Adaptable Resolution (AR) for Students is a voluntary and restorative process used to address harm within the community stemming from sexual and gender-based misconduct. Through shared-decision making and active engagement, Parties, alongside trained facilitators, are invited to engage in a spectrum of pathways designed to promote agency, equity, and collaboration. These pathways create opportunities for meaningful accountability, repair of harm, and education to prevent future harm.
AR is one of the Resolution Pathways under the U-M Sexual and Gender-Based Misconduct Policy and student procedures for Ann Arbor, Dearborn, Flint.
How do we characterize AR?
- AR is Voluntary: No one is required to participate, nor will the University or any University office pressure or compel anyone to participate. At any point before signing a Resolution Agreement, Complainants or Respondents can choose to end the process and other individuals (involved or impacted parties) can choose to withdraw their participation.
- AR is Restorative: It creates space for those who have experienced harm to explore, alongside a trained facilitator, a spectrum of pathways co-created to meet expressed needs. Through these restorative pathways, the Adaptable Resolution program seeks to work with students to develop ways to communicate and address harm by providing space for all to share what happened before, during, and after an incident, express how they feel about what happened, and work collaboratively toward desired outcomes. Rather than focusing on what policies have been broken, restorative processes aim to help people and communities be made whole.
- AR is Private: Conversations about and within the AR process with an AR Facilitator are kept private as we seek to create an environment that fosters open and honest communication. This means that information shared during the AR process is not typically disclosed to others at the University, other than the Title IX Coordinator, including for other disciplinary purposes.
- In addition, by signing a participation agreement, complainants and respondents agree that, to the extent permitted by law, they will not use information shared or obtained during AR in any other University process (including Investigative Resolution under the Policy even if Adaptable Resolution does not result in an agreement) or legal proceeding.
Who is eligible to participate in AR?
- AR is available to anyone who has filed a formal complaint under the Policy, so long as the Respondent is a U-M student. The formal complaint must then be approved for AR by the Title IX Coordinator. To determine approval, the Title IX Coordinator will consider:
- The safety of the parties and the campus community
- The Complainant’s and Respondent’s interest in participating in AR
- The Complainant’s and Respondent’s opportunities to freely choose among resolution options
- Whether the University has Title IX obligations to investigate the matter, and if so, whether the University has, or has means to obtain, sufficient information about the alleged conduct to carry out an investigative resolution process
Do Respondents face formal discipline as a result of Adaptable Resolution?
- No. In the Adaptable Resolution process, there will be no formal disciplinary action taken against a Respondent, and the resolution will not appear on the Respondent’s disciplinary record.
What facilitation pathways are available through AR?
- Facilitation Pathways that do not include face-to-face interaction
- Restorative Shuttle Agreement: A negotiated agreement between the Complainant and the Respondent to discuss perspectives and experiences, and explore interests while working towards meeting expressed needs.
- Community Supported Accountability Circle: A facilitated interaction between the Respondent and University designees designed to provide accountability, structured support, and the development of a learning plan.
- Facilitation Pathways that include face-to-face interaction (including virtual meetings)
- Facilitated Dialogue: A structured and facilitated conversation between the Complainant, the Respondent, and/or other community members. The focus is often on providing a space for voices to be heard and perspectives to be shared.
- Restorative Circle or Conference: A facilitated interaction where the Complainant and other agreed-upon parties come together with the Respondent who assumes responsibility for repairing the harm (to the extent possible).
Getting Started
- To begin the AR process, students must file an SGBM Report with the Equity, Civil Rights, and Title IX Office (ECRT). From there, students may have a number of resolution options available to them, including Educational Conversations, Investigative Resolution, and Adaptable Resolution.
Questions
- If you have any questions about AR, please reach out to us at [email protected]
Confidential Resources
- If you would like to reach out to a confidential resource to help you understand your options and rights, please contact Counseling and Psychological Services, Sexual Assault Prevention and Awareness Center, Sexual Assault Services at University Health Services, University Ombuds, or Wolverine Wellness.
Non-Confidential Resources
- To receive help in filing an SGBM Report to ECRT, students can reach out to offices such as OSCR, Dean of Students, Spectrum Center, CEW+, or U-M Police Dept - Special Victims Unit.
What are the principles and values of AR Facilitators?
Facilitators seek to…
- Guard Against Further Harm: Protect against coercion and strive to create a space that does not create further harm.
- Ensure Agency: Express, clarify, and ensure fully-informed access to information and one’s own agency.
- Extend Multipartial Support: Treat all participants with dignity and respect, cultivate an environment where Respondents are accountable within a context of support, and allow space for vulnerability and honesty to understand and resolve harmful thoughts, feelings, and behaviors.
- Invite Meaningful Accountability: Create space for the Respondent to name, acknowledge, and accept responsibility for repairing harm.
- Establish Trauma-Informed Environments: Establish safety, trustworthiness & rapport, support, collaboration, empowerment, and identity-consciousness.
- Prioritize Empathy & Affirmation: Acknowledge, empathize, and affirm each individual’s expressed experience of harm, and believe that Respondents are capable of repair
- Encompass Community Care: Identify and address the needs of community members, identify and address obligations and opportunities for members of the community to seek and support social change around sexual harm
- Empower Repair and Healing: Empower through choice and create space conducive to repair
Facilitators uphold…
- Civility (Respect): Create a space where difficult conversations and requests to meet needs and repair harm can be offered and heard without disrespect
- Dignity: Ensure all conversations are approached with a human-first perspective, that encompasses the multiple responsibilities we have to you human-being, student, and participants, and ensure Parties will have equitable buy-in and agency to the pathway processes
- Diversity: Strive to hold space for affected Parties to share their experiences and the wealth of perspectives they bring to their behavior, learning, and goals and strive to create a brave space for students to explore additional perspectives and experiences as it relates to their behavior, learning, and goals
- Equity: Ensure that all conversations, education, and resources are tailored to and adaptable to the needs of each individual student and uphold integrity and fairness while engaging in Adaptable Resolution pathways
- Equality: Ensure that Parties have access to all University resources available to them
- Education: Support you during your learning moments by providing you with a clear structure, learning content, and space to process with trained facilitators
- Freedom (Choice): Welcome your freedom of expression in order to honor the collaborative nature of your shared-decision making in AR
- Honesty: Ensure transparency in the AR process, expectations, and responsibilities as Individuals with Reporting Obligations (IRO) and Campus Security Authorities (CSA)
- Safety: Strive to hold space for students to voice their experiences without judgment or scrutiny and support affected Parties in identifying appropriate resources for mental health, wellness, and personal development
Helpful Documents