Monday, August 02, 2004

Aug. 2, 2004

Wilmington, N.C. – The University of North Carolina at Wilmington today released the preliminary report of Chancellor Rosemary DePaolo’s Task Force on Education and Training Initiatives for Campus Violence Prevention and a statement from Chancellor DePaolo. Below please find the executive summary and her statement.

The full report can be found online.

Statement from Chancellor Rosemary DePaolo Aug. 2, 2004, regarding the Preliminary Report of the Task Force on Education and Training Initiatives for Campus Violence Prevention

I am extremely grateful to Drs. Deborah Brunson and Karen Sandell and the other members of the task force in providing me their preliminary recommendations on ways to improve education and training programs relating to campus violence prevention.

The amount of hard work and detailed information produced in a short timeframe is extremely impressive. I will examine the report carefully, and determine how quickly we can implement some, if not all, of their immediate and near-term recommendations before the academic year begins in a few weeks.

I look forward to receiving their final report by Nov. 1, 2004.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In response to the tragic deaths of undergraduate students Jessica Lee Faulkner and Christen Marie Naujoks, the Task Force on Education and Training Initiatives on Campus Violence Prevention was charged by Chancellor Rosemary DePaolo to examine the university’s education and training programs and services and to make recommendations for ways to augment, improve, or create programs that could reduce the incidence of interpersonal violence within the campus community. The issues examined by the task force include programs and services that address the areas of dating and domestic violence, sexual assault, harassment and stalking.

While the charge to the task force was to address student, faculty and staff issues, the request for a report to the chancellor by Aug. 1, 2004, directed the task force’s attention to student concerns. The report was to provide a preliminary assessment of campus education initiatives related to dating and domestic violence, sexual assault, harassment, and stalking, and to make recommendations that address the issues/needs of students in these four areas as the new academic year commences.

The 17-member task force met on four consecutive Fridays in July. Its membership was drawn from UNCW administrators, faculty, and students, and was co-chaired by Dr. Karen Sandell and Dr. Deborah Brunson. In its initial study of current campus-based education programs and initiatives on interpersonal violence, the task force utilized a variety of informational sources, including publications, Web sites, interviews with key campus representatives, and discussions with others who had expertise in the area, including task force members.

As part of its study, the task force reviewed the 2003 UNCW Campus Crime Report, which identifies the extent of campus violence related to students. While the incidence of documented cases of interpersonal violence including sexual assault was few in number, the task force recognized that nationwide, cases of violence against women has historically been underreported. There is little reason to believe that a similar trend does not exist on the UNCW campus. Thus, an increase in reporting as an outcome of the efforts taken to reduce campus violence, while counterintuitive, might actually be considered a positive result.

While the task force believes that it is impossible to eliminate completely the threat of violent acts or to predict with certainty who may commit a violent act, we propose a series of education and training initiatives and interventions designed to minimize the threat of campus violence and to quickly respond to the recent campus crises. The task force’s recommendations call for action of several kinds in education and training efforts:



Immediate and Near-Term Recommendations:

1. Develop and maintain a Web page for UNCW Violence Prevention Resources linked directly to the UNCW home page. This site can be a resource hub for current and future UNCW services. We suggest that the index page be established with clear links to available resources with statements such as:

1. “If you are in a violent or abusive relationship right now”… CLICK HERE

2. “If you believe your relationship has the potential for violence or you have been threatened”"… CLICK HERE

3. “If you believe you are being stalked”"… CLICK HERE

4. “If you want to reduce the possibilities of finding yourself in a vulnerable or violent relationship”"… CLICK HERE

5. Links to PDF files of current policies, procedures and resources would be made available.



2. Choose one week after the drop/add period and designate that week that ALL instructors in all classes would mention and show the Web page link. Through the deans and faculty senate, educate all chairs about this resource and make it part of the agenda of all initial faculty/staff meetings. A common template/script should be established to share with all faculty members for this short presentation to students and an on-line version made available for on-line classes. Where Web access is not available or feasible, a handout should be made available for distribution.



3. Print flyers and/or bookmarks to be distributed at the Involvement Fair, in classes, and other fall semester venues with the Web site address (proposed in #1), and also names and phone numbers of contact points for students, faculty or staff seeking help.



4. Compile and disseminate (e.g., Web, campus calendars, etc.) a comprehensive and current list of courses/workshops/materials/trainings/etc., that address the following topics:

• Violence Prevention

• Sexual Harassment

• Rape/Date Rape

• Healthy Choices in Relationships/Sexuality

• Sexual Assaults/Stalking

• Domestic Violence/Dating Violence

• Advocacy Programs



5. Increase the offerings and advertising for the Rape Aggression Defense (RAD) self-defense trainings offered through the University Police Department (UPD). This will require the training of more UPD sworn officers to deliver RAD courses. Advertise RAD offerings at final orientation sessions, through campus media, and UNI 101 (Freshman Seminar) courses early in the fall semester.



6. Conduct a series of meetings with key governing bodies and umbrella groups for student organizations to gather more information about educational tools that would impact students on the issue of violence prevention. These meetings would also serve as a vehicle to get broader involvement in the education and training efforts. These groups would include, but not be limited to:

• Student Government Association (SGA);

• Inter Fraternity Council (IFC);

• National Pan-Hellenic Conference;

• Mi Gente;

• National Panhellenic Council;

• Native American Student Organization;

• International Student Organization;

• Residence Hall Association;

• Black Student Union;

• Student Media Board;

• Sports Club Council;

• People Recognizing Individual Differences Exist (PRIDE);

• Student Athlete Advisory Council;

• Graduate Student Association; and,

• Association for Campus Entertainment (ACE).



Meetings would take place in the September/October timeframe so that information gathered could be included in the Nov. 1, 2004 report to the chancellor.



7. Encourage ongoing faculty and staff professional development and training on violence prevention and intervention through workshops, symposia, meetings and other relevant programs.



8. Encourage faculty and staff to share their expertise in violence related issues with the campus community through open forums, workshops, classroom presentations and other public venues."