approximate timeline (e.g., date of breach discovery)
• Steps the college has taken to investigate and assess the breach
• Any involvement of law enforcement or other third parties
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• Appraisal of any misuse of the missing data
• College-provided credit-watch service for affected individuals (1-2 years)
• Beazley steps taken on behalf of affected individuals
• Steps that the College is taking to prevent future breaches of this nature
Post-Incident Follow-Up
In the wake of a data security breach, Knox will:
• Ensure that missing data cannot be used to access further information or cause harm in
other ways to Knox’s electronic or other resources
• Pursue with law enforcement all reasonable means to recover lost data and equipment
• Review and modify as needed all procedures and policies governing security policy and
procedure, systems and software management procedures, access to information, etc., to
prevent future data breaches of a similar nature
• Take appropriate corrective or punitive actions if staff negligence or behavior
contributed to the incident
Media Policy
The photographers and videographers in the Office of Communications serve two primary purposes—
to capture and share the Knox experience with the College's many constituents and to document the
life of the College for our archives. Staff and students working in Communications may take photos
and audio or video recordings to be used on the Knox College website and other digital
communications, in print publications, and for publicity purposes.
• Opt-Out Policy
All Knox College students, faculty, staff, or visitors who do NOT want their image/photograph
and/or video presence captured and used for communications, marketing, or publicity purposes
have the opportunity to opt out. Each person entering Knox College as a student or employee is
required to review the Media Opt-Out Form linked below and, if the student or employee wishes to
opt out, submit the completed form to the Office of Communications. This policy is effective
immediately. Please be advised that images and videos taken in public spaces and/or at public
events do not require authorization for publication and the Media Opt-Out Form does not apply to
such images or videos.
Media Release Opt-Out Form (PDF)
When a completed Media Opt-Out Form is on file, the College will make every effort to honor that
individual's Opt-Out status. Individuals who submit a completed Media Opt-Out Form are also
responsible for removing themselves from areas in which photography and/or recording is taking
place, or notifying the camera operator of their opt-out status. Failure to do so may result in that
individual's inclusion in a photograph or recording and may be treated as consent for the College to
utilize that photograph or recording accordingly.
• Campus-Wide Events
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The media opt-out policy applies to individuals who attend special events on the Knox
College campus, including Admission open houses, Homecoming, and Family & Friends
Weekend. Individuals who do not wish to have their image recorded can fill out the Media Opt-Out
Form and return it directly to the Office of Communications.
Individuals who submit a completed Media Opt-Out Form are also responsible for removing
themselves from areas in which photography and/or recording is taking place, or notifying the
camera operator of their opt-out status. Failure to do so may result in that individual's inclusion in a
photograph or recording and may be treated as consent for the College to utilize that photograph or
recording accordingly.
Knox Cellular Services Policy
The College offers two programs to provide cellular phone access to employees whose duties or
responsibilities require that they have a cellular phone. For example, employees whose assigned duties
extend beyond the normal working day, need to be contacted or recalled to campus to respond to
critical situations, whose work does not allow them to utilize an office phone for business
communication, or whose positions require frequent travel are the most common examples of
employees nominated for the program. The College, at its option, may choose to provide an employee
a cellular phone, provide a cellular phone to be shared by employees fulfilling a role (e.g. on-duty
campus safety officers), or provide reimbursement to offset costs associated with business use of a
personal cell phone.
• Eligibility
Senior Staff will select staff members from their respective areas who are eligible for the program.
If the selected staff member is provided a cellular phone the Council member will also be
responsible for selecting the type/model of phone. If the staff member is to receive reimbursement
the Council member will be responsible for selecting the dollar amount of the reimbursement from
options offered by the program.
• Equipment Provided
The College will provide the phone, charger and car charger (if requested). All other equipment
including cases, extra chargers, Bluetooth accessories, and memory cards will not be provided and
are the responsibility of the employee. Council members may, at their discretion, provide
additional equipment funded from the appropriate departmental budget.
The ITS program administrator selects phones eligible for the program. This is done to ease the
burden of support as well as to provide cost containment. A phone that is not endorsed by the
program may be obtained by submitting a request to the ITS program administrator explaining the
business case for the particular model of phone. The requested phone will be provided at the
discretion of the ITS program administrator.
• Usage
The ITS program administrator monitors aggregate calling and data usage. The ITS program
administrator reserves the right to contact individual users in order to determine the nature of the
phone usage in cases of atypical or excessive usage. The President’s Council sponsor of the
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employee will be notified if such contact is to occur. The ITS program administrator may terminate
access to the program if, after consultation with the President’s Council sponsor, a usage issue is
identified and cannot be resolved. Replacement of lost or damaged equipment is at the discretion of
the ITS program administrator.
All phones provided by the program are the property of Knox College. Participation in the program
and the program itself may be terminated at any time at the discretion of the ITS program
administrator.
