On Oct. 17, Angie Epifano's "An Account of Sexual Assault at Amherst College" was published in the Amherst Student, the independent newspaper of Amherst College. Within days, Epifano's story had been retold by various news sources, including Slate and feminist blog Jezebel.
Epifano's account shed light on what she considers systemic mistakes by Amherst's administration, including the use of disciplinary hearings with both parties involved present. At Tufts, both students and administration have taken notice of Epifano's story and reflected on the University's own history and policies of sexual misconduct.
"Clearly the Amherst story is very upsetting and, unfortunately, we've been doing this work a long time and ... looking at the issue of sexual assault on college campuses across the country for years," Senior Director of Health and Wellness Services Michelle Bowdler said. "I think that everyone acknowledges that these situations can and do occur, which is why so many people have been working as hard as they are to make changes in campuses all around the country."
Sophomore Kumar Ramanathan, a member of Action for Sexual Assault Prevention (ASAP) and a contributing writer at the Daily, agrees with Bowdler and believes that change in both policy and culture must occur before misconduct can be prevented.
"I thought [Epifano speaking out] was a very brave thing to do and I was glad she did it. Unfortunately, it's a story that isn't new or even rare," Ramanathan said. "One of the foci is the way the administration dealt with her case, but I think one part that gets ignored is also the culture on campus that perpetuates this aura of silence and secrecy and having to carry a burden without having support."
For Ramanathan, Epifano's story evoked memories of the stories on Raped at Tufts (Rapedattufts.info), a site maintained by individuals that is, according to its homepage, "dedicated to exposing the perpetuation of rape culture at Tufts University at the hands of the administration." It has not been updated since April 2011.
Ramathan, who saw Raped at Tufts before he came to campus, said, "[Sexual assault is] a part of being [on] a college campus, but that doesn't mean we can just ignore it. We still have a responsibility as students and administrators to be better than average."
At Tufts, as at other institutions, concern for incidents of sexual misconduct is valid, and the administration is aware this concern exists.
"Experiences like those related in the Amherst news are deeply troubling," Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO) Director Jill Zellmer said. "Unfortunately - and sadly - no institution, including Tufts, is exempt from sexual misconduct. We are doing our best to combat all sexual misconduct across all Tufts campuses."
Earlier this year, a university?wide Sexual Violence Working Group revised the Sexual Misconduct Adjudication Process and created a Sexual Misconduct Policy to replace Tufts' Sexual Assault Policy. The revisions were made to clarify prohibited conduct so students can better identify their rights and responsibilities, Zellmer told the Daily in an email last month.
According to Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman and Judicial Affairs Officer Veronica Carter, the changes in Tufts' policies were the result of a three?year process. Though the university previously ran hearings with a panel of students, the policy has been changed to alleviate victims' concerns.
"We looked around all over the place and found actually that the best model was being used by Harvard, which had been created just a year and a half prior to [us creating our new policy]," Reitman said. The accusers and alleged perpetrators are interviewed separately and the process takes between 30 and 60 days, according to Reitman.
In April 2011, the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services' Office of Civil Rights published a letter that highlighted the need to expand the scope of Title IX's coverage. The letter led to further revisions of Tufts' policies, as every case of sexual misconduct is now referred to the OEO. Judicial Affairs still maintains a role in the process.
"I still take the complaint for sexual assault, and we send it [to the OEO] for the fact?finding investigation," Carter said. "We issue a no?contact order just as soon as a student files a complaint toward the responding party. If the responding party violates a no?contact order, then they have to leave the university until the adjudication process is complete."
According to Carter, "disciplinary charges pending" is indicated on the responding party's transcript as soon as the complaint is received. Interim measures, such as safety on campus, are also discussed. For example, if a student wants to move residence halls, Judicial Affairs can help with that process, she said.
In addition, there are now numerous Title IX "liaisons" that have been trained to serve as extensions of the OEO, according to Zellmer.
"My personal goal as the Title IX Coordinator and Director of the OEO is to have as many entry points as possible for students who have experienced sexual misconduct with the hope that survivors will feel comfortable with at least one of the reporting ways that we offer and will therefore get the support and services they need," Zellmer said.
At the end of the investigation process by the OEO, a three?person panel, including the dean of students on the relevant campus and two others appointed by Zellmer, will receive the report to determine if it supports the interpretation of Title IX and code conduct violations, Reitman said.
According to the 2012?2013 Judicial Process Handbook, sexual misconduct apart from rape or attempted rape can result in suspension, while both rape and attempted rape are punishable by expulsion.
Along with the federal government, Tufts students were instrumental in beginning these changes. Two campus organizations, Students Active for Ending Rape (SAFER) and Prevention, Awareness & Community at Tufts (PACT), joined forces to become one comprehensive group: ASAP.
"SAFER was originally formed to advocate for overhauling the sexual assault policy at Tufts, which it did successfully," junior Nina Bernstein said. "[ASAP's] goal is sexual assault prevention, education, awareness of resources and working to make the resources better."
These resources include the OEO and Tufts administration, as well as departments that can be accessed with the promise of confidentiality, such as Health Service, Counseling and Mental Health Service (CMHS) and the Chaplaincy.
"We see ourselves as being here to be available for students whenever they are willing and interested - sometimes a day later, sometimes three years afterwards," Margaret Higham, the medical director of Health Service, said. "Each individual person's response to sexual assault is very different ... so it's a very individualized process."
According to Higham, Health Service works to address sexual assault victims' health care needs, such as concern regarding sexually transmitted infections and the possibility of pregnancy. Health Service also provides advice for future legal action. Higham emphasized that although the process of compiling an evidence kit can be difficult for an assault victim, Health Service tries to emphasize that the physical information must be collected within five days.
"It's a lengthy process and it's hard to do, but we do encourage it because we think it gives a woman options," Higham said. "Having it done doesn't mean they have to report it or that it has to be used - it's just there."
CMHS' Director of Training and Continuing Education Director Julie Jampel emphasized the outlet that CMHS provides for all assault victims, where sessions depend on the students' needs and the counselors' availability.
Student groups are also devoted to informing the student body of these processes and raising awareness. Director of Community Outreach for Panhellenic Council (PhC) Alyssa Ridley, a senior, is especially proud of the organization's Take Back the Night event, which aimed to raise awareness about sexual violence.
Ridley is also involved with RAD, a rape aggression defense course at Tufts, and has worked as rape crisis counselor.
"Before I was involved with things like this, I had this idea that ... we don't have any problems here," Ridley said. "That leads to us cultivating a space with some problems, since we don't realize there are things to work on."
Completing Rape Crisis and Recovery, a Women's Studies course, has made Ridley more conscious of cultural factors that perpetuate sexual assaults on campus.
"A lot of it ties back to our gender norms," Ridley said. "We learned about ... the culture of victim?blaming that we live in and just how that perpetuates the fact that it continues."
Ramanathan added that policy changes are not enough
"We have to educate people that consent is part of our life, and that it's part of the sexual culture on campus," he said. "I think it is important for us to hold the people here to a higher standard ... We all know there are problems out there, but we can do better."
