As an alum of Swarthmore College who looks back on my years there with halcyon nostalgia, nothing could be more disheartening to me than to learn that my alma mater had been covering up reports of sexual assault, misreporting campus crime statistics, and turning a cold shoulder to survivors looking for support and justice.
As an alum of Swarthmore College who looks back on my years there with halcyon nostalgia, nothing could be more disheartening to me than to learn that my alma mater had been covering up reports of sexual assault, misreporting campus crime statistics, and turning a cold shoulder to survivors looking for support and justice. But after students filed Clery Act and Title IX complaints against the college last spring, I was forced to acknowledge that while Swarthmore gave me the educational foundation and friends to last a lifetime, other students—survivors of sexual assault—received so much less than the college promised and than they deserved.
Swarthmore took an important step last Thursday in restoring my confidence in the school and, more importantly, the safety of the students currently enrolled. In an open letter, President Rebecca Chopp detailed the initial actions Swarthmore will take to respond to the “sea change” in the law addressing sexual assault and harassment at America’s colleges and universities. From a number of new policies the college will roll out as soon as this summer, it’s clear that Swarthmore would rather surf the wave than drown.
Among other changes, Swarthmore has promised a new, full-time Title IX coordinator (the position has been part-time until now), Clery Act and Title IX training for members of the community, like RAs and campus security, who are likely to receive first-hand reports of sexual assault, and new, mandatory online training for incoming students. This announcement comes less than a week after the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) at the Department of Education notified the school that it was opening an investigation into the alleged Title IX violations. It also comes a mere two-and-half months after OCR publicized a letter of findings and resolution agreement with the University of Montana that it recommended other schools use as a model to reform their own sexual assault policies. That agreement promotes many of the changes Swarthmore is putting in place.
Swarthmore’s actions show that the Montana agreement and OCR’s renewed focus on sexual assaults at colleges and universities are working. Not only that, but President Chopp’s plan demonstrates that acting swiftly to combat a hostile sexual climate on campus can be done without infringing the rights of students accused of sexual assault. Its new policies include not only appointed advocates to help guide survivors through the campus judicial process, but hearing advisors for alleged perpetrators as well.
In the end, this sea change has not come only from the Obama administration, but from the waves of student activists who have demanded that their schools fulfill their duties under Title IX to protect their rights. As these students’ stories show, Title IX is not about campus civility codes and criminalizing asking someone out on a date, as some critics absurdly allege. It is about preventing real violence, real harassment, and the very real indifference of school administrators to students who report these violations. Those students will be sure to continue the pressure on Swarthmore to follow through with its promises. As a result of their efforts, I look forward to the day when I can again tell people without reservation that I am a proud Swarthmore graduate.