Schools interested in conducting student climate surveys on sexual misconduct have a lot of decisions to make. For a web-based survey, you will need to determine what survey platform to use to administer it. Web-based surveys are commonly used because they can quickly reach large numbers of students via email or text message, and the survey platforms typically have built-in data management and analysis systems. Advancements in mobile data collection have resulted in many survey platforms offering a mobile-compatibility option, which means students can easily take the survey on their computer, tablet, or mobile phone, without any additional programming needed. There are many commercially available survey platforms for administering campus climate surveys. This factsheet is intended to help inform decisions about which one to use Download Document
Message from Office for Civil Rights (OCR) – Department of Education: We wanted to share two newly released Title IX resources with you, which we hope you can pass along to anybody you think will be interested. First, OCR issued the following resource: Questions and Answers on the Title IX Regulations on Sexual Harassment (July 2021) and a related Appendix. The Q&A clarifies how OCR interprets schools’ existing obligations under the 2020 amendments to the Department’s Title IX regulations, including the areas in which schools have discretion in their procedures for responding to reports of sexual harassment. The Appendix provides examples of Title IX procedures from a variety of elementary, secondary, and postsecondary schools that may be adapted and helpful to schools in implementing the 2020 amendments. OCR also just posted the transcript from the Department’s recent virtual public hearing on Title IX, held from June 7 to June 11, 2021. The hearing provided OCR with the extraordinary opportunity to hear the views of more than 280 students, educators, and other members of the public on a variety of issues related to Title IX—along with many written comments from people throughout the country. We are grateful for the participation of […]
Conducting a student climate survey on sexual misconduct can have many benefits to institutions of higher education. Climate survey data can help schools develop prevention programs, allocate victims’ assistance resources, and modify policies in a data-informed way, based on the actual experiences and opinions of students. However, to be meaningful, the data must reflect the entire student body at a given school. Many schools have found that only a small proportion of students who are invited to take the survey actually do so. Low response rates are the biggest challenge to climate surveys and often make it difficult to have confidence in the data. When very few students participate in a survey, it raises concerns that the data may not be representative; in other words, students with certain characteristics (e.g., women, freshmen) or experiences (e.g., a history of sexual violence victimization, involvement in advocacy efforts) may be more likely to take the survey than others. Schools would not feel comfortable making important decisions that affect all students based on data from small or biased samples. Therefore, schools interested in conducting climate surveys need to plan carefully to maximize response rates and ensure sample representativeness Download Document
Campus climate surveys can be used to track sexual misconduct prevalence rates or to evaluate the success of campus- wide victim services and prevention programs. Climate surveys can also be used to identify programming and service needs on campus. For this reason, many institutions want to use a climate survey as a needs assessment in Year 1 of their Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) Campus Program projects. However, to allow for thoughtful planning and to ensure the success of the survey, implementation in Year 2 is likely to be more productive. With a Year 2 spring survey administration in mind, this factsheet provides step-by-step guidance (with links to additional resources) and a recommended timeline for planning and implementing a climate survey within the OVW Campus Program structure Download Document
This document contains key resources for schools of higher education interested in using the Qualtrics-programmed version of the Campus Climate Survey Validation Study (CCSVS) survey instrument to conduct a student survey. These resources and the programmed Qualtrics survey file are available free of charge to any institution of higher education that has a Qualtrics license and is interested in conducting a student survey to document the school’s prevalence of sexual assault, other forms of misconduct, and the campus climate related to sexual misconduct. Download Document
This Assessment Tool is intended to be used after reviewing Integrating Victim Services into Conduct Policies Guide. This case study can be used to assess how integrated victim services is in your institutions’ current domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking (DVSAS) conduct policy. “Se pretende utilizar esta Herramienta de Evaluación tras revisar la Guía de Políticas de Conducta sobre su Integración en los Servicios a la Víctima. Este caso de estudio puede ser utilizado para evaluar el nivel de integración de su institución, los servicios a la víctima y la política de conducta existente sobre la Violencia doméstica, Violencia en la relación de pareja, acoso sexual y acecho (DVSAS).” Download Document descargar documento
Committing to provide victim services on campus extends beyond the advocacy itself. A conduct policy is an excellent place to educate student survivors about their privacy rights, the resources, and options available to them and how to access these services. Se extiende la deferisa pm el oomprnmiso de dar servioios a las vicLimas en el campus. Una buena polftica de conducta es un medio excelente para educar a los estudiantes sobrevrivientes sobre sus derechos de privacidad, los recursos y las opciones disponibles y como aoceder a estos servicios. Download Document descargar documento
The Toolkit for Preventing Interpersonal Violence among Students Studying Abroad is designed to increase the capacity of colleges to prevent interpersonal violence among students who participate in study abroad programs.
Continue ReadingThe Toolkit for Preventing Retaliation After Sexual Assault within the College Context is designed to increase the capacity of colleges to prevent students from experiencing retaliation related to sexual assault reports.
Continue ReadingThe U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) released a series of technical assistance materials on the Department’s Title IX Regulations to help schools meet their non-discrimination requirements under federal law and help parents, students, and stakeholders understand their rights and protections. The materials were released through OCR’s Outreach, Prevention, Education, and Non-Discrimination (OPEN) Center as part of a dedicated commitment to providing high-quality technical assistance. OCR Title IX Video: Regional Centers and School Consortia OCR’s first webinar will help educators, administrators, and stakeholders better understand how schools can work together to meet certain responsibilities under OCR’s Title IX’s regulations. The video provides information on how schools can coordinate communication on their Title IX Coordinators and non-discrimination policies, and how schools can utilize regional centers or consortia to investigate and adjudicate a sexual harassment complaint. OCR Title IX Video: Bias and Conflicts of Interest OCR’s second new video instructs recipients on how to adopt and publish policies to ensure that sexual harassment allegations are fairly adjudicated, how they must train their Title IX personnel to avoid bias and conflicts of interest, and how they can effectively administer a grievance process in a way that avoids bias and conflicts of […]