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Sexual Assault, Bullying, and Harassment on the Basis of Sex in U.S. Schools

Sexual Assault, Bullying, and Harassment on the Basis of Sex in U.S. Schools

In the 2020-21 academic year, there were 2,700 instances of sexual assault in schools including 350 incidents of rape or attempted rape. There were 14,900 students who reported being harassed or bullied on the basis of sex and 20,800 students were disciplined for bullying or harassment on the basis of sex.

Georgia Tech Researchers Aim to Use Artificial Intelligence to Aid Domestic Abuse Survivors

Georgia Tech Researchers Aim to Use Artificial Intelligence to Aid Domestic Abuse Survivors

Georgia Tech researchers are working to create a new software tool powered by artificial intelligence to address the under-researched area of digital security and domestic abuse. These areas frequently overlap with abusers often using the internet and mobile technology to extend the reach of their abuse.

Report Finds Women Face Blatant Sexism in Army Special Forces

Report Finds Women Face Blatant Sexism in Army Special Forces

In 2015, all combat positions in the Army were opened to women. Today, there are about, 2,300 women in Army special forces units, about 8 percent of the total. Some 40 percent of all women in the special forces reported in a survey they had been impacted by gender bias. Later focus groups hinted that the percentage was probably much higher.

Enrollments Rebound at the Virginia Military Institute Two Years After Report Found Rampant Sexism on Campus

Enrollments Rebound at the Virginia Military Institute Two Years After Report Found Rampant Sexism on Campus

Two years after a blistering independent investigation found entrenched sexism and racism at the Virginia Military Institute and a subsequent drop in enrollments, this fall the number of first-year students has increased significantly. Women are 14.5 percent of the incoming class.

Study Debunks a Commonly Help Belief About Victims of Rape

Study Debunks a Commonly Help Belief About Victims of Rape

If a victim freezes or does not attempt to resist during a sexual assault, perpetrators often claim there was passive acquiescence. A new study presents neuroscientific evidence that counters that misconception. Many survivors of sexual assault report ‘freezing’ during an assault. The researchers argue that this is an involuntary response to a threat that can prevent a victim from actively resisting.

Survey Finds Sexual Assaults on College Campuses Are Rarely Reported to the Proper Authorities

Survey Finds Sexual Assaults on College Campuses Are Rarely Reported to the Proper Authorities

A new survey conducted by Vector Solutions, a company that produces sexual violence risk-management training materials for higher educational institutions, finds that only 6 percent of victims of sexual assault notify campus or local police authorities. Some 7 percent reported the assault to a campus administrator and only 3 percent went to an on-campus crisis center.

Niagara University to Lead New Study on Gender-Based Violence on College Campuses

Niagara University to Lead New Study on Gender-Based Violence on College Campuses

The Vincent Commission will partner with Niagara University to conduct “The New Ground Study on Gender-based Violence” to focus on understanding how young men, through their thoughts and experiences, perceive domestic and gender-based violence.

Study Finds Widespread Sexual Harassment in Academic Medicine

Study Finds Widespread Sexual Harassment in Academic Medicine

A new study led by Reshma Jagsi, chair of the department of radiation oncology at the Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, finds that women are disproportionately affected by workplace mistreatment in academic medicine, and this mistreatment negatively impacts their mental health.

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Launches New Program to Increase Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Launches New Program to Increase Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners

Currently, there are fewer than 100 sexual assault nurse examiners in Wisconsin. Of these, even fewer are certified.

Study Finds That Women in STEM Disciplines in College Experience Greater Incidence of Sexual Violence

Study Finds That Women in STEM Disciplines in College Experience Greater Incidence of Sexual Violence

The study by scholars at Georgia State University and the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston found that women majoring in STEM disciplines that are gender balanced reported more sexual violence victimization in the form of sexual coercion, attempted sexual coercion, attempted rape, and rape compared to their peers in both gender-balanced and male-dominated non-STEM majors and in male-dominated STEM majors. 

Survey Finds Women in Academic Earth and Space Science Face Widespread Discrimination

Survey Finds Women in Academic Earth and Space Science Face Widespread Discrimination

The researchers found that more than half of women scientists experienced identity-based discriminatory remarks. More than 40 percent of women respondents said they experienced bullying and intimidation and 43 percent said they thought their work was devalued. More than 15 percent of women said they had experienced fear for their physical safety.

