Sexual harassment is a hot-button topic in today’s society, and members of the Iowa State community are sponsoring a forum to examine the legal and social issues surrounding it.

The forum, titled “Preventing Sexual Harassment in the University Community,” will be held tonight at 8 in the Sun Room of the Memorial Union.

The event is free and open to the public.

Denise Vrchota, president of the Faculty Senate, one of the event’s sponsors, said the intent of the forum is to make community members aware that sexual harassment is a problem at ISU.

“Sexual harassment is an issue that, with every court case, is changing rapidly, and it’s important for the university community to be concerned about it,” said Vrchota, adjunct assistant professor of journalism and mass communication. “We’ve had a number of high-profile cases, and we shouldn’t take any chances.”

The forum will feature Jonathan Alger, counsel for the American Association of University Professors (AAUP), who will speak on the current status of law in relation to sexual harassment and will offer a national perspective to the forum, she said.

Carla Espinoza, assistant vice president for Human Resource Services and director of the Affirmative Action Office, and Hessie Harris, associate counsel for University Legal Services, also will speak at the forum.

Vrchota will serve as the moderator.

Harris will be talking on law and sexual harassment policy, something she deals with firsthand in her role with the university.

Although Harris deals with instances of harassment after they occur, she said she addresses “problem areas or issues that have been revealed during a [sexual harassment] case” to prevent them from recurring.

Besides assisting and guiding university administrators with harassment policy, she also prepares university responses to harassment complaints filed with agencies such as the Iowa Civil Rights Commission.

Harris said sometimes people are oblivious that they are committing sexual harassment.

“There are times when people aren’t aware that their conduct is a problem,” she said.

Espinoza, who was unavailable for comment, develops and monitors university policies, investigates discrimination complaints and serves as a liaison between federal and state agencies.

The forum is sponsored by the Faculty Senate, Affirmative Action Office, Graduate Student Senate and Committee on Lectures.