• Procedures
President’s Council members select employees to receive cell phones by completing cell phone
selection worksheet circulated at each cellular contract renewal term (2 years). Council members
may request a cell phone to be provided to an employee between renewal periods by contacting the
ITS program administrator.
President’s Council Members may select an employee to receive reimbursement by completing and
submitting a request for Cell Phone Reimbursement form. Please click the link to see further details
about the reimbursement program. Please contact the ITS program administrator when you submit this
form.
Employees who are nominated to receive reimbursement for cellular services are required to submit
and agree to the conditions outlined in the Employee Cell Phone Reimbursement Agreement. Please
click on the link to review this form. This form must be completed for each fiscal year reimbursement
is to be received.
When an employee who has been provided a program cell phone ends employment with the College all
provided equipment shall be returned to the ITS program administrator and will be reissued to fulfill
subsequent requests to provide cellular phones.
If a phone number of an employee leaving the College is to be retained or monitored after an employee
leaves, please contact the ITS program administrator to coordinate.
If a phone provided by the College is lost or stolen it is the responsibility of the individual provided the
phone to contact the ITS program administrator within 24 hours so that service can be terminated.
Knox College Policy on Acceptable Use of Information Technology
• General Principles
Access to information technology resources owned or operated by Knox College is a privilege and
imposes certain responsibilities and obligations, and is granted subject to College policies, and
local, state, and federal laws. Acceptable use always is ethical, reflects academic honesty, and
shows restraint in the consumption of shared resources. It demonstrates respect for intellectual
property, ownership of data, system security mechanisms, and individuals' rights to privacy and to
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freedom from intimidation and harassment. It does not bring the reputation of the College into
disrepute.
Information technology resources are defined as all computer-related equipment, computer
systems, software/network applications, interconnecting networks, facsimile machines, voice-mail
and other telecommunications facilities, as well as all information contained therein owned or
managed by Knox College.
Computers, networks, and communications equipment utilized by Knox College -- like other
property of the College -- are provided to support the educational mission of the College. Personal
use by students also is expected as part of the residential learning program. This policy applies to
all members of the Knox College community -- faculty, staff, students, alumni, and retirees.
Faculty and staff, however, differ from students in a few important ways. The primary purpose of
the equipment (or "business use") may include academic, administrative, research, co-curricular, or
other uses consistent with the position of the individual member of the faculty or staff, and may
vary widely. Faculty and staff may make personal use of the equipment. However, the following
points apply:
Personal use should not interfere or conflict with business use.
o The loading of games or other non-business related software that might interfere with the
normal operation of one's computer is prohibited.
o The use of College systems by faculty and staff for partisan political purposes is prohibited in
order to maintain and not jeopardize our charitable tax-exempt status. o As an employer and
the owner of the network and e-mail system, the College has the right and discretion to access
and copy employee email and other information stored on College owned equipment. As a
policy, the College respects the privacy of faculty and staff files, and will limit such access as
described in the section on "Electronic Privacy" below.
• Guidelines
In making acceptable use of resources, the user must:
o Protect his/her College network user ID and system from unauthorized use. The user is
responsible for all activities that originate from the user's College network user ID.
o Access only information that is his/her own, that is publicly available, or to which the user has
been given authorized access.
o Use only legal versions of copyrighted software in compliance with vendor license
requirements that have been reviewed and approved by the College.
o Be considerate in the use of shared resources. The user must refrain from monopolizing
systems, overloading with excessive data, degrading services, or wasting computer time,
connect time, disk space, printer paper, manuals, or other resources.
o Respect the privacy of other users.
o Respect intellectual property rights (e.g., as reflected in licenses and copyrights). Please also
see the College’s “Policy on Intellectual Property Ownership” in the Faculty Handbook, as well
as the “Guidelines for Fair Use of Copyrighted Material.”
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In making acceptable use of resources, the user must NOT:
o Access the College's network using another user's network ID and password, or access another
user's files or data without permission.
o Use computer programs to decode passwords or access control information. o Attempt to
circumvent or subvert system or network security measures.
o Engage in any activity that is intentionally harmful to systems or to any information stored
thereon, such as creating or propagating viruses, disrupting services, or damaging files or
making unauthorized modifications to College data.
o Use College systems for commercial purposes, such as using electronic mail to circulate
advertising for products or in any other way jeopardize the College's charitable, taxexempt
status.
o Make or use illegal copies of copyrighted software, store such copies on College systems, or
transmit them over College networks.
o Use mail or messaging services to harass or intimidate another person, for example, by
broadcasting unsolicited or anonymous messages, by repeatedly sending unwanted mail, or by
using someone else's name or user ID.
o Waste computing resources or network resources, for example, by intentionally placing a
program in an endless loop, printing excessive amounts of paper, or by sending chain letters or
unsolicited mass mailings.
o Use the College's systems or networks for personal gain; for example, by selling access to your
user ID or to College systems or networks, or by performing work for profit or personal
financial gain utilizing College resources in a manner not authorized by the College.
o Use College systems or networks for material or purposes that would violate college policies.
o Use College systems or networks for material or purposes that would violate state or federal
law.
o Engage in any other activity that does not comply with the General Principles presented above.
