Here's the plan. Go to regulations.gov and copy ED-2018-OCR-0064 into the search bar to comment on the proposed change to the Title IX rule regarding sexual assault on college campus. You can also try this link.
Here's my letter, which you can use as a general template if you like. There are some tips for submitting a successful comment here. Also, if you need more information, this is a good resource.
Re: ED-2018-OCR-0064
To Whom it May Concern,
I am commenting on the proposed rule: Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance.
I am a volunteer on my local rape crisis team in a community with two major universities. I sit with victims in emergency rooms during exams and evidence collection and advocate for their rights. I also answer hotline calls for the local rape crisis hotline. Many of the victims with whom I work are university students.
I am deeply familiar with the many ways in which universities avoid reporting and investigating sexual assaults on campus and recognize that while it is a result of intense pressure to protect the reputation of the university in order to sustain enrollment and alumni donations, it comes at the cost of student safety. Specifically I think it’s dangerous to limit university liability to assaults that take place on school campus, as most students live off-campus. I also believe that the “preponderance of evidence” standard already included in the rule is appropriate in regarding student discipline, and should not be removed. While I recognize the potential harm done to students in the extremely rare case of false accusations, I have seen no evidence that the long term impacts are harsher than having an assault go unreported, and being forced to continue pursuing education knowing that your assaulter is still allowed to walk free on your campus. Finally, the right of the accused to cross-examine victims through an adviser would have a profound cooling effect on victims feeling safe in coming forward with an accusation. Instead of a trauma-informed interview of each party individually, as is becoming increasingly common among law enforcement agencies, it would create a courtroom-like atmosphere where aspects of a victims lives can be probed in an invasive way that, while immaterial to the details of the assault, can often be used as a way to intimidate and invalidate a victim.
I have spent hundreds of hours in hospital rooms with victims and their families. The exam and evidence gathering process is invasive and painful, both physically and psychologically. The interview with police can be humiliating. Pressure from family and friends to stay quiet can often be oppressive. There are already so many factors preventing victims from propertly reporting a rape. Please do not introduce further obstacles to a victim’s safety. The proposed changes would be a massive step backward in the fight against an insidious epidemic happening amid what should be an exciting and productive time in a young adult’s life.
If it they have not yet be considered, I urge you to review the following peer-reviewed articles in the interest of meeting the standard for best available science: “Sexual assault incidents among college undergraduates: Prevalence and factors associated with risk,” by Claude A. Mellins, et al. PLoS One. 2017, “Prevalence of sexual assault victimization among college men, aged 18-24: a review” by R. Lane Forsman. Journal of Evidence-Informed Social Work, 2017 and “Barriers to Reporting Sexual Assault for Women and Men: Perspectives of College Students,” by Marjorie R. Sable et al, Journal of American College Health, 2010.
I understand that no rule is perfect, and advocate for data-driven progress in all policy decisions. I do not believe that the proposed rule changes are consistent with the known science regarding this issue. For the foregoing reasons, the rule should remain in place without these potentially disastrous changes.
Sincerely,
Matt Howard
Volunteer Victim Advocate
Matt Howard
Volunteer Victim Advocate
