University of Maine System trustees will consider a new policy on sexual harassment, dating violence and consent to sexual contact at their meeting on Monday. The policy, which is part of a national push to prevent sexual assault on college campuses, is a step forward, but it is the beginning of a process, not an end.
Last month, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology released the results of its campuswide survey on the prevalence of and attitudes toward sexual violence. It was the most high-profile school to do so. One in six female students said they had been sexually assaulted while enrolled at MIT, but only 5 percent had reported it. Five percent of male undergraduates said they had been assaulted, according to survey results.
Equally troubling is the students’ confusion and even justification for the assaults. A quarter of male students and 15 percent of females said a drunk person is “at least somewhat responsible” if he or she is assaulted. Nearly three-quarters of those who reported being assaulted said they didn’t believe what had happened was serious enough to officially report, and 45 percent said they were partially to blame.
This highlights the need for a change in culture, not just policy, a sentiment echoed in Maine.
“We have to change the culture on campuses,” Sam Collins, chairman of the University of Maine System board of trustees, said when the policy was unveiled in August. “What was acceptable 30 or 20 years ago is not acceptable today. The mindset of young men has to be changed, and I don’t think we’re there yet.”
A central part of the proposed new policy, which mirrors federal law, is a new definition of consent. “Consent” is “clear, knowing and voluntary.” The new policy says: “Consent is active, not passive. Consent may be withdrawn at any time. Silence, in and of itself, cannot be interpreted as consent.”
It goes on to explain that if a person is incapacitated because of drugs or alcohol or for whatever reason does not understand the extent of the situation unfolding, then there is no consent. And, any consent that is given is invalid or moot when the exchange involves unwanted physical force, coercion, intimidation and/or threats.
The policy, which needs approval from the system’s trustees to go into effect, also clarifies who should and must report incidents of sexual discrimination and harassment, stalking and assault.
It says that all university employees must report these incidents when they learn of them, but reporting to the university does not necessarily lead to filing a formal complaint with the police.
However, there will be situations in which university officials need to report to the police even if the victim does not want them to, such as when others on campus are in imminent harm.
To implement the policy, all students and staff within the university system will be required to go through a lengthy online training session. The training includes detailed, personal accounts of sexual violence and its consequences, as well as resources specific to each campus. Students and employees must complete a test with a score of 75 percent or higher at the end of each segment. If they get a lower score, they must retake the training.
The system must verify that the new policy and training are working. Conducting a “campus climate survey” as MIT did would set a benchmark. The system can then follow up with another survey to ensure that improvements in awareness and behavior have occurred.
The policy sets the right tone. But without a continued push to make sure all students and university employees feel safe and supported, it is not enough. The trustees should wholeheartedly support this policy but only as part of a comprehensive effort to give the problem of campus sexual violence the attention it needs and deserves.