• Information Disclaimer
Knox College disclaims any responsibility and/or warranties for information and materials residing
on non-college systems or available over publicly accessible networks. Such materials do not
necessarily reflect the attitudes, opinions, or values of Knox College, its faculty, staff, students, or
trustees. Individuals using computer systems owned by Knox College do so subject to applicable
laws and College policies.
• ID and Passwords
Privileges to access College computers, systems, networks, and communications are tailored to
individual needs and responsibilities and are assigned via a unique user ID. Authentication is
required at the time of access through the use of passwords or authorization codes. The owner of a
user ID is accountable for its use. It is the ID owner's responsibility to protect the integrity of
accessible systems and preserve the confidentiality of accessible information as appropriate. o
Passwords should be managed solely by the owner of the user ID. o Passwords should remain
confidential.
o Passwords should be changed periodically and any time there is reason to suspect a password
has been compromised.
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o Passwords should be composed so they are not easily guessed:
○ They should not easily be associated with the ID owner such as the ID itself, family or pet
names, nicknames, phone numbers, etc. Deliberate misspellings of combined words are often a
good choice.
○ Previously used passwords should not be reused.
○ Words in (even unabridged) dictionaries or other character strings found in available lists should
be avoided.
○ Passwords should never be displayed, printed or otherwise recorded in an unsecured manner.
• Sensitive Areas of Research
The College recognizes that from time to time individuals may engage in areas of research that
might be sensitive, legally questionable, or might otherwise appear to violate law or College policy.
In order to protect themselves and the College, anyone who contemplates that their research may
be considered suspect in any way should notify the Vice President of
Academic Affairs/Dean of the College. Instructors are encouraged to consult the College’s
Institutional Review Board and the policy regarding “Investigations of Allegations of Research
Misconduct” (Appendix E of the Faculty Handbook).
• Electronic Privacy
The College respects the privacy of the members of the College community: faculty, staff, and
students. However, while the College will attempt to safeguard that privacy, the College cannot
guarantee that privacy will be absolute.
o By its nature electronic communication leaves records or logs of information that can be used
to trace problems.
o Some of these logs are --by the nature of the systems -- subject to review by any user of certain
systems.
o Transmitted information, such as e-mail messages, can easily be forwarded and copied by
recipients, and can (with specialized equipment) be read in transit.
o Personal systems attached to the network may have all or part of their data publicly available.
Even data that is password protected may be available if the password is too easily "hacked."
o Files stored in shared disc storage and on College servers are backed up regularly. This means
that information deleted by an individual may continue to be accessible in some form.
The College places a high value on privacy and recognizes its critical importance in an academic
setting. There are nonetheless circumstances in which, following carefully prescribed processes,
the College may determine that certain broad concerns outweigh the value of a user’s expectation
of privacy and warrant College access to relevant IT systems without the consent of the User.
Those circumstances are discussed below, together with the procedural safeguards established to
ensure access is gained only when appropriate.
• Non-Investigative Access
In the normal course of working with the College's networks and computers (e.g., routine
maintenance, replacing a hard drive, analyzing abnormally high usage of the network, etc.),
Information Technology Services staff will come across and see information stored on College
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owned equipment, as well as on personal equipment that is connected to the College network.
Unless there are suspected violations of law or College policy, the staff will respect the privacy of
the individual. The College does not, as a rule, monitor the content of materials transported over
the College's network resources or posted on College-owned computers and networks, but reserves
the right to do so. The College reserves the right to copy and examine any files or information
residing on College systems allegedly related to unacceptable use. It also reserves the right to
protect its network from systems and events that threaten or degrade operations. In accordance with
state and federal law, the College may access all aspects of IT systems, without the consent of the
user, in the following circumstances:
o When necessary to identify or diagnose systems or security vulnerabilities and problems, or
otherwise preserve the integrity of the IT system; or
o When required by federal, state, or local law or administrative rules; or
o When, during the course of non-investigative access, Information Technology Services staff
discover artifacts which may indicate violation of law or College policy has occurred,
additional access or inspection may be performed to produce evidence related to the
misconduct or violation. If reasonable grounds exist to suspect such violation, the procedures in
Section B (following) will apply; or
o When such access to IT systems is required to carry out essential business functions of the
College; or
o In connection with the preservation of public health and safety and to ensure the privacy of
protected or confidential information.
