Issue:

There has been an increased amount of sexual assault reporting on SDSU’s campus. 

Stance: 

Although SDSU has made a lot of positive changes in the last few years, there are still ways it can improve.

Sexual assault on campus is a serious and growing issue. But is it actually growing?

According to campus officials, the number of sexual assaults on South Dakota State’s campus is not increasing, but the number of people reporting the assaults is increasing.

So far this semester, there have been five reported assaults. Following each of these assaults, the university sent out a timely warning. This warning is sent out to the entire faculty and student body on SDSU’s campus.

Another part of the increase in reports can be credited to the different ways people can report sexual assaults. They can contact University Police Department, the Safety and Security office, Title IX, counseling center or any SDSU faculty member on campus. All employees receive Title IX training. This allows for a better support system for victims on campus.

We, at The Collegian, believe the university has greatly improved over the last two years … by increasing awareness on campus and creating a separate Title IX coordinator position.

They have also required training of all freshman during ThumpStart during New Student Orientation. We believe that this alone significantly increased awareness.

But what about the upperclassmen? There could be more outreach about sexual assaults and overall campus safety to current sophomores, juniors, seniors and graduate students.

Another area the campus can improve on is acceptance. Even though people are reporting more, there could also be an emphasis on the campus climate, meaning how students act and treat one another. For people to feel safer about reporting the assault, they also need to feel safe and supported by their peers on campus.

Another issue is alcohol. Alcohol is often a contributing factor when it comes to sexual assaults. We believe if the university addresses SDSU’s alcohol situation more proactively, this could help decrease the number of assaults on campus. This could be done through stricter regulations regarding alcohol consumption in and around campus. If they can address this issue, they can also address the sexual assault issue.

Overall, we believe that the university has taken great strides in improving sexual assault awareness on campus, including ways to report and the resources available for victims. There are always ways to improve and if the university continues to take action as they have in the last two years, they will continue to progress.

The Collegian staff meets weekly and agrees on the issue of the editorial.

The editorial represent the opinion of The Collegian.