A panel discussion was held today for the Ithaca College community concerning the college’s revised methods for responding to sexual assault on campus.

The college has recently added measures to its response to sexual assault, which provide more assistance to the victim, according to Tiffani Ziemann, coordinator of judicial and educational programs. Ziemann said the panel discussion aimed to publicize the changes in the college’s policy as well as draw attention to April as Sexual Assault Awareness Month. She said the differences to the policy include allowing the victim to be present via phone or video screen and to have an adviser during formal hearings with the accused.

“We’ve added elements that are more supportive of survivors who are going through the judicial process,” Ziemann said. “It gives them security that they can be a part of the process but not feel like they are being victimized over again.”

Presenters included staff members from the Offices of Residential Life, Judicial Affairs, and Public Safety as well as members of the college’s Sexual Assault Working Group, the student group Students Active for Ending Rape, the Counseling Center and the community-based Advocacy Center.

Laura Durling, assistant director of Patrol and Security Services, and Mike Leary, assistant director for Judicial Affairs, provided an outline of the process of dealing with sexual assault from the first report of the offense to the punishment of the perpetrator. The procedures include an investigation by Public Safety that is submitted to Judicial Affairs, an individual meeting with the accused, a formal hearing with the Conduct Review Board (made up of faculty and students), approval of punishments by the vice president for student affairs, and an optional appeals process by the accused.  

The new policy also specifically defines the terms sexual assault, sexual abuse, sexual exploitation and consent, Leary said. The policy provides minimum sanctions for these specific offenses as well.

“Our Student Conduct Code is very broad and general,” Leary said. “For sexual assault policy we tried to get more specific. We felt that we could be better able to charge students and be better able to decide what responses to perform judicially.”

The changes to the policy were based on the approaches used by other institutions, Leary said. The new policy is intended to reflect New York state sexual abuse law, with the exception that perpetrators charged through Judicial Affairs can be punished without being found guilty beyond reasonable doubt.

Durling said the dramatic changes she has seen in the perceptions of sexual assault over the past 30 years has helped the college in its ability to respond to rape and other offenses.

“I can go back historically to years when rape crisis people were on this side of the room and the police were on that side of the room and they didn’t talk to each other,” Durling said. “What a long way we have come.  We are at a point now that I consider just prime.”

Heather Mueller, a member of SAFER, said meetings and events like the panel discussion will encourage students to be active in addressing sexual assault issues.

“We hope to get students involved in helping the processes of changing policies about rape and sexual assault, and also to help end violent culture surround rape and sexual assault,” Mueller said.

Junior CMD major Elizabeth Kranz, who attended the panel discussion, said she has been an advocate for victims of sexual assault since high school because many of her friends have been the victims of sexual offenses.

“I encourage other students to get involved with these kinds of events,” Kranz said. “Sexual assault affects everyone in some way.”

Another panel discussion covering the same topics will be held at 4 p.m. Wednesday in Textor 101.