News
Hamilton administration continues to focus on education and policy reform
By Haley Lynch ’17
November 10, 2016
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As student groups continue to take initiative in bringing more awareness to issues of sexual assault and misconduct on campus, there is a degree to which the administration’s efforts in this process have been overlooked. In a recent interview with Title IX Coordinator Lisa Magnarelli, The Spectator asked questions about how the administration has been dealing with this issue over the years, and what specific steps it has been taking in response to the increased attention on the issue this semester following the October release of the Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Board’s (HSMB) 2015-16 Report.
Magnarelli began by clarifying that the Title IX office had originally viewed the contents of the controversial HSMB report as a sign of progress, in that it represented the highest number of reports in Hamilton history. This seemed to indicate that, in fact, students were actually starting to feel more comfortable with reporting instances of sexual misconduct to the College. Magnarelli commented, “I felt good. We had 24 people take a very brave step, and that’s gotten lost in some of the discussions that followed. I’m saddened by that.”
The Title IX office has been working for years to shift cultural ideas about sex and sexual misconduct on campus. In response to allegations that the administration has been treating this issue passively, Magnarelli revealed that, “Every student currently on campus has completed training in the form of an online Think About It program, Orientation training, then six weeks in[to classes as a first-year] attended the Speak About It program.” In other words, heavy emphasis has been placed on prevention through education.
Title IX Outreach Coordinator Corinne Smith ’17 added: “members of the administration are certainly not passive about the issue of sexual assault… Personally, I have been involved in sexual assault prevention and education as well as survivor support since coming to Hamilton three years ago and… I am happy to see that the administration (especially the Title IX Office) has been an active and crucial part of this conversation through individual meetings with students, presence at the student assembly meetings, providing policy education, training students, faculty and staff, sending out feedback surveys, and sponsoring multiple sexual assault prevention and education programs.”
In response to questions about whether all of these trainings have been making a difference on campus, Magnarelli said: “I do look at the trainings as just setting a baseline knowledge for students… But with the policy, it’s just such dense material… if it doesn’t feel relevant to you, it doesn’t sink in.” Recognizing this issue, the Title IX office has sent out surveys to students, especially in the wake of some complaints about the new trainings (initiated this fall in response to changes in New York’s Title IX requirements). Although only about 100 out of the 700 students included in the email sent out last week have responded so far, Magnarelli reported that, “At first blush, people seem overall mostly satisfied.” She also pointed out that there was a lot of space left for comments in the hopes that students will use that space to voice their suggestions about ways that trainings could be improved to help their peers best understand the nuances of sexual misconduct.
The Title IX office is also placing a great deal of focus on making information about these issues feel more relevant to every student through outlets outside of trainings. Smith has been working closely with administration to assist in this effort. She told The Spectator: “In addition to training over 700 students on the definitions of sexual misconduct and affirmative consent and the requirements of the Sexual Misconduct Policy, the Title IX office has been working to debunk the problematic and pervasive myths of rape culture through a variety of programs.” Just this semester, these include Yes Means Yes, Speak About It, I <3 Female Orgasm, Think About It, and the Dr. Rashawn Ray visit—all of which were sponsored, coordinated and/or facilitated by the Title IX Office.
Smith added, “Given that peer-to-peer conversations are essential for addressing problematic norms that perpetuate sexual violence, the Title IX Office is open to helping student groups coordinate the events that they believe will be most effective with their peers. As a student who has been involved in sexual assault prevention, education and awareness, as well as survivor advocacy and support, I am heartened to see the campus actively engaging in this important conversation this year more than ever.”
Magnarelli had hit a similar note during her interview with The Spectator, mentioning: “prevention is absolutely a community responsibility. If I can improve the tools that we’re providing [to help sculpt that community through education], that’s what I want to do.”
In spite of all these efforts, it is clear that sexual misconduct still happens on this campus, as it does on any college campus. Advocates from the newly formed student led Sexual Misconduct and Assault Reform Task-Force (SMART) havebeenmeetingindividuallywith Magnarelli to discuss other paths for reform that might help to address the issue after an assault has already taken place. Magnarelli remarked that the College is truly seeking to “work towardsamoreresponsiveandsupportivepolicy,” through cooperation with students, in addition to the work the administration has been doing to promote a healthier cultural perspective surrounding sex and affirmative consent.
In particular, the HSMB has been discussing new sanctioning plans. Chair of the Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Board and Associate Professor of Literature and Creative Writing Tina Hall told The Spectator over email that: “the Harassment and Sexual Misconduct Board is discussing new sanction options in lieu of points… We haven’t come to any definitive conclusions on which sanctions we will decide to implement because we are still in the initial phases of revising the sanction portion of the policy, but the Board has had conversations about many possible alternatives, including some that would mandate education and/or counseling.”
She also noted that the Board is “hear[ing] a goodrangeofoptionsfrominterestedstudents,” echoing Magnarelli and Smith’s point that the changes being made here need to be discussed and considered by students, administration, faculty and staff alike, as we are all members of this community. Hall concluded: “we hope to continue to hear more from the community as a whole about what they think appropriate sanctions might be as we go forward in revising the policy.”
At the end of the day, Magnarelli emphasized that, along with all the hard work the Title IX Office has been doing, she hopes that students will continue to speak up and recognize the power they hold to initiate change on campus. “The bottom line,” she said, “is that there is always more room for advocacy and activism on campus. If anyone has feedback that can help us improve this further, I want to hear it.” In the meantime, we must not lose sight of the magnitude of work that is always being done.