Policy 3.9.1 - Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome Policy

Date: March 20, 2023, Resolution #23-47

Supersedes:
May 14, 1990, Resolution #90-49

Purpose

This policy document directly relates to the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome Policy of the SUNY Schenectady Board of Trustees and is aligned with section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. These Acts grant federal civil rights protection to individuals with disabilities similar to those provided on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, age, and religion.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division, an individual is considered to have a "disability" if they have a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a record of such impairment, or is regarded as having such impairment. Persons with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) disease, or AIDS Related Complex (ARC) either symptomatic or asymptomatic, have physical impairments consistent with this definition and thus are protected by the ADA.

Policy

SUNY Schenectady, recogmzmg its obligation to educate its staff and students and promote a better understandingof AIDS related issues, supports the following policy:

  1. The College will not discriminate against individuals who are diagnosed with AIDS, HIV, or ARC.
  2. The primary response of the College to the AIDS epidemic will be education, i.e., providing educational programs and training sessions for students, faculty and staff; providing referral services for those students, faculty, or staff requesting it; and developing and implementing uniform safety precautions to prevent the accidental transmission of AIDS and AIDS-related diseases.

Procedures

Any student who considers themselves a victim of discrimination and has been unable to arrive at a mutually acceptable resolution with the designated campus contact and appropriate personnel may file a grievance with the Affirmative Action Officer, 518-381- 1218 or humanresources@sunysccc.edu. Alternatively, any student may also file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in the U.S. Department of Education. For more information, go to the Office for Civil Rights website. To file a complaint, use the Office of Civil Rights Discrimination Complaint Form.