• Investigative Access
Investigative access without the consent of the user will occur only with the approval of the
President (for any user), Vice President of Academic Affairs/Dean of the College (for faculty and
Academic Affairs staff users), the Vice President for Finance and Administrative Services (for staff
users), the Vice President for Student Affairs (for student users), or their respective appointees,
except when an emergency entry is urgently needed to preserve the integrity of facilities or to
preserve public health and safety. The College, through the Chief Information Officer or designated
appointee, will log all instances of investigative access without consent. Information Technology
Services staff will also log any emergency entry within their control for subsequent review by the
Vice President of Academic Affairs/Dean of the College, Vice President for Finance and
Administrative Services, or Vice President for Student Affairs.
• User Access Deactivation
In addition to accessing the IT systems, the College may deactivate a user’s IT privileges, whether
or not the user is suspected of any violation of this policy, when necessary to preserve the integrity
of facilities, user services, or data. Information Technology Services staff will attempt to notify the
user of any such action.
• Use of Security Scanning Systems
By connecting privately owned personal computers or other IT resources to the College’s network,
users consent to College use of scanning programs (e.g., antivirus, security/compliance agent,
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operating system updates and patches) for security purposes on those resources while attached to
the network.
• Enforcement
The College considers any violation of these acceptable use principles or guidelines to be a serious
offense. Violators are subject to disciplinary action as prescribed in the Student
Handbook, the Faculty Handbook, Employee policies, or as may be adopted by the College.
• Complaints of Alleged Violations
An individual who believes that he or she has been harmed by an alleged violation of this policy
may file a complaint in accordance with established college procedures (including, where relevant,
those procedures for filing complaints of sexual harassment or of racial or ethnic harassment) for
students, faculty, and staff. The individual is also encouraged to report the alleged violation to the
Vice President for Information Technology Services/Chief Information Officer, who must
investigate the allegation and (if appropriate) refer the matter to College disciplinary and/or law
enforcement authorities.
• Reporting Observed Violations
If an individual has observed or otherwise is aware of an alleged violation of this policy, but has
not been harmed by the alleged violation, he or she may report any evidence to the Chief
Information Officer, who must investigate the allegation and (if appropriate) refer the matter to
College disciplinary and/or law enforcement authorities.
• Disciplinary Procedures
Alleged violations of this policy will be pursued in accordance with the appropriate disciplinary
procedures for faculty, staff, and students, as outlined in the College By-Laws, the Faculty
Handbook, the Staff Handbook, the Student Handbook, and other applicable materials.
Information Technology Services staff may be asked to participate in the disciplinary proceedings
as deemed appropriate by the relevant disciplinary authority. Moreover, at the request of the
appropriate disciplinary authority, the Information Technology Services staff is authorized to
investigate alleged violations.
• Penalties
Individuals found to have violated this policy may also be subject to penalties provided for in other
College policies and practices dealing with the underlying conduct. Violators may also face IT-
specific penalties, including temporary or permanent reduction or elimination of some or all IT
privileges. The applicable disciplinary authority in consultation with the Chief Information Officer
shall determine the appropriate penalties.
• Legal Liability for Unlawful Use
In addition to College discipline, users may be subject to criminal prosecution, civil liability, or
both for unlawful use of any Knox College IT system.
• Appeals
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Users found in violation of this policy may appeal or request reconsideration of any imposed
disciplinary action in accordance with the appeals provisions of the relevant disciplinary
procedures. Appeals should be directed to the appropriate Vice President. Adapted with permission
from the Acceptable Use Policy of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute.
Equipment Policy
• Computer Equipment
Knox provides computing equipment to employees for business use. Information Technology
Services (ITS) specifies and provides equipment in accordance with anticipated usage. The College
will supply one computer for business use regardless of the source of funding. All equipment
provided is the property of Knox College. Employees whose work requires that they be mobile or
does not require an office or desk may be required to share equipment.
Due to the unique nature of some faculty disciplines and research, additional or specialized
equipment may be required. Requests for such equipment will be considered by ITS in consultation
with Dean of the College or their designee.
All computer equipment and peripherals shall be obtained by Information Technology Services
(ITS) to ensure that it will interface correctly with other systems. Equipment not sourced through
ITS may need to be returned to the supplier, refused support, or not allowed on the College
networks. All equipment provided is the property of Knox College.
Equipment is routinely evaluated and replaced on an as-needed basis according to anticipated use
and reliability of the equipment.
• Print, Copy and Scanning Equipment
Devices for print, copy, and scanning are distributed throughout the campus and are strictly for
the use of the Knox College community and its guests. Equipment is located to facilitate its use
by multiple people and offices to obviate the need to provide services in individual offices and
bays. Equipment in individual offices is supplied at the discretion of ITS in accordance with these
guidelines: o As an accommodation for a documented disability.
o To facilitate the regular production of large volumes of printing for College business purposes.
o To provide service to individuals who are not located within an acceptable distance, as
determined by ITS, of a device intended for common use.
o Where the configuration of an area will not allow for common use equipment.
o To provide printing services to equipment that cannot utilize other printing resources. All
purchases and use of computer and print, copy, or scanning equipment also must conform to the
“Guidelines for Institutional, External, Start-Up, and Moving Expense Funds” (please see the
Faculty Handbook for the policy).