A New Online Tool to Assess the Campus Climate Regarding Sexual Assault, Prevention, and Victim Support

A New Online Tool to Assess the Campus Climate Regarding Sexual Assault, Prevention, and Victim Support

The Campus Accountability Map + Tool empowers current and prospective students, survivors, and their communities with the ability to view in-depth information on each institution’s sexual assault investigation policies, prevention efforts, and available survivor support resources as well as high-level statistics on definitions, trainings, sanctions, and investigations.

Cornell Suspends Fraternity Events After Drugging and Sexual Assault Incidents

Cornell Suspends Fraternity Events After Drugging and Sexual Assault Incidents

Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, has temporarily suspended all fraternity parties and social events. The ban was issued after the alleged drugging of at least four students, and the sexual assault of another student. These incidents reportedly occurred at off-campus residences affiliated with registered fraternities.

Nicole Esposito Wins Her Job Back as Leader of Manchester Community College in Connecticut

Nicole Esposito Wins Her Job Back as Leader of Manchester Community College in Connecticut

Nicole Esposito was removed from her post as leader of Manchester Community College in August 2021, just a little more than a year after taking office. She promptly filed a lawsuit claiming gender discrimination and harassment. The case was recently settled in her favor.

The Rising Plague of Sexual Assault on College Campuses

The Rising Plague of Sexual Assault on College Campuses

The number of reported forcible sex offenses on campus increased steadily between 2014 and 2018, from 6,800 to 12,400 incidents (an 83 percent increase, or an average increase of about 16 percent per year). The rate for reported forcible sex offenses increased from 1.7 incidents per 10,000 students in 2009 to 8.0 incidents per 10,000 students in 2019.

Alcohol Increasingly Has Become a Contributing Factor in Campus Sexual Assaults

Alcohol Increasingly Has Become a Contributing Factor in Campus Sexual Assaults

Research led by Mary Koss, a Regents’ Professor in the Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health at the University of Arizona, shows that 30 years ago, 50 percent of women who were assaulted were inebriated at the time of the assault. In the most recent study, 75 percent of the women college students said they were inebriated.

Marquette University Study Examines How Employers Can Combat Domestic Violence

Marquette University Study Examines How Employers Can Combat Domestic Violence

Researchers at the Institute for Women’s Leadership at Marquette University in Milwaukee interviewed domestic violence survivors to better understand the impact of domestic violence on employment experiences and guide workplace policies moving forward.

How the Pandemic Impacted the Frequency and Severity of Domestic Violence

How the Pandemic Impacted the Frequency and Severity of Domestic Violence

A new study by researchers at the University of Michigan found that in the early months of the pandemic, the overall prevalence of domestic violence didn’t increase, but survivors of intimate partner violence experienced new, more frequent, or more severe violence in that period.

Lawmakers Refuse to Support Victims of Sexual Assault at the Virginia Military Institute

Lawmakers Refuse to Support Victims of Sexual Assault at the Virginia Military Institute

A Virginia statute makes it illegal for a university to punish a student for a drug or alcohol offense that comes to light during a report of sexual assault. The statute applies to every public institution in the Commonwealth, with one notable exception: Virginia Military institute.

Association of American Universities Issues New Guidelines to Address Sexual Assault

Association of American Universities Issues New Guidelines to Address Sexual Assault

The Association of American Universities is a group of 66 of the nation’s leading educational research institutions. The association recently issued a set of eight guidelines addressing sexual misconduct in all forms, including sexual and gender-based harassment and related retaliation.

Reported Sexual Assaults On College Campuses Continue to Increase

Reported Sexual Assaults On College Campuses Continue to Increase

A new report from the U.S. Department of Education offers a detailed look at crime and safety at the nation’s schools and on college and university campuses.

Why Do Many Victims of Sexual Assault on College Campuses Remain Silent?

Why Do Many Victims of Sexual Assault on College Campuses Remain Silent?

A study, by Sandra Caron, a professor of family relations and human sexuality at the University of Maine, and Deborah Mitchell, a retired UMaine police sergeant, examines why so many women students decline to report incidents of sexual assault to the campus administration or law enforcement authorities.

Investigative Report Documents Women's Experiences at the Virginia Military Institute

Investigative Report Documents Women’s Experiences at the Virginia Military Institute

The Virginia Military Institute enrolled its first women cadets enrolled in 1997. Today, women make up only 14 percent of the student body. A new report finds that sexual assault; incidents of gender inequity; a culture of not taking women seriously; double standards for women on matters of dress, social behavior, and sexual behavior are all problems on campus.

