NIU is currently drafting a policy on stalking.

Vice President and General Counsel Ken Davidson described the policy as being in the “advanced draft” stage, and that the policy will define stalking and the university’s role where pertaining.

“It’s to make the campus a safer place; that’s the purpose,” Davidson said.

Davidson added that, depending on how many times it is reviewed, the policy could be presented by the end of the spring semester.

Although there is no policy against stalking, Ombudsman Tim Griffin noted that the definition of harassment in the NIU Student Code of Conduct could be applied to stalking cases.

In Chapter 3, Section 1.2, the code defines harassment as “intentional and wrongful use of words, gestures and actions to annoy, alarm, abuse, embarrass, coerce, intimidate or threaten another person.”

“We have had policies that have existed for several years,” Griffin said.

Griffin said that the Office of the Ombudsman does get calls regarding stalking.

“We do have a number of individuals that contact this office with allegations of stalking behavior,” Griffin said, though he said the number is very small.

The 2006-07 report from the Office of the Ombudsman states that nine individuals reported allegations of harassment by students, and 12 individuals reported allegations of harassment by faculty members.

However, Griffin said the office does not conduct investigations, nor did the individuals always describe the offending behavior as stalking.

If an individual does call with allegations of stalking, Griffin said there are a number of options that can be taken, depending on the situation. Some options include direct communication with the offender or indirect communication through a letter or a third party.

If the offender is an employee, the individual could speak to their supervisor. If the offender is a student, the individual could refer to Judicial Affairs, he said.
Griffin emphasized safety as the overall goal.

“If they feel their personal and physical safety is threatened, they should contact the police,” Griffin said.

While there is no universal definition of stalking, several organizations and states have attempted to define it. The Stalking Resource Center at the National Center for Victims of Crime define stalking as “a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to feel fear.”

The College of Human Ecology at Cornell University uses the term “intrusive contact” when describing stalking, stating that “one person is intruding in an unwanted way into another person’s life.”

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