The Office of the Complainants’ Codes Counselor
The Office of the Complainants’ Codes Counselor provides free, confidential assistance to anyone who has filed or is considering filing a complaint against a Cornell community member under Cornell’s Title IX, Institutional Equity, or Student Code of Conduct policies.
The role of a Complainants’ Codes Counselor (CCC) is to help you understand your rights and options in the student conduct process so that you can make informed decisions in the process and support you in however you choose to proceed. A CCC will never report anything you share with us to the Office of Institutional Equity and Title IX (OIETIX) or the Office of Student Conduct and Community Standards (OSCCS), and a CCC will never make you take any action that you do not want to, including filing a formal complaint.
We strongly encourage complainants to meet with a CCC before meeting with OIETIX or OSCCS about their cases. To consult with a Complainants’ Codes Counselor, please contact complaintadvice@cornell.edu. The Lead Complainants’ Codes Counselor will respond within 24 hours to schedule you to meet with an available CCC.
Who CCCs Can Help
CCCs are available to anyone, regardless of their affiliation with Cornell, who has experienced personal harm amounting to a violation of Cornell’s Policy 6.4 or Student Code of Conduct. CCCs are not available to assist respondents, community-appointed complainants, or witnesses.
Examples of policy violations that CCCs work with complainants for include: sexual assault, harassment (including sexual, gender-based, and protected-status harassment), dating/domestic violence, stalking, sexual exploitation, retaliation, violation of a supportive measure (such as a No Contact Order), prohibited discrimination, physical assault, theft, property damage, hazing, and invasion of privacy.
How CCCs Can Help
If are unsure whether you want to file a formal complainant, a CCC can meet you with you discuss your case, explain the formal complaint process and alternatives to that process (such as obtaining supportive measures only or seeking Alternate Resolution), attend initial meetings with you and OIETIX/OSCCS staff, and answer any questions you may have about the process or your case.
If you choose to file a formal complaint, a CCC will advise you through every step of the process and assist you with any submissions that need to be completed. The CCC assigned to you will be your advisor for the entire process, from before you file a complaint through an appeal.
Common tasks of a CCC include accompanying complainants to meetings or interviews with OIETIX and OSCCS staff, assisting complainants with brainstorming and compiling evidence to submit to their investigator, reviewing and advising complainants on proposed Alternate Resolution agreements, preparing written submissions for cases (such as witness request forms, comments on the record, opening/closing statements, and appeals), and advising complainants at hearings by preparing complainants for questioning and cross-examining the respondent and witnesses.
Please note, CCCs are not attorneys and cannot provide legal advice.