Pennsylvania State University Adopts 18 Measures to Fight Sexual Assault and Harassment

Eric Barron, president of Pennsylvania State University, has endorsed all 18 recommendations set forth by the Task Force on Sexual Assault and Harassment.

“We take any incidence of sexual misconduct seriously and while Penn State has a long history of prevention programs, policies and protocols to address sexual misconduct, these need to be better coordinated and integrated across our campuses. At the same time we must move forward in developing new initiatives with the continued hope that we can impact this serious challenge,” President Barron said.

Among the recommendations of the task force were the creating of new administrative positions to deal with issues of sexual assault and harassment, mandatory training for faculty and staff members, and a required course for all first-year students addressing campus safety issues. The task force also recommended that a climate survey be conducted each year to determine the campus community’s views on sexual assault and harassment and to assess the university’s efforts to combat their occurrence.

Below is a video of President Barron discussing the issue.