1. Oxy Sexual Assault
Coalition
Informational Session

2. Who is OSAC?
We are a group of concerned faculty and
students whose goal is to raise awareness of
the sexual assault epidemic and to
advocate for best policies and practices that
provide for a safe and equitable student
experience at Occidental College.

3. Sexual Assault Epidemic
• The U.S. has the highest rate of rape of all countries that
publish such data.
• ž College women are at higher risk than their non-
college peers.
• Between 10% and 25% of women, and 1% to 3% of men,
will experience sexual assault in college.
• ž At Occidental College, this translates into between 30
and 115 cases annually.

4. Sexual Assault at Oxy
1report filed: 2010-2011
34reports filed: 2011-2012
LOTS of unreported sexual assaults and rapes.

5. Campus Rape Culture
• ž Telling women how to avoid sexual
assault does not work.
• ž Most campus rapes are perpetrated by
4% of college men who are repeat
offenders.
• ž Predatory sexual behavior is
normalized…
• ž …so bystanders do not intervene and
perpetrators are not stigmatized.

6. History of OSAC
• Politics Department filed formal complaint
about sexual assault policy/practices in 2009.
• College extensively revised policy/practices in
2010.
• Numerous student complaints about
policy/process 2009 - present.
• Dear Colleague letter April 4, 2011.
• Another extensive revision Fall of 2011.
• OSAC officially forms in Spring of 2012 in
response to on-going complaints.

7. 2010/2011 Oxy Sexual Assault
Stats
• OSAC knows details of 8/13 cases
• Found Responsible: 5/8
• Minor Sanctions: 5/5
• Appeals: 4/5 granted
• Serial Rapists Allowed Back on Campus: 2/3

8. Student Complaints
• Length of the Process
• Not Calling Witnesses
• Inconsistent Sanctions
• Appeals granted without Standing
• Routine Overturning of Sanctions on Appeal
Oxy has lost students because of their
experience with the sexual assault process.

9. Faculty Involvement
Faculty Handbook: "The second primary
objective of the college is to “sustain the
ideals of a free, democratic society through
responsible citizenship and public service on
the part of all who bear the College's name."
Being a responsible citizen means acting as
whistle-blowers for discriminatory sexual
assault policies and processes that harm the
college as a whole.

10. Recent OSAC Activities
• Drafted the Sexual Assault Evaluation
Matrix
• Proposed policy/process revisions based on
Matrix
• Created a website for Oxy students
• Drafted 12 Demands for immediate action

11. O.S.A.C. List of
Demands
a.k.a. The OSAC Dozen

12. List of Demands
1. Remove the automatic appeals
language from the policy.
An automatic appeal was included in the policy
in the fall of 2012 without proper student
input, and students were not informed of this
change. An automatic appeal from
respondents who think their sanction is
unfair negates the formal sexual assault
hearing process.

13. List of Demands
2. Reinstate consent as verbal consent in
the sexual assault policy.
Defining consent as verbal or physical consent
opens an unnecessarily gray area in
determining whether a sexual assault has
occurred. This is confusing for students who
are trying to engage in consensual sex.

14. List of Demands
3. Establish a permanent Sexual Assault Advisory
Committee.
This committee will be comprised of six members – two
administrators, two faculty members (selected by OSAC),
and two students (one from Project SAFE and one
selected by OSAC). This committee will conduct an
annual review of policies and practices using data on
reporting and outcomes from the Dean of Student’s
office, and make recommendations for changes to the
President and Vice Presidents by the end of the regular
school year.

15. List of Demands
4. Return the Title IX Coordinator
position to the faculty.
This position was moved from being a faculty
position to the Dean of Students office in
2011 without proper consultation with the
faculty. It should be reinstated as a faculty
position to insulate the sexual assault process
from litigious concerns.

16. List of Demands
5. Inform the campus of all changes to
the sexual misconduct policy.
Major changes were made to the sexual assault
policy in the last year that did not involve
adequate student input or notification. The
campus should be informed of all changes,
regardless of the size of the change, through
campus email as soon as they are made.

17. List of Demands
6. Double the size of Project SAFE and
give PAs more decision-making
authority.
Project SAFE is a student-founded group of
trained advocates who should be more
independent. This can be achieved by
doubling the staff (from 2 to 4) and writing
job descriptions that allow for more decisions
to come from the PAs.

18. List of Demands
7. Use Oxy’s Crime Alert System to
Inform Campus of Reported Sexual
Assaults
Oxy should inform the campus of incidences of
sexual assault, similar to college reporting of
other crimes, through emails. These should
inform us of on-campus assaults and off-
campus assaults, including assaults by
students. Currently, emails sent out only
inform us of Oxy students assaulted by
strangers on the street.

19. List of Demands
8. Distribute a Detailed Annual Sexual
Misconduct Report
This report must include statistics on the
number of complaints (formal and informal),
where complaints were initially brought
(Residential Education, the Dean of Students,
Campus Safety, faculty members, etc.), how
many respondents are found responsible,
what sanctions are given, and how sanctions
are altered in appeals.

20. List of Demands
9. Establish a 24-hour Sexual Assault
Hotline
This hotline would be staffed by students who
have completed Peace Over Violence (POV)
training, or partner with the LA rape crisis
hotline to have Oxy-specific information.

21. List of Demands
10. Provide annual POV training to all
staff involved in the sexual assault
process.
Sexual assault is a commonly misunderstood
crime, and anyone involved in the process
needs training to avoid basing decisions on
common rape myths, using harmful
language, or triggering survivors in other
ways.

22. List of Demands
11. Provide annual POV training to all
student leaders.
Sexual assault is a commonly misunderstood
crime, and student leaders are in the unique
position to shift campus culture and
understanding away from widespread rape
myths.

23. List of Demands
12. Bring POV for Orientation for the
next five years.
Sexual assault education at Orientation has
been an abysmal failure for years. The college
needs to bring trained professionals to
campus that use best practices in reaching
potential perpetrators and bystanders.

24. Want to Get
Involved?
Of course you do!

25. Organizational Model
We plan to initiate an action and we
want your help!
• OSAC Core will function as organizers and leaders
• We need your help to recruit people, attend meetings,
and events, and get people motivated to change Oxy's
policy

26. Compiling Information
We are currently gathering information about
students’ experiences of going through the
Occidental sexual misconduct reporting
process as a witness, ally, complainant, or
respondent.
Email experiences to OSAcoalition@gmail.com.

27. Contact Us
You can email your experiences to
OSAcoalition@gmail.com or set up a
private appointment to talk.

28. NOVEMBER 13.
Day of Action

29. November 13.
March to the Dean of Student's Office at 11:30
a.m.
Celebrate or Protest?
Organizer Training on Sunday November 11 at
5 p.m.

30. Dickinson College Action
http://www.fox43.com/news/wpmt-dickinson-
students-protest-sexual-
violence,0,3644192.story

31. Stay Updated!
Follow our blog for updates:
oxysexualassaultcoalition.wordpress.com
And our twitter for mobilizing updates:
twitter.com/osacoalition
Email us with any questions at:
osacoalition@gmail.com

32. Resources
LA Rape and Battering Hotline: (213) 626-3393
On Campus (Confidential) Off Campus (Confidential)
•Emmons Health Center • Peace Over Violence (local
•Project SAFE rape crisis center)
•Office of Religious and • 1in6
Spiritual Life • LA Gay and Lesbian Center
To report sexual assault to the police call 911 or local LAPD station (323) 344-5701
More information on Support/Reporting Options available on the OSAC blog

33. Questions?