Developing New Ad Board Procedures on Date Rape

Though the issue of a College date rape policy has been framed around formulating a definition, the Date Rape Task Force's original mandate was to reform the College's disciplinary process and to establish effective education and counseling programs.

"The thing that has always been most important to me has been to raise awareness said former Assistant Dean for Co-education lanet A. Viggiani, the Task Force's co-chair. "We needed to develop procedures that people can understand and to have programs in place to educate people."

Virginia L. MacKay-Smith '78, Viggiani's successor as assistant dean, said the Ad Board needed procedural changes for dealing with sexual assault. "There were ways to handle date rape before the Task Force, but pretty much the whole community recognized that those procedures needed to be modified," she said.

Beyong the campus activism, many of the measures to formulate a set procedure for handling date rape cases are required by federal legislation.

The Higher Education Reauthorization Act passed last summer mandates that schools allow a student charging sexual assault, which includes date rape, as well as the accused student the right to appear before a disciplinary board.

In the past, MacKay-Smith said the students charging date rape had been treated simply as witnesses to the alleged offense and were allowed only to issue a written statement to the Ad Board. While Jewett says the issue had been considered in the past, he says of in-person testimony, "Generally that's never, been done before."

While extensive changes have since been made to Ad Board procedures, especially in the procedures especially in the procedures of the investigative subcommittees, it appears many of the changes came from within the administration rather than the Task Force report.

When a student first registers a complaint, the student must file a written statement with the senior tutor, according to MacKay-Smith. The tutor will also advise the student to speak with the "Victim's Witness" advocate in the Middlesex District Attorney's office to see whether the student would pursue formal charges.

The senior tutor of the accused student asks the student to respond to the charges in a written statement oral discussion with the advisor.

The student then writes the statement before seeing the complainant's written charge. After the student writes the statement the student sees the complaint and may respond to any discrepancies.

"This was something the Task Force felt pretty strongly about," MacKay-Smith said. Yet she also said these procedures had been informally used prior to the Task Force's report.

"There were lots of changes that had been in the making but were formalized in the Ad Board report," she said."

For each disciplinary case involving accusations of date rape, the Ad Board sets up a subcommittee to investigate the charges.

Recently the Ad Board has set up several standing subcommittees, proposed by Jewett, rather than an ad hoc committee which handled cases previously.

Jewett says that although many of the proposed changes had been in front of the Ad Board before, they represented what the Task Force had wanted. "While some of the changes had been discussed in front of the Ad Board before, they reflected what the Task Force thought was important to happen," he says.

The strongest input from the Task Force has been in the roles of student advisors, said Jewett. Generally, both students in a complaint are advised in the proceeding by their senior advisors or senior tutors. The advisors inform the students about Ad Board ground rules and counsel them in the investigation.

In the past, however, the advisors, who are members of the Ad Board, participated in the deliberations of the case. Students may now select another advisor from other members of the Ad Board.

The Task Force report suggested the advisors remove themselves from the voting process.

In addition, advisors will now sit in when both students appear before the subcommittee and will inform the students they advise of what was said.

Strides in Education

Despite the rejection of its most publicized proposals, College officials say the Task Force played a strong role in the education of the Ad Board and the community as a whole.

Date rape on college campuses is now extensively treated in the Ad Board's annual orientation sessions, MacKay-Smith said.

In addition, she said there is ongoing training throughout the year. Speakers have come from outside groups and student groups to address the issue.

While these programs existed prior to the Task Force's inception, MacKay-Smith said they have been greatly strengthened.

"The meetings that were held were very fruitful," said Dean of Radcliffe Philipps Bovett, who is also a member of the Ad Board. "I think the Board has achieved a better understanding of the issue and I think sensitivity goes along with the understanding."

Jewett says an important contribution of the Task Force is to address the lack of sensitivity in the community at large.

As a result of the Task Force's efforts, Viggiani says funding from the College for educational programs has increased. "I have been given more money to expand the training and reach of peer relations and date rape program," she says.

