As many freshmen are gearing up to attend college, it seems parents will have to give their children an education in campus rape rates and how to protect themselves before they crack open their textbooks. A recent survey has found that America’s higher education institutions are doing a piss-poor job of preventing and investigating sexual assaults on campus.
A recent survey, conducted by Sen. Claire McCaskill’s office, has found about 40 percent of colleges and universities reported not conducting investigations into sexual assaults in the past five years, including 6 percent of the nation’s largest public institutions. Many universities have gone years without investigating, displaying a clear lack of communication between campuses and law enforcement.
Under some estimates, one in five female college students are sexually assaulted. Federal law mandates every institution that is aware of sexual violence to investigate, even if the victim isn’t participating.
The survey also discovered more than 20 percent of respondents provide no sexual assault training for all faculty, staff, or students. About half of the participating colleges and universities do not have a hotline for sexual assault victims. Only about a quarter of the schools reported having written protocols between campus and local authorities for handling such cases.
Among other findings, about 40 percent of schools said they have sworn law enforcement officers on campus, while others hire private security, and about half rely on local authorities. Thirty percent said campus police and security guards aren’t required by law to be trained to respond to reports of sexual violence.
The schools that participated in the survey weren’t named.