Investigations
From time to time, the College or third parties designated by the College may conduct investigations of
various matters that arise during the course of College’s operations. These investigations are critical to
the College’s efforts to comply with the law and its own policies and procedures. Every employee's
full cooperation is required in any such investigation. Full cooperation means that an employee will
make themselves available as requested to be interviewed, will answer all questions posed truthfully
and completely, will supply any documentary evidence requested, and more generally, will conduct
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themselves in a manner designed to assist College with the investigation in every way possible. In
some circumstances, employees may be instructed to keep information relating to ongoing College
investigations confidential. This may occur, for example, if confidentiality is necessary in order to
preserve the integrity of an investigation, to protect witnesses involved in the investigation, or to
comply with the College’s legal obligations.
Outside Employment
We understand that sometimes employees choose to work for other employers outside of the College.
Outside employment, with or without compensation, is permitted only if it does not interfere with your
work for the College. To reduce any risk of a conflict of interest or other interference with your work
for the College, you must notify your department head of any outside employment. If your outside
employment presents an actual or potential conflict of interest or otherwise interferes with your work
for the College, you may be required to discontinue your outside employment as a condition of
maintaining your employment with the College.
Personal Cell Phones and Electronics
If you wish to do so you may carry a personal cellular phone, smart phone, or similar device at work.
However, your device must be kept in silent/vibrate mode to ensure that it does not disrupt the
workplace or your fellow employees.
Occasional personal calls, text messages, etc. are permitted if they do not disrupt your work or the
work of your fellow employees. However, whenever possible you should reserve personal calls and
text messages for your break or meal periods. You must ensure that any conversations do not disrupt
other employees. The College may designate certain areas where employees are prohibited from using
and/or carrying cell phones or other mobile devices.
The College will not be responsible for the loss of or damage to any personal cell phones or electronic
devices.
Smoking
The Smoke-free Illinois Act prohibits smoking in virtually all public places and workplaces. Under this
law, no person may smoke in a public place or in any workplace or within 15 feet of any entrance, exit,
or window that opens. This policy applies equally to all employees, customers and visitors. Repeated
violations of this policy may result in disciplinary action.
Smoking includes all tobacco derived or tobacco-like containing products including but not limited to
cigarettes, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), cigars (e-cigars) and cigarillos, hookah smoked products,
pipes and oral tobacco. This also includes any product or device intended to mimic or simulate
tobacco products, contain tobacco flavoring or deliver nicotine other than that for the purpose of
cessation.
Transportation
Employees are responsible for arranging their own transportation to and from their assigned work
location(s). You must allow sufficient travel time so that you arrive at work on time. Except in unusual
circumstances, mechanical problems, traffic, and transit delays are not a valid excuse for arriving late
to work.
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Violence in the Workplace
Unfortunately, certain events in recent years have raised a concern on the part of businesses and
employees alike regarding the potential for violence in the workplace. While there is no reason for us
at Knox College to be more concerned about this potential than other employers, Knox is committed to
promptly respond to situations which are brought to the attention of management and appear to raise
the potential for violent behavior.
Any employee who attempts to intimidate or commits an act of violence toward any other college
employee, customer or vendor, or subtly or directly threatens or hints such action, will be subject to
discipline, up to and including immediate termination. If you are subjected to such conduct by a fellow
employee, you are strongly encouraged to immediately report the incident to any supervisor or to
Human Resources. It may not be possible for Knox to help address incidents which are not promptly
reported.
Knox College will promptly and thoroughly investigate any such report. This investigation may
include interviewing the employee making the complaint, the employee accused, and any witnesses.
As part of its investigation, the College may also notify appropriate legal authorities.
If Knox determines that a violation of this policy has occurred, it will take immediate, appropriate
corrective action. Such action may include reassignment or discipline, up to and including immediate
termination, notifying appropriate legal authorities, and/or taking legal action against the employee
found to have violated this policy.
If you believe that there is an imminent threat of physical harm, you should immediately dial
911.
Work Performance
The College seeks to ensure that your experience and progress within College is based on an objective
assessment of your job performance, attendance, disciplinary record, and other pertinent
considerations.
The College attempts to minimize performance problems by carefully recruiting competent employees
and by providing adequate training. At the same time, the College recognizes that situations will arise
from time to time where employees are not adequately performing their job duties. In these situations,
the College will issue appropriate corrective action, which may consist of a verbal or written warning,
probation (of varying length), unpaid suspension (of varying length), or termination, depending upon
the circumstances. In those cases where discipline other than immediate termination is deemed
appropriate, your supervisor will identify your performance deficiencies, and will provide suggestions
for improving your performance. There is no requirement that you be warned, placed on probation or
suspended before you are terminated for poor performance.
