ACTION STEPS FOR FACULTY AND STAFF As an integral member of your campus community and someone students look up to, you play a central role in creating a safe, healthy atmosphere free from sexual violence. This tip sheet gives concrete actions to help prevent sexual violence on your campus. WHAT IS SEXUAL VIOLENCE? Sexual violence occurs when someone is forced or coerced into unwanted sexual activity without agreeing or consenting. Reasons someone might not be able to consent include: • Fear • Being underage • Having an illness or disability • Incapacitation due to alcohol or other drugs Consent can initially be given and later be withdrawn. Sexual violence is a crime that comes in many forms, including forced intercourse, sexual contact or touching, sexual harassment, sexual exploitation, and exposure or voyeurism. Sexual violence is never the victim’s fault. It does not matter what the victim is wearing or doing, whether the victim has been drinking, or what type of relationship the victim has with the person who is sexually abusing them. [Pop-out box: One in five women will be a victim of sexual assault during her college years. (Krebs, Lindquist, Warner, Fisher, & Martin, 2007)] [Pop-out box: One in 16 men will be a victim of sexual assault during college. (Krebs, Lindquist, Warner, Fisher, & Martin, 2007)] TAKE ACTION ENGAGE • Attend trainings to learn more about your unique role in addressing sexual violence on your campus. Your campus’ Title IX (Know Your IX, n.d.) Coordinator, Women’s Center, or other on-campus, anti-violence organization might organize these trainings (http://knowyourix.org/). • Collaboration across campus is critical to prevent sexual violence. Talk with your campus’ Title IX Coordinator or Women’s Center or other on-campus, anti-violence organization about joining a coalition dedicated to preventing and responding to sexual violence. [Pop-out box: Reporting Sexual Violence Under recent changes to the law, most faculty are considered “responsible employees” and have to report any incidents of sexual violence, even if a student prefers not to report the experience. If a student discloses an assault, issue a reminder that even though you have to report the incident, the student does not have to participate in the investigation. Speak with your school’s Title IX Coordinator for more on your specific legal role.] EDUCATE • Incorporate information about sexual violence and healthy sexuality (National Sexual Violence Resource Center [NSVRC], 2012) into your curriculum whenever possible (http://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/SAAM_2012_An-overview-on-healthy-sexuality-and-sexual-violence.pdf). • Invite campus peer educators to conduct trainings for your students during class. • Keep information about sexual violence prevention on hand for your students. Consider displaying it in your office so that students see it when they attend office hours. Get free print materials from the Women’s Center, another on-campus, anti-violence organization, or your local rape crisis center. Visit www.nsvrc.org/saam for annual Sexual Assault Awareness Month materials. MODEL • Actively model respectful, equitable behavior to students and other faculty and staff. • Intervene (NSVRC, 2013) when you witness inappropriate behavior. If students or colleagues make sexist comments or joke about rape or dating violence, speak up and say that this is not tolerated on your campus (http://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/publications_nsvrc_bulletin_engaging-bystanders-prevent-sexual-violence_0.pdf). • Participate in campus educational campaigns and events to show your support for prevention efforts and survivors of sexual violence. LEARN MORE • American Association of University Women Ending campus sexual assault toolkit (http://www.aauw.org/resource/campus-sexual-assault-tool-kit/) • American College Health Association Sexual Violence Resources (http://www.acha.org/topics/violence.cfm) • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Preventing Sexual Violence on College Campuses: Lessons from Research and Practice (https://www.notalone.gov/assets/preventing-sexual-violence-on-college-campuses-lessons-from-research-and-practice.pdf) • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Sexual Violence Prevention: Beginning the Dialogue (http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/pdf/SVPrevention-a.pdf) • Clery Center For Security On Campus (http://clerycenter.org/) • Department of Education Questions and Answers on Title IX and Sexual Violence (http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/docs/qa-201404-title-ix.pdf) • Know Your IX (http://knowyourix.org/) • National Alliance to End Sexual Violence Policy Statement: Campus Sexual Assault (http://endsexualviolence.org/files/NAESVCampusSexualAssaultPolicyStatementFinal-2.pdf) • National Sexual Violence Resource Center (www.nsvrc.org) • PreventConnect.org online resource center • The White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault: www.notalone.gov References Know Your IX. (n.d.). Know Your IX hompage. Retrieved from http://knowyourix.org/ Krebs, C. P., Lindquist, C. H., Warner, T. D., Fisher, B. S., & Martin, S. L. (2007). The Campus Sexual Assault (CSA) Study (NCJ 221153). Retrieved from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/221153.pdf National Sexual Violence Resource Center. (2013). Engaging bystanders to prevent sexual violence: Bulletin. Retrieved from http://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/publications_nsvrc_bulletin_engaging-bystanders-prevent-sexual-violence_0.pdf National Sexual Violence Resource Center. (2012). An overview on healthy sexuality and sexual violence prevention. Retrieved from http://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/SAAM_2012_An-overview-on-healthy-sexuality-and-sexual-violence.pdf