Harassment and Discrimination Reporting for NASA Employees, Contractors and Grantee Beneficiaries

If you believe that you have been harassed or discriminated against, or that you have witnessed someone else being harassed or discriminated against, due to your (or their) sex (including pregnancy, sexual harassment, sex stereotyping, or caregiving responsibilities), race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, or disability status, you may be able to report this harassment or discrimination to NASA. Assault of any kind, though, is a criminal offense over which NASA has no authority and NASA strongly encourages assault victims and witnesses to report assaults to the local police or the NASA Office of the Inspector General at https://oig.nasa.gov/contact.html.

If both the alleged perpetrator and victim of the alleged harassment or discrimination are engaged in activities funded through NASA financial assistance, such as grants or cooperative agreements when the alleged harassment or discrimination occurs, NASA’s Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity (ODEO) has the primary responsibility within NASA to receive and process complaints. ODEO has a page on its “MissionSTEM” website that explains how to file a complaint directly with NASA if you are a beneficiary of a NASA-funded research program and wish to raise a complaint of discrimination (including harassment) see “Filing A Complaint” below.

Please note that by Federal regulation, complaints raised by beneficiaries of NASA financial assistance, e.g., student, staff or faculty must be raised within 180 days of the alleged act of discrimination. Individuals at educational institutions may also file a complaint directly with the Department of Education. Universities also have an internal processes in place to address these concerns and this process is another vehicle for raising such complaints should any party to the harassment or discrimination be associated with an institution of higher education. To access such internal processes, members of university academic communities should contact their university Title IX coordinator’s office, which can normally be done by entering a search for “Title IX” or “sexual harassment” or a similar term, such as “anti-discrimination,” in their university’s online search engine.

If any of the individuals involved in the claim of harassment or discrimination are NASA Civil Servants or onsite contractors at NASA-owned and -operated facilities, then concerns should be reported directly to the relevant Center Anti-Harassment Coordinator or the Agency Coordinator. A complete list of Center Anti-Harassment Coordinators (PDF) can be found on the NASA Diversity & Equal Opportunity homepage under the heading “Anti-Harassment Campaign".

For off-site contractors, NASA enforces Federal equal employment opportunity obligations as directed by Executive Order 11246 and in accordance with Federal Acquisitions Regulations (FAR) Section 22.808.

Finally, when NASA receives reports of discrimination or harassment by contractor employees working on NASA-funded projects at non-federal facilities, NASA must refer these reports to the Office of Federal Contracts Compliance Programs in the Department of Labor in accordance with the FAR Section 22.808.

Where discrimination or harassment involves both civil servants and contractors, NASA policy and practice is to investigate and, when appropriate, apply remedies against the party whose conduct is discriminatory.

Filing a Complaint with NASA

Beneficiaries* of NASA-funded science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) educational or other NASA-funded programs, for example, science museums, who believe they have been discriminated against, have a right to file a complaint of discrimination or harassment based on race, color, national origin (including limited English proficiency), sex (including pregnancy, sexual harassment, sex stereotyping, sexual orientation, or gender identity), disability or age directly with NASA.

To file a complaint with NASA, use the following guidelines:

What to Include in Your Complaint

Submit in writing the following information in a written communication within 180 days of the alleged discrimination or discriminatory event:

• Your full name, address, email address, and telephone number where you can be reached during business hours, and the name of the party discriminated against;
• The name and location of the business, organization or institution that you believe has discriminated;
• A description of the act or acts of discrimination, the date or dates of the discriminatory act(s), the basis for the alleged discrimination or harassment (race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age), and the name or names of individuals who you believe discriminated; and
• Other information that you believe necessary to support your complaint. Please send copies of relevant documents. Do not send original documents (Retain them).

Where to Send Your Complaint

By Letter: Sign and send the letter to the address below:

Director, EO Complaints and Programs
NASA Headquarters
Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity
300 E St. SW
Rm. 6P83
Washington, DC 20546

By E-mail: Send to hq-civilrightsinfo@mail.nasa.gov

Be aware that . . .

NASA’s Office of Diversity and Equal Opportunity (ODEO) will consider your complaint and inform you of its actions under the process. ODEO shall make an appropriate referral of any complaints that are not within its jurisdiction or which are the subject of concurrent jurisdiction with another Federal, state, or local agency.

A recipient institution of NASA financial assistance may not retaliate against any person who has made a complaint, testified, assisted, or participated in any manner in an investigation or proceeding under the anti-discrimination laws.

To learn more about your rights and responsibilities under the law please review NASA’s brochure, Nondiscrimination and Equal Opportunity NASA-Assisted Programs and Activities: -Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Related Nondiscrimination Laws

You may also raise questions or concerns NASA by telephone: 202-358-2180.

Filing a Complaint with the Department of Education Office for Civil Rights

Beneficiaries of educational programs receiving financial assistance from any Federal agency have a right to file a discrimination or harassment complaint directly with the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCF). To learn more, visit the OCR website at: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/howto.html

Filing a Complaint under Your Institution’s Internal Administrative Process

Students, faculty and staff of STEM educational programs should also know that their home institutions are required under Title IX of the Educational Amendments Act of 1972 and other Federal civil rights laws to have an administrative official named as a “Title IX Coordinator” and an internal administrative grievance process for filing complaints of discrimination or harassment. To learn more about compliance requirements under Title IX and other Federal laws, visit: http://missionstem.nasa.gov/compliance-requirements-nasa-grantees.html

Raising a Question or Concern

Beneficiaries of NASA-funded STEM educational or other NASA-funded programs who wish to raise a question or concern relating to discrimination or harassment may do so by contacting NASA by telephone at 202-358-2180 or email at civilrightsinfo@nasa.gov

Upon receipt of a concern or question, NASA will inform the individual of the right to file a complaint using the process outlined on the above section of the webpage.

If the individual does not wish to file a complaint, NASA will assess the concern to determine what, if any, additional steps may be taken. For example, NASA can use information received from beneficiaries in assessing civil rights compliance of grant recipient institutions.

Information provided by beneficiaries raising questions or concerns will be maintained in accordance with the Privacy Act of 1974.