The Equity and Title IX office is excited to begin another year of learning and living together on a Christ-centered campus. We are writing to inform and encourage you about the Equity and Title IX Office as you entrust your student to Wheaton College. We desire that we be an educational environment that is not only free from harassment, discrimination, and sexual misconduct but also one that is reflective of our collective commitment to Christ.
The Equity and Title IX team seeks to serve Jesus Christ as Savior and live according to biblical standards. The goal of life at Wheaton College is to live, learn, work, rest, play, serve, and worship together as an educational community centered around the Lord Jesus Christ. Recognizing that we live in a fallen and sinful world, the Equity and Title IX Office exists to promote a campus culture where all Wheaton College students, faculty, and staff have equal access to education and activities free from unlawful discrimination, harassment, and sexual misconduct as outlined in the Wheaton College Nondiscrimination Policies. These policies have been developed to honor biblical principles, comply with federal and state law, and follow best practices for campus safety. For additional information and to review our policies, please visit our website at www.wheaton.edu/equityandtitleix.
We have had an encouraging start to the academic year. We are pleased to report that all our incoming freshmen have successfully completed anti-harassment and anti-discrimination training. The Director of Equity and Title IX Coordinator has also conducted training with multiple groups on campus, including athletes, student leaders, and Residence Life staff. Ongoing training is also available to anyone who wishes to learn more about policies and processes that prohibit bias incidents, harassment, discrimination, and sexual misconduct.
In September, we hosted an interactive personal safety and self-defense workshop with Strictly Self Defense as part of National Campus Safety Awareness Month. The response from our student body was very encouraging. We closed the evening with a safety Q&A session by our very own Chief of Public Safety, Bob Norris. We are so thankful for Chief Norris and the Public Safety team who work to keep our campus community safe. We look faithfully forward to the academic year and have several events planned, including Domestic Violence Awareness Month and Purple Thursday (October 22, 2026) when we encourage our community to wear purple to raise awareness for domestic violence.
The Equity and Title IX team is prepared to work in difficult spaces, often filled with hurt and emotion. With a posture of empathy and compassion, we commit to pray for all parties involved in Equity and Title IX processes and seek resolutions that offer healing, restoration when appropriate, and allow Equity and Title IX staff to both educate and empower all involved parties throughout the process. Our prayer and refrain for the Equity and Title IX space during the 2026–27 academic year continues to be Micah 6:8: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8 NIV). This verse hangs on a large painting in the Equity and Title IX office and serves as a reminder and encouragement as our team seeks to faithfully serve the Lord in the work He has set before us.
October 2026
Philip Ryken
Wheaton College in Washington, D.C.
The 2027–28 
Karen Slack and Mark Markham reception with enthusiastic Wheaton College singers (9.18.26)