Catching Perpetrators of Groping Sexual Assaults

Catching Perpetrators of Groping Sexual Assaults

For the past 10 years, Julie Valentine, a professor of nursing at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah, has been at the forefront of making touch DNA evidence collection a standard practice in groping cases. She has created a standard form for sexual assault medical examiners to collect touch DNA evidence from survivors’ skin and clothing.

Michigan State University Study Examines Why Young Women Do Not Report Sexual Violence

Michigan State University Study Examines Why Young Women Do Not Report Sexual Violence

The researcher found that many of the young women who were raped by their boyfriends had experienced a lot of abuse growing up, which led them to minimize the sexual violence. Additionally, some participants who had been raped noted they had been socialized to believe that forced sex was part of their role as a girlfriend.

New Survey Documents Perceptions of Sexism and Gender Discrimination in the High-Tech Sector

New Survey Documents Perceptions of Sexism and Gender Discrimination in the High-Tech Sector

Dice, the leading database for technology professionals, managing over 9 million profiles in the United States, recently released a new survey that examines perceptions of sexism and gender discrimination in the high-tech industry by employees who work in the field.

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Domestic Violence in the United States

The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Domestic Violence in the United States

A survey sponsored by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence found that intimate partner violence, child abuse, and sexual assault have increased during the pandemic. Also, researchers found that professionals who deal with these issues have faced many barriers to serving victims of domestic violence.

New AAUW Report Examines the Reasons for the Large Gender Gap in Manufacturing Jobs

New AAUW Report Examines the Reasons for the Large Gender Gap in Manufacturing Jobs

Women are more likely to quit jobs in manufacturing than women in other industries, reflecting a history of sexual harassment, unequal pay and opportunity denied. A survey by the American Association of University Women found that more than 82 percent of women in manufacturing jobs reported unwanted touching, kissing, or other physical advances.

A Woman's Appearance Impacts Their Perceived Credibility on Sexual Harassment Claims

A Woman’s Appearance Impacts Their Perceived Credibility on Sexual Harassment Claims

A new study by researchers at Colby College in Maine, Princeton University in New Jersey, and the University of Washington finds that women who are young, “conventionally attractive” and appear and act feminine are more likely to be believed when making accusations of sexual harassment than other women.

U.S. Department of Education Reports New Data on Campus Sexual Assaults

U.S. Department of Education Reports New Data on Campus Sexual Assaults

The number of reported rapes and sexual assaults has been on the rise. In 2017, there were 10,308 reports of forced sexual assaults on the nation’s college campuses, compared to under 3,000 in 2010. It is unclear whether this increase is due to increased numbers of sexual assaults, an increased willingness to report such incidents, or both.

Those Accused of Sexual Assault on College Campuses Get a Break From Betsy DeVos

Those Accused of Sexual Assault on College Campuses Get a Break From Betsy DeVos

The new regulations some Title IX provisions but they also stipulate that colleges and universities “restore fairness on college and university campuses by upholding all students’ right to written notice of allegations, the right to an advisor, and the right to submit, cross-examine, and challenge evidence at a live hearing.”

NCAA Faces Litigation Over Sexual Violence by Male Student Athletes

NCAA Faces Litigation Over Sexual Violence by Male Student Athletes

The National Collegiate Athletic Association is the subject of a lawsuit that claims the organization has not done enough to shield women college students from sexual assaults by male student athletes. Plaintiffs in the case include students from the University of Nebraska and Michigan State University.

New Study Finds That Activism and Intervention Can Drastically Decrease Domestic Violence

New Study Finds That Activism and Intervention Can Drastically Decrease Domestic Violence

Researchers at George Washington University’s Global Women’s Institute have published a new study that found that women’s advocacy groups can change social norms and produce significant reductions in domestic violence against women.

University of Rochester Settles Sexual Harassment Lawsuit

University of Rochester Settles Sexual Harassment Lawsuit

The suit, originally filed in 2017, claimed that the university retaliated against and defamed the plaintiffs after they alleged sexual harassment by a faculty member.

The University of Arkansas Opens the Sexual Assault and Relationship Violence Center

The University of Arkansas Opens the Sexual Assault and Relationship Violence Center

The Sexual and Relationship Violence Center — which is different than the office of Title IX — strengthens the University of Arkansas’ health center’s efforts to further partner with other university offices and departments to be involved in prevention and response efforts.