MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – The Department of Education just released a report saying one in five women has been sexually assaulted while in college.
Furthermore, figures from the study show only 12 percent of sexual assault victims report the crime. Underreporting can only be improved if victims feel safe on campus, officials said.
The startling numbers are forcing universities across the country to take a look at how sexual assault cases are handled and how they can be prevented. At the University of Minnesota campus, school leaders and lawmakers are discussing want to do to about the problem.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar joined university leaders to talk about her push for more government funding to oversee how universities and colleges handle reports of assaults.
University president Eric Kaler said work needed everywhere. He said the U is also striving to improve staffing and resources all the time at crisis centers and to create a culture that supports victims.
The report also listed 55 campuses under investigation. The U of M is not one of them, but the report serves as a good reminder that improvement is needed everywhere to make sexual assault a “rarity, not an expectation.”
Though occasionally the assaults are random, the police chief says he can only remember one or two reported random attacks. Most of the time, the victim has been assaulted by someone they know.
