MSU Sexual Misconduct Analysis: Number of Reported Incidents Doubles in a Year

The number of sexual misconduct incidents reported at Michigan State University has more than doubled in a year, but the university president doesn't consider that bad news. Instead, president Lou Anna K. Simon believes the actual number of incidents has not increased.

Simon thinks that because of an awareness campaign initiated a year ago on the East Lansing campus, students are more likely to report these incidents which include sexual harassment, sexual assault, sexual exploitation, relationship violence, stalking and retaliation.

“We believe the increase in reports is a result of efforts at MSU to raise awareness, rather than an increase in incidents,” Simon said in a statement. “This is consistent with data from the National College Health Assessment that shows MSU students have the highest level of awareness regarding sexual assault and relationship violence among all participating universities.”

A year ago, under fire like many colleges and universities nationwide for mishandling sexual misconduct complaints, MSU initiated a study to take a look at its policies. A federal investigation had concluded that MSU had mishandled two cases and did not have proper protocols in place to investigate complaints.

The Title IX Annual Report developed under MSU’s new Office of Institutional Equity was released Thursday.

In the report summary, Title IX coordinator Jessica Norris said, "Significant accomplishments highlighted include the increased speed of the investigation and student conduct processes, the increased participation in training programs, the increased engagement of faculty and staff in educational programs, and new programs and staff to support prevention and advocacy efforts. Also of note is the increase in reports, which we believe is not indicative of an increase in incidents, but rather reflects increased efforts at MSU to raise awareness."

At MSU, 461 incidents were reported last year, more than double the 201 reported incidents the previous year. Of the 461 reports, 66 were formally investigated by the university. More than half of those cases were found to be violations and the university imposed sanctions ranging from dismissal to probation; 17 cases are still under investigation.

On Friday, Michigan's first lady Sue Snyder led the second annual summit to combat campus sexual assaults, The Detroit News reported. The event, known as “Inform. Empower. Prevent. Let’s End Campus Sexual Assault,” is the second summit Snyder has convened as a way to make Michigan a national model in preventing sexual assault on college campuses. Speakers included:

• Chris Creighton, head football coach, EMU.
• Carol Hutchins, head softball coach, University of Michigan.
• Warde Manuel, athletic director, University of Michigan.
• Mary Wilfert, associate director, NCAA’s Sport Science Institute.
• Ron Bellamy, head football coach, West Bloomfield High School.

Photo by Infrogmation of New Orleans via Flickr Commons