New Steps to Combat Sexual Assault at Harvard University

Harvard University president Drew Faust has announced several steps to strengthen the university’s Office of Sexual Assault Prevention and Response. The office will receive increased funding and staff.

In addition a new website will be created that will showcase the university’s efforts to prevent sexual assault and the resources available to students who have been victims. New information will be provided so that all schools at the university can integrate sexual assault prevention training into this fall’s orientation programs.

Also, this fall the university will conduct a campus-wide survey to “assess the incidence, circumstances, and perceptions of sexual assault and other forms of sexual harassment at Harvard.”

In a statement, President Faust said: “Harvard will meet our legal obligations, but they alone should not bound our response to this behavior. We can, and indeed we must, do better. We have the responsibility to think in new ways about the best means of preventing sexual assault and ensuring that we are effectively responding to those who have experienced it.”