And the increased student interest has been valuable in campus-wide education, Viggiani says.

She cites the play "Calling it Rape" and a speaker who worked on victim's rights legislation as new programs arising through the increased funding. "It's much more effective to have a play by students than it is for me to make a speech, or write new policies for that matter," she said.

Jewett says he has seen improvement in College's sensitivity as a whole. "The community in general is much more sensitive to the hurt and to the problems [of victims]," he said. "But we still have a way to go in order to get students educated."

Jewett says that the issue, which arose out of a volatile campus controversy two years ago in which he was charged with insensitivity, was more important than any campus dispute.

"It's too bad that it came around as a misunderstanding, but it was important that the issue get looked at," he says

When a student first registers a complaint, the student must file a written statement with the senior tutor, according to MacKay-Smith. The tutor will also advise the student to speak with the "Victim's Witness" advocate in the Middlesex District Attorney's office to see whether the student would pursue formal charges.

The senior tutor of the accused student asks the student to respond to the charges in a written statement oral discussion with the advisor.

The student then writes the statement before seeing the complainant's written charge. After the student writes the statement the student sees the complaint and may respond to any discrepancies.

"This was something the Task Force felt pretty strongly about," MacKay-Smith said. Yet she also said these procedures had been informally used prior to the Task Force's report.

"There were lots of changes that had been in the making but were formalized in the Ad Board report," she said."

For each disciplinary case involving accusations of date rape, the Ad Board sets up a subcommittee to investigate the charges.

Recently the Ad Board has set up several standing subcommittees, proposed by Jewett, rather than an ad hoc committee which handled cases previously.

Jewett says that although many of the proposed changes had been in front of the Ad Board before, they represented what the Task Force had wanted. "While some of the changes had been discussed in front of the Ad Board before, they reflected what the Task Force thought was important to happen," he says.

The strongest input from the Task Force has been in the roles of student advisors, said Jewett. Generally, both students in a complaint are advised in the proceeding by their senior advisors or senior tutors. The advisors inform the students about Ad Board ground rules and counsel them in the investigation.

In the past, however, the advisors, who are members of the Ad Board, participated in the deliberations of the case. Students may now select another advisor from other members of the Ad Board.

The Task Force report suggested the advisors remove themselves from the voting process.

In addition, advisors will now sit in when both students appear before the subcommittee and will inform the students they advise of what was said.

Strides in Education

Despite the rejection of its most publicized proposals, College officials say the Task Force played a strong role in the education of the Ad Board and the community as a whole.

Date rape on college campuses is now extensively treated in the Ad Board's annual orientation sessions, MacKay-Smith said.

In addition, she said there is ongoing training throughout the year. Speakers have come from outside groups and student groups to address the issue.

While these programs existed prior to the Task Force's inception, MacKay-Smith said they have been greatly strengthened.

"The meetings that were held were very fruitful," said Dean of Radcliffe Philipps Bovett, who is also a member of the Ad Board. "I think the Board has achieved a better understanding of the issue and I think sensitivity goes along with the understanding."

Jewett says an important contribution of the Task Force is to address the lack of sensitivity in the community at large.

As a result of the Task Force's efforts, Viggiani says funding from the College for educational programs has increased. "I have been given more money to expand the training and reach of peer relations and date rape program," she says.

And the increased student interest has been valuable in campus-wide education, Viggiani says.

She cites the play "Calling it Rape" and a speaker who worked on victim's rights legislation as new programs arising through the increased funding. "It's much more effective to have a play by students than it is for me to make a speech, or write new policies for that matter," she said.

Jewett says he has seen improvement in College's sensitivity as a whole. "The community in general is much more sensitive to the hurt and to the problems [of victims]," he said. "But we still have a way to go in order to get students educated."

Jewett says that the issue, which arose out of a volatile campus controversy two years ago in which he was charged with insensitivity, was more important than any campus dispute.

"It's too bad that it came around as a misunderstanding, but it was important that the issue get looked at," he says