The first in a series of community-wide discussions on sexual violence was held Thursday on the campus of San Diego State University. It’s the first week of class for the university’s 35,000 students.
The monthly meetings are designed to educate students about what constitutes sexual violence, how to prevent it, and clear up myths and misunderstandings. They are led by SDSU’s Title IX coordinator Jessica Rentto. Sexual assaults fall under Title IX, a 1972 federal law that bans sex discrimination in education.
The first few months of college are sometimes referred to as the "red zone," when campus police see a spike in sexual assaults as freshman students are away from home for the first time and attending parties.
The discussion series is part of a campus campaign called "Let’s Talk," which includes a website with information on what to do if you’ve been assaulted. There’s also information on how to intervene if you see sexual violence about to happen.
The series and website also help to define affirmative consent, which requires both parties to explicitly consent to sexual acts. Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation in 2014 requiring colleges in California to use the affirmative consent standard in evaluating sexual assault.
SDSU, along with three other schools, was the subject of a 2014 state audit that looked at how sexual assault is handled on campus. Auditors found the school did a poor job of educating incoming freshmen about sexual violence and that faculty and staff were poorly trained on how to respond to sexual assault reports.
The school has since beefed up a sexual violence presentation given to freshmen during orientation from 5 minutes to 35 minutes.
Last spring, the school hired a full-time detective who will specialize in sexual assault investigations. And in July, administrators hired a full-time victim's advocate who will be based on campus. The advocate was trained through the Center for Community Solutions, a local rape crisis and domestic violence support services center. Both positions were funded through a $200,000 grant from the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services. The detective position was only partially covered by the grant; SDSU matched the remaining funds to cover the salary.
SDSU administrators conducted a campus climate survey last spring to determine the scope and nature of sexual violence on the campus. This type of anonymous survey is considered the most accurate way to find out how prevalent sexual assault is in campus communities. Faculty researchers are currently analyzing the results.
Monthly "Let's Talk" discussions on sexual assault are being held at Scripps Cottage on the SDSU campus. The remaining dates are:
• 3 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 24, 2015
• 3 p.m., Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015
• 3 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 19, 2015
