Bias reporting & response

What to report

A bias incident is language or conduct that targets someone for an actual or perceived identity — race, religion, national origin, disability, gender, sexual orientation, and the rest — whether or not it rises to a policy violation. Slurs written on a whiteboard, a targeted "joke" in a group chat, exclusion from a project because of an accent, vandalism of a cultural display, a professor's repeated dismissiveness toward a group: all of it is worth reporting. You can report something that happened to you or that you witnessed, and you can do it with your name or anonymously through the online form.

Reporting is not the same as filing formal charges. Many reports lead to support and education rather than discipline, and even reports that go nowhere formally help the university see patterns — three anonymous reports about the same space is information it would not otherwise have.

What happens after you file

A response-team coordinator reviews every report, usually within a business day. If you left your contact information, they reach out, explain what is confidential and what is not, and lay out your options — none of which are forced on you: emotional support and a referral to counseling or advocacy, a facilitated conversation, a change to your class or housing situation, an educational response to the person or group involved, or referral into a formal process (student conduct, the Title IX office, HR, or the police) if the conduct may violate a policy or law. You can ask for support and decline every response option, and that is a valid outcome.

Anonymous reports without contact information are logged and acted on where possible, but the coordinator cannot follow up with you.

Free expression and its limits

Porter is committed to free expression, and a lot of offensive, ignorant, or upsetting speech is protected — the response team cannot and will not punish a viewpoint, a class reading, or an argument someone found hurtful. What is not protected: targeted harassment (a pattern of conduct aimed at a person that is severe or pervasive enough to deny them equal access to education), true threats, incitement, discriminatory denial of services, and vandalism. The coordinator's job includes being honest with a reporter when something is protected speech, and pointing to non-disciplinary responses — counter-speech, dialogue, community support — that are still available.

Right now, and confidentially

For immediate danger or a hate crime in progress, call 911, then Campus Safety at (715) 555–0191. If you want to talk something through without starting any university response, the counseling center and the confidential advocates are not reporters — they will not pass it on. The identity-based centers (multicultural, LGBTQIA+, international, and others) are also a first stop for support and will help you file if and when you decide to.