The Bias Review Team (BRT) was developed with the purpose of documenting and responding to bias-related incidents experienced by community members, and to provide affected community members with support and resources.

About the Team

The BRT’s creation underscores our ongoing commitment to a safe, supportive campus culture. It brings together colleagues from Community & Inclusion, the Dean of Students Office, the Equal Opportunity Office (EOO), Human Resources, the Office of the Provost, and Safety, Security & Preparedness to review and track reports of behavior that, while not violating BU’s policies prohibiting discrimination or harassment, may warrant additional attention.

BRT may seek assistance and input from other campus community members to provide additional information, expertise, or resources in case reviews, as required. Additional ad hoc members may include representatives from all college departments as required in specific situations.

Bias Reporting Process

Through the bias reporting process, we’ll track and review bias-related incidents, offer resources to impacted community members, and identify opportunities for educational programming. BU community members who file bias-related incidents may also choose to file formal complaints through appropriate University processes, which may lead to an investigation, following which the University can hold accountable those found responsible for violating University policies.

The BRT’s purview includes complaints involving protected speech, campus climate, anonymous reports, and situations where the identity of the harassing party is unknown. Where appropriate, the BRT will implement responsive measures to alleviate a hostile environment for the impacted party.

Complaints Related to Legally Protected Characteristics

All complaints or incidents related to a person’s characteristics that are protected by law—such as shared ancestry, ethnicity, race, national origin, religion, gender, and others—must still be reported through the University’s EOO. Once the EOO receives those reports, the BRT will address those that fall outside of EOO’s purview or when the impacted person does not participate in the EOO grievance process.

You can use the Incident Report Form available to all students, staff, and faculty to begin the reporting process with EOO. Additionally, you can contact EOO directly at eoo@bu.edu. For more information about what happens after submitting an Incident Report, please visit this page.

For dangerous and threatening behavior, please contact the BU Police Department immediately at 911 or 617-353-2121 (Charles River and Fenway Campuses) and 617-358-4444 (Medical Campus). 

There are several other support resources available on campus regardless of whether you make a report. These include the Office of the Ombuds, Behavioral Medicine, the University Chaplains, and the Faculty & Staff Assistance Office. A full list of resources is available here.

For any questions regarding the BRT’s scope or process, please contact bias@bu.edu. 

BRT Review 

BRT is responsible for reviewing alleged incidents of bias that may have created a hostile environment for BU community members. When a hostile environment exists, BRT will recommend responsive measures to address and remediate the hostile environment. Included below is a flow chart explaining the BRT process. 

Hostile Environment Assessment 

A hostile environment exists when unwelcome conduct based on someone’s protected status is severe or pervasive enough to limit their participation in a University program or activity. This conduct can be verbal, non-verbal, physical, or non-physical. EOO and BRT judge the alleged conduct from both subjective and objective viewpoints when determining if it is offensive and creates a hostile environment. 

Communicating Outcomes 

Information related to the BRT review and assessment will be shared with impacted parties in certain circumstances depending on their level of involvement as well as the assessment by BRT. The following list indicates what information will be shared: 

  • If someone is participating in BRT review and after its review, BRT finds: 
    • No hostile environment—BRT will let the participant know why no hostile environment was found. 
    • A hostile environment—BRT will inform the participant of what responsive measures were implemented to address the hostile environment. 
  • If someone’s report is designated for further review by BRT, but they do not respond to BRT outreach, we will not report the findings (if any) to them. 
  • Cases where EOO determined the conduct did not create a hostile environment or involves discrimination but the impacted party did not participate in the EOO process are referred for tracking purposes only and do not result in follow-up communications. 

Frequently Asked Questions