Statement on Romantic or Sexual Relationships Between Students and Knox College Employees
Romantic or sexual relations between persons of unequal power, authority, or influence at the College,
are inherently problematic because they include the potential for a conflict of interest, favoritism, and
exploitation. Maintaining appropriate boundaries in relationships can be especially difficult in a
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community like ours where informal, supportive relations among faculty, staff, and students outside
the classroom are not only permitted but encouraged.
Because the difference in institutional power and the inherent risk of coercion are so great, the
College has determined that with limited exceptions, no faculty or staff member shall enter into a
romantic, dating, or sexual relationship with a currently enrolled Knox College student.
Exceptions to this Policy fall into two categories:
Pre-existing Relationships.
Preexisting relationships between an employee and student must be disclosed by the employee to a
supervisor or appropriate College official. Accommodations for preexisting relationships between a
student and a faculty or staff member will be considered by the College on a case-by-case basis, and,
when necessary, will lead to development of a management plan in consultation with the supervisor or
chair of the relevant office, department or program and an appropriate College official. Such a
management plan might, for instance, include alternate supervisory or evaluation mechanisms. For
faculty, the appropriate College official will be the Dean of the College; for staff members, the
Associate Vice President for Human Resources. Failure to comply with the required notification,
removal of evaluative authority or management plan shall be considered a violation of this Policy.
Student Workers.
This Policy does not prohibit student workers from engaging in romantic, dating or sexual
relationships with other Knox College students over whom they do not exercise supervisory or
evaluative authority. However, some student workers, such as teaching assistants or resident advisors,
do hold supervisory or evaluative roles over other students. These student workers must notify their
supervisors before engaging in any romantic, dating or sexual relationships with students over whom
they exercise supervisory or evaluative roles. These cases will be considered by the College on a case-
by-case basis and, if appropriate, may lead to development of a management plan in consultation with
the Faculty Handbook 2021-22 82 supervisor or chair of the relevant office, department or program
and an appropriate College official. Such a management plan might, for instance, include alternate
supervisory or evaluation mechanisms. Failure to comply with the required notification, removal of
evaluative or supervisory authority or management plan shall be considered a violation of this Policy.
Romantic, dating or sexual relationships between faculty or staff members and Knox students, whether
formal or informal, whether within or outside the institution context, that are not covered by the two
exceptions above will be considered misconduct, and may constitute a form of sexual harassment
governed by the Policy Against Title IX Sexual Harassment and Sexual Misconduct (PDF).
As noted above, failure to comply with the required notification, removal of supervisory or evaluative
authority or management plan is also considered a violation of this Policy. If any faculty, staff, or
student worker of Knox College is found to be in violation of this Policy, disciplinary action will be
taken on a case-by-case basis and in accordance with appropriate disciplinary procedures contained in
relevant handbooks, policies, procedures, practices, or contracts. Disciplinary actions may include but
are not limited to written warnings, loss of privileges, mandatory training or counseling, probation,
suspension, demotion, and termination of employment, including revocation of tenure.
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Protection of Minors
Knox College values the health, safety, and well-being of minors and is committed to providing a safe
environment for minors on campus and who participate in programs utilizing College property and
facilities. In keeping with this value and to fulfill this commitment, the College has adopted this
Protection of Minors Policy ("Policy"). For purposes of this Policy, a minor is a person, other than an
enrolled College student, who is less than 18 years of age. All camps, events, programs, and activities
sponsored and supervised by third parties that are intended for minors and that take place on campus or
in College facilities ("Programs"), are subject to this Policy. This Policy applies to all third parties who
contract with the College and will be included as an addendum to written agreements with third parties
or provided to third parties as circumstances require. See the full Minors on Campus Policy of the
College.
Animals on Campus
Restrictions outlined in this policy do not apply to service animals, defined by the Americans with
Disabilities Act as an animal “that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of
an individual with a disability.” Service animals are permitted to be anywhere on campus that the
animal’s owner is permitted to be, including indoor spaces.
Knox College welcomes emotional support animals as a reasonable accommodation for students who
live in college housing. Emotional support animals living in college housing must be registered with
Disability Support Services, and are not permitted in indoor areas outside of the student’s assigned
living space. Emotional support animals owned by an individual employed by the college may be
permitted in work areas with the approval of Human Resources.
An animal that is not trained as a service animal or registered as an emotional support animal is
considered a pet.
• Pet Guidelines: Pets are welcome to enjoy outdoor spaces on campus, including designated areas
of outdoor athletic venues. Pets are also permitted in the private offices of their owners. If an
office is shared, all occupants of the office must agree that the pet may be present. Except for direct
travel to/from their owner’s office, pets are not permitted in building common areas including, but
not limited to, classrooms, conference rooms, libraries, lounges, dining areas, and public spaces of
administrative buildings.
