Lawmakers Tap Expertise of Assumption Professor to Develop Policies that Enhance Campus Safety
“Although there is no evidence that sexual assault on campus has increased, tolerance for it has decreased”
On March 27, Massachusetts state legislators, their aides, and members of the public gathered at the State House for the 10th Annual Massachusetts Family Impact seminar. The seminar, entitled #MAToo: Addressing Sexual Assault on College Campuses in Massachusetts, featured subject experts—including Assumption Associate Professor of Sociology & Criminology Alison C. Cares, Ph.D. — who presented research on the issues and policies surrounding sexual assaults on college campuses.
According to the Family Impact Institute, these seminars are designed to facilitate discussions “that provide up-to-date, solution-oriented research on current issues for state legislators and their aides.” The #MAToo: Addressing Sexual Assault on College Campuses in Massachusetts aimed to offer a family perspective in policymaking on issues related to sexual assault at Massachusetts institutions of higher education at a time in which state legislator are considering multiple proposals to address how colleges and universities respond and prevent to sexual misconduct on their campuses.
“I view my presentation today as one of the most important pieces of work I will get to do this year,” said Prof. Cares. “It is vital that current data on campus sexual assault is provided to and explained to policymakers as they work to craft legislation that helps colleges and universities better respond to incidents of sexual assault. This complex issue requires a collaboration of experts in the field, higher education leaders, and policy makers to develop laws that will truly address this problem.”
Prof. Cares presented on, “Current issues in the investigation and adjudication of campus sexual assault cases: How research can inform policy.” According to Prof. Cares, unfortunately, sexual assault has occurred at institutions of higher education and other areas of society for many years —there are high rates of sexual violence against female students as far back as the 1980s—in the last decade, there has been increased activism and awareness around the issue. “Although there is no evidence that sexual assault on campus has increased, tolerance for it has decreased. More survivors are coming forward to talk about their experiences and demand change,” she said.
During her presentation, Prof. Cares highlighted that although there is limited research on how cases are actually processed on college campuses, research has shown that there is considerable diversity and no set standard in approaches that different institutions take in terms of investigation, adjudication, and sanctioning. She explained that a college’s website and the information it provides related to sexual violence is an important piece of communicating an institution’s commitment to intolerance of sexual violence. “It is likely to be one of the first places a student, either a victim or a friend, would turn to for information and support,” she said, adding that up to 15 percent of colleges—usually schools with fewer than 1,000 students—do not even share contact information of the school’s Title IX coordinator on their website. Addressing issues like these may go a long way in improving the reporting process for victims of sexual assault.
The Massachusetts Family Impact Seminars are a project of The Mosakowski Institute for Public Enterprise at Clark University. In addition to Prof. Cares, speakers included Denise Hines, Ph.D., director of the Massachusetts Family Impact Seminars, co-founder of Clark’s Anti-Violence Education Program, and associate research professor of psychology at Clark; and Sharyn J. Potter, Ph.D., MPH, the executive director of the Prevention Innovations Research Center and a professor of sociology and women’s studies at the University of New Hampshire.