Campus sexual assault: Is Vanderbilt Visions helping?
Erika Hyde
Issue date: 10/2/07 Section: News/Features
"Security Alert: Rape
It was reported to Vanderbilt Police that a rape occurred sometime during the early morning hours of Tuesday, August 22, 2006."
Last fall, this email headline reached the inboxes of the Vanderbilt community, bringing an uncomfortable issue to the forefront of the student body's consciousness. Violence against women is a difficult problem to face, but it is nevertheless a pertinent one that impacts everyone, male or female.
According to crime statistics provided by the Vanderbilt Police Department (VUPD), reported sex offenses on campus from 2003, 2004, and 2005 numbered 19, 13, and 17, respectively. In 2006, that number dropped down to just 5. What accounts for this significant drop? Does it represent an actual decrease in the number of assaults that occurred, and if so, what university policies contributed to this improvement? Or is this instead the result of fewer victims seeking support following assault, in which case we must ask: how can we reprogram our system to reach out to these women?
Officer Andrew Atwood of the VUPD is wary of accepting numbers at face value. "Statistics are meant to raise awareness, and inform the community of what's going on. To a certain extent, it allows for people to see avenues for reporting when they come in contact with a situation [of sexual violence]." While it is difficult to infer a trend based on these crimes, the VUPD, in partnership with departments such the Office of Housing and Residential Education (OHARE) and the Margaret Cuninggim Women's Center, have been continuously working to provide support for victims and to make the campus more secure.
The Morgan shooting incident in the fall of 2005 was a signal to the administration that we needed increased safety measures on campus. Then-Chancellor Gordon Gee formed the Vanderbilt University Task Force on Security and Safety, who recommended a restructuring of university policy in response to alcohol violation and sexual assaults. Among the task force's efforts to improve the Vanderbilt atmosphere were the three-strike policy for violations of the student conduct code, increased security cameras and contract security guards in residence halls, and a semester long orientation program for first year students.
It was reported to Vanderbilt Police that a rape occurred sometime during the early morning hours of Tuesday, August 22, 2006."
Last fall, this email headline reached the inboxes of the Vanderbilt community, bringing an uncomfortable issue to the forefront of the student body's consciousness. Violence against women is a difficult problem to face, but it is nevertheless a pertinent one that impacts everyone, male or female.
According to crime statistics provided by the Vanderbilt Police Department (VUPD), reported sex offenses on campus from 2003, 2004, and 2005 numbered 19, 13, and 17, respectively. In 2006, that number dropped down to just 5. What accounts for this significant drop? Does it represent an actual decrease in the number of assaults that occurred, and if so, what university policies contributed to this improvement? Or is this instead the result of fewer victims seeking support following assault, in which case we must ask: how can we reprogram our system to reach out to these women?
Officer Andrew Atwood of the VUPD is wary of accepting numbers at face value. "Statistics are meant to raise awareness, and inform the community of what's going on. To a certain extent, it allows for people to see avenues for reporting when they come in contact with a situation [of sexual violence]." While it is difficult to infer a trend based on these crimes, the VUPD, in partnership with departments such the Office of Housing and Residential Education (OHARE) and the Margaret Cuninggim Women's Center, have been continuously working to provide support for victims and to make the campus more secure.
The Morgan shooting incident in the fall of 2005 was a signal to the administration that we needed increased safety measures on campus. Then-Chancellor Gordon Gee formed the Vanderbilt University Task Force on Security and Safety, who recommended a restructuring of university policy in response to alcohol violation and sexual assaults. Among the task force's efforts to improve the Vanderbilt atmosphere were the three-strike policy for violations of the student conduct code, increased security cameras and contract security guards in residence halls, and a semester long orientation program for first year students.
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