Pets are not permitted inside campus housing with the exception of:
o Animals that live in a water-filled aquarium (maximum 10 gallons) or small cage
(hamsters, guinea pigs, mice) in accordance with the Knox College Community Living
Standards; or o Animals approved to live in pet-friendly housing in accordance with the
Pet Friendly Residence Hall Agreement.
• Owners’ Responsibilities
All animal owners are expected to adhere to the following provisions regarding the behavior and
care of animals on campus:
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o Dangerous, poisonous, or illegal animals are not permitted. Injuries resulting from an encounter
with an animal on campus should be reported to Campus Safety immediately. Campus Safety,
Human Resources, or other college officials may require that an animal be removed from
campus for violation of this policy or for behavioral, safety, or health reasons.
o The behavior, noise, odor, and waste of the animal must not exceed reasonable standards and
these factors must not create an unreasonable disruption for community members. o Animals
must be leashed or otherwise appropriately secured and under control at all times.
o Owners are responsible for cleaning up after their animal.
o Owners are responsible for reporting any damage to property caused by their animal, and may
be responsible for paying to correct that damage.
o Owners should always consider safety, health, and the possible fear others may experience in
the presence of animals.
Safety and Security
Employee Safety
At the College, employee safety in the workplace is our highest priority. Safety must be a part of every
job. We believe that many workplace injuries and illnesses can be prevented, if safe work practices are
observed. No job is so important that it should be performed in an unsafe manner or in unsafe
conditions. The College complies with all applicable safety laws and regulations. Safety is the
responsibility of all employees at the College. Any concerns regarding workplace safety should be
immediately reported to Human Resources.
The College carries out its obligations to provide a safe workplace by ensuring that a sound safety
program is in place, including:
• Maintaining and operating equipment in a safe manner.
• Conducting safety inspections to find and eliminate unsafe working conditions or practices.
• Developing and implementing safety programs describing safe work practices and procedures.
• Providing personal protective equipment and instructions for its use and care.
• Training employees on safe work practices and procedures.
• Developing and enforcing safety and health rules.
• Investigating and correcting known causes of injuries, accidents and near misses.
• All employees must share the responsibilities for safety and health by:
o Being responsible for their own safety and for conduct which affects co-workers. o
Reporting hazardous conditions to their supervisor. o Learning and complying with all
safety rules and procedures. o Wearing personal protective equipment whenever required.
o Suggesting safety improvements to their supervisors.
o Being alert and using good judgment in performing daily work.
Injury Reporting Procedures
All on-the-job injuries, regardless of how small or minor they may be, must be reported immediately. If
you are able to complete a written report of your injury, you may obtain the appropriate form from
your supervisor. You must fill out the form completely and submit it to Human Resources within 24
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hours. If you are unable to complete a written report, the form will be completed by management. If
there is a severe injury or any question whatsoever regarding appropriate response or treatment, call
911.
Safety Training
Relevant safety training is provided to each employee at the onset of employment as well as
periodically throughout his/her employment. This safety training is designed to comply with applicable
legal requirements, and to address specific job-related hazards. Safety training includes both classroom
training and on-the-job training.
If you have any questions on the proper way to perform work or applicable safety procedures, please
contact your supervisor or Human Resources.
Personal Protective Equipment
As part of its overall commitment to safety, College provides various personal protective safety
equipment (PPE) for employees who work in certain areas. The safety equipment, and rules for its use,
includes the following:
The College furnishes the first pair of non-prescription safety glasses to all employees who perform
work requiring eye protection at no charge. Safety glasses must be worn in designated areas at all
times.
The College provides a variety of gloves and earplugs suitable for the job being performed at no cost to
employees. Gloves and ear plugs must be worn by employees in designated positions at all times.
Fire Prevention
Protect yourself and others from the danger of fire by observing these basic rules:
o Learn the location of all fire exits, alarm boxes and fire extinguishers in the area where you work.
o Read the directions on all extinguishers. Know how each operates and what kind of fire it is suited
for.
o Firefighting equipment must not be used for other purposes.
o Fire equipment must be readily accessible at all times. Do not block the fire equipment with boxes
or other fixtures.
o Smoking is permitted only in designated areas outside of the College. Caution and good judgment
are important to smoking privileges. Be considerate of non-smokers.
o If you have any questions regarding the safety of your work area or within the College, let your
supervisor or Human Resources know.
Hazard Communication Program
The College has developed a Hazard Communication Program to provide all employees with
information to minimize or prevent exposure to hazardous materials that are present in the workplace.
The goal of the program is to protect employees from injuries and illnesses resulting from exposure to
hazardous chemicals. The program includes container labeling and hazard warnings, material safety
data sheets (MSDS) and employee training. Employees will receive hazard communication training
during their initial orientation and annually thereafter.
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Emergency Procedures
The College’s Emergency Evacuation Plan is posted online and in all College buildings. All employees
are expected to familiarize themselves with the Evacuation Plan. In the event of a fire or other
emergency, a fire alarm bell will begin to ring. Please walk, do not run, to the designated exit.
