Here are a few suggestions to help you better understand what policies and laws are in place regarding sexual assault as you continue your college search. As you familiarize yourself with departmental majors offered, undergraduate research opportunities, etc., it’s important that you also know how your prospective institution may react to – and address – sexual assault claims by its student body.
1. Know the Laws in Your State (or where your prospective college is located)
It’s important to know the current laws and policies in your area regarding sexual assault. No matter whether you learn about what legislation is in place in your hometown or where you are thinking about spending your college years, it’s important to be informed. Use this resource from RAINN to find out about the public policy currently in place. Remember, where you live and go to school make a difference.
2. Ask the Critical Questions
As Valerie Jarett, Senior Advisor to President Barak Obama, notes, there are some critical questions that you need to ask of your college administration. Here’s what you need to know:
- What training or other prevention and education programs does your school provide to help stop sexual assault from happening in the first place?
- Do you have a Title IX coordinator? Who is that person and what responsibilities does he or she hold?
- Does your school have an easy-to-understand process for reporting sexual assault? How do I find it?
- What services do you have to support students?
Again, these questions are the basics of what information you should be seeking. As a guide to help you better understand the information you should be gathering from your prospective institutions, check out Ms. Jarett’s explanation of what responses you should expect to receive.
3. Familiarize Yourself with School Policies
We know that choosing a college is no easy task, but it’s important to make sure you understand what policies a school has established to address sexual assault. We have provided you with access to such information from NC State University as an example. You should be able to locate similar resources by searching for an institution’s “counseling services” or “student policies” on their school website. Be sure to familiarize yourself with the following material from NC State University to help you better understand what you should expect to see – at a minimum – from other institutions:
Sexual Assault and Interpersonal Violence Resources – On-Campus & Off-Campus
Rape and Sexual Assault Counseling Center
Title IX Implementation at NCSU and University Policy
4. Know What Policies and Laws Exist to Protect You
As victims of predatory crime, sexual assault survivors oftentimes look for recourse from two entities: the criminal justice system or the university to which they are affiliated. While no two campus sexual violence policies are the same, federal legislation sets the precedent from which all campus sexual assault policies are derived. Make sure you familiarize yourself with some of the basic legislation that will help protect victims of sexual assault.
Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972 serves as the most prominent piece of federal legislation requiring campuses to respond to all reported sexual harassment and violence claims. Following the passage of Title IX, the U.S. Congress passed the Campus Security Act in 1990, later renamed the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act, and the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act in 2013; that particular act amended the Clery Act in a number of ways, most notably in the procedures required for handling sexual assault complaints (Coray, 2016; Streng & Kamimura, 2015). Requirements detailed that victims must be provided information regarding their options for notifying law enforcement, and should victims choose to report the assault, campus authorities must assist them in doing so (Coray, 2016). Sexual assault victims must also be made aware of their ability to change “academic, living, transportation, or working situations, and must be provided information regarding available counseling, mental health, and legal assistance” by their respective institution (Coray, 2016, p. 77). Be sure to check out this article from AAUW discussing some of the protection provided under Title IX specifically. By knowing the basics of this federal legislation, you can empower yourself to be advocates of prevention and help provide information to those who may be seeking assistance.
References Coray, E. (2016). Victim protection or revictimization: Should college disciplinary boards handle sexual assault claims? Boston College Journal of Law & Social Justice, 36(1), 59-90. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.prox.lib.ncsu.edu/docview/1784565528?pq-origsite=summon Streng, T. K., & Kamimura, A. (2015). Sexual assault prevention and reporting on college campuses in the US: A review of policies and recommendations. Journal of Education and Practice, 6(3), 65-71.Retrieved from http://www.iiste.org/Journals/index.php/JEP/article/view/19426/19628