The Office for Equity, Equal Opportunity, and Title IX (EEO-TIX) is the University office responsible for responding to all reports of discrimination, harassment, and retaliation based on a protected characteristic throughout the entire University community, including all Keck Medicine of USC departments, institutes, and satellite operations, pursuant to the University’s Policy on Prohibited Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation (Policy).
Keck Medicine of USC is the largest entity at the University with more than 50 percent of the University’s faculty, staff, and student population learning and/or working at its many facilities and operations. Keck Medicine of USC includes the Keck School of Medicine of USC and the Keck Medical Center of USC. The Keck Medical Center is comprised of Keck Hospital of USC, USC Norris Cancer Hospital, USC Verdugo Hills Hospital, USC’s faculty practice plan, USC Care Medical Group, as well as more than 40 outpatient facilities, including several at affiliated hospitals, in Los Angeles, Orange, Kern, Tulare, and Ventura counties. Any employee, student, patient, or visitor to any of these facilities are considered governed and protected by the policy.
The healthcare setting is also defined broadly to include Engemann Student Health Center, Eric Cohen Student Health Center, USC School of Pharmacy, USC Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry, School of Gerontology, and the Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, as well as all of their various programs, including those at the USC Chan Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy and USC Division of Biokinesiology and Physical Therapy.
Dedicated EEO-TIX Team for Healthcare
Due to the size of the Keck health system and the other associated entities, as well as the uniqueness of their operations, EEO-TIX has established a dedicated team for intake, outreach, and support, as well as investigation and resolution, to promptly and appropriately respond in partnership with Keck Medicine of USC, to all reports in the healthcare setting. The team is led by the Deputy EEO-TIX Coordinator for Healthcare, Nicoli Richardson, in collaboration with the Vice President for EEO-TIX. The Deputy is supported by three Senior Investigators, Aundreia Cameron, Samantha Cuillier, and Ronald Neef; an Intake, Outreach, and Care Manager, Eilish Kelderman, and an Intake/Administrative Assistant, Erica Gutierrez.
Nicoli has more than a decade of legal and civil rights experience in the medical and health care fields, which gives her a unique understanding of issues in the field. In her role, Nicoli regularly interacts with Keck Medicine of USC partners to address intersecting issues involving medical standards of care and reports of discrimination or harassment under the Policy. Read more about Nicoli Richardson.
Any individual may make a report of Prohibited Conduct under the Policy regardless of affiliation with the University and regardless of whether or not the person reporting is the person alleged to be the individual impacted by the conduct as noted on the EEO-TIX home page. In addition, for reports specifically related to the healthcare setting, EEO-TIX has created a dedicated email for healthcare-related issues: eeotix@med.usc.edu, which is monitored by the dedicated EEO-TIX healthcare team, or individuals may contact:
Nicoli Richardson
Deputy EEO-TIX Coordinator – Healthcare
King Hall
1025 W. 34th Street, Suite #101
Los Angeles, CA 90089
(213) 740-5086
eeotix@med.usc.edu
In addition, the University encourages anyone who experiences or witnesses an incident of Prohibited Conduct that may also violate criminal law to immediately report the incident to the Department of Public Safety or external law enforcement using the following contact information:
Department of Public Safety
UPC: (213) 740-6000 (24 hour, non-emergency number)
HSC: (323) 442-1200 (24 hour, non-emergency number)
Los Angeles Police Department
911 (for emergencies)
1-877-ASK-LAPD (24-hour, non-emergency number)
A Reporting Party may choose to make a report to the University to pursue resolution under this Resolution Process and may also choose to make a report to external law enforcement. A Reporting Party may make a report to the University, to law enforcement, to neither, or to both. As set forth in the Policy, a Reporting Party has the right to report, or decline to report, potential criminal conduct to law enforcement. Upon request, the University will assist a Reporting Party in contacting law enforcement at any time, regardless of whether the Reporting Party wishes to pursue a Formal Complaint under this Resolution Process. Under limited circumstances posing a threat to the health or safety of any University community member, or as required by the University’s Memorandum of Understanding with the Los Angeles Police Department, the University will independently notify law enforcement. The University’s Resolution Process and law enforcement investigations may be pursued simultaneously, but will operate independently of one another.