Continue to walk away from the building to the designated waiting area. Should you exit from another
door that leads you away from your designated area, please try to go to your designated area so your
supervisor will know you safely exited the building. All employees must remain in the designated
waiting area until instructed otherwise by supervision. Be sure to stay out of the way of emergency
vehicles such as fire trucks or ambulances.
Weapons and Firearms on Campus
This policy applies to all employees, students, persons conducting business, and individuals visiting
the Knox College campus, as “campus” is defined in this policy.
In accordance with 430 ILCS 66 Firearm Concealed Carry Act, Knox College maintains a weapons-
and firearms-free campus. “Campus” includes, but is not limited to, the Knox College campus in
Galesburg, IL; Knox field stations located throughout the State of Illinois; residential properties owned
and controlled by Knox, including campus housing; and sites, whether owned, leased or controlled by
Knox, and where Knox programs, activities and classes are held. Unless authorized by law or
specifically exempted by Knox College policy or federal or state law, no individual may possess a
weapon or firearm while on the Knox College campus.
1
A “weapon” includes, but is not limited to firearms, ammunition, pellet guns, air guns, paintball guns,
stun guns/tasers, smoke devices, bows/arrows, swords, knives with blades 3 1/2 inches or longer (with
the exception of culinary knives used solely in kitchens and dining rooms in the preparation and eating
of meals), explosives, and fireworks.
2
The provisions of this policy do not apply to law enforcement officers required to carry a weapon for
their employment.
A weapon or firearm may be transported into a college-owned parking area if the weapon or firearm
and its ammunition remain locked in a case or locked container out of view within the parked and
locked vehicle. “Case” is defined as a glove compartment or console that completely encloses the
concealed firearm or ammunition, the trunk of the vehicle, or a firearm carrying box, shipping box, or
other container. The weapon or firearm may be removed only for the limited purpose of storage or
retrieval from within the trunk of the vehicle. A weapon or firearm must be unloaded before removal
from the vehicle. Any individuals arriving on campus with a licensed weapon or firearm who cannot
store their weapon or firearm in their vehicle must immediately depart and return to campus when they
can store their firearm in accordance with the law.
Violations of this policy may result in referral to external law enforcement agencies. Additionally, any
individual visiting campus found to violate this policy may be banned from campus. Students in
1
Special accommodations may only be granted in consultation with Campus Safety and in rare circumstances.
2
Exceptions may be made for approved activities of registered student organizations in accordance with
policies set forth by Campus Life.
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violation of this policy will be subject to discipline, up to and including, but not limited to, expulsion
from Knox College. An employee found to violate this policy will be subject to discipline, up to and
including immediate termination of employment.
Appendix A, Complaint Process through Illinois Department of Human Rights /
Illinois Human Rights Commission
Resolution Outside of Knox College:
The purpose of this policy is to establish prompt, thorough and effective procedures for responding to
every complaint and incident so that problems can be identified and remedied internally. However, an
employee has the right to contact the Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR) or the Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) about filing a formal complaint. An IDHR complaint
must be filed within 180 days of the alleged incident(s) unless it is a continuing offense. A complaint
with the EEOC must be filed within 300 days. In addition, an appeal process is available through the
Illinois Human Rights Commission, (IHRC) after IDHR has completed its investigation of the
complaint. Where the employing entity has an effective sexual harassment policy in place and the
complaining employee fails to take advantage of that policy and allow the employer an opportunity to
address the problem, such an employee may, in certain cases, lose the right to further pursue the claim
against the employer.
ADMINISTRATIVE CONTACTS
Illinois Department of Human Rights (IDHR) Chicago: 312-
814-6200 or 800-662-3942
Chicago TTY: 866-740-3953
Springfield: 217-785-5100
Springfield TTY: 866-740-3953
Marion: 618-993-7463
Marion TTY: 866-740-3953
Illinois Human Rights Commission (IHRC)
Chicago: 312-814-6269
Chicago TTY: 312-814-4760
Springfield: 217-785-4350
Springfield TTY: 217-557-1500
United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
Chicago: 800-669-4000
Chicago TTY: 800-869-8001
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Appendix B, Pregnancy Rights
Pregnancy Rights Notice:
If you are pregnant, recovering from childbirth, or have a condition related to pregnancy, you have the
right to ask for a reasonable accommodation. This includes bathroom breaks, assistance with heavy
lifting, a private space for expressing milk, or time off to recover from your pregnancy. For more
information regarding your rights on Pregnancy in the Workplace, download the Illinois Department of
Human Rights fact sheet at www.illinois.gov/dhr, or refer to the posted “Pregnancy Rights Notice.”
http://www2.illinois.gov/dhr/Publications/Documents/Pregnancy_Posting-lgl-ENG14.pdf
Appendix C, Employee Rights under FMLA
https://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/posters/fmlaen.pdf!
