Vol. 108, Iss. 16 | Tuesday, October 9, 2018
The Flat Hat The Weekly Student Newspaper of
The College of William and Mary
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BOARD OF VISITORS
Title IX reports fluctuate BOV presents upward trend of reported relationship violence MAGGIE MORE FLAT HAT VARIETY ASSOC. EDITOR
WAITING FOR HELP
During the College of William and Mary’s Board of Visitors meeting on Audit, Risk and Compliance Sept. 27th, Chief Compliance Officer and Title IX Coordinator Pamela Mason presented the annual data on Title IX reports and investigations for the 2018 fiscal year. The number of Title IX reports increased between 2015 and 2017, then decreased slightly from 2017 to 2018. In 2016, there were 99 total Title IX reports, 32 of which were investigated; in 2017, there were 167 total reports with 32 investigated; and in 2018, there were 142 total reports, with 29 investigated. Among the subcategories of reports, there is a notable increase in relationship violence between 2016 and 2017, from two reports in 2015 and 4 reports in 2016, to 19 in 2017. At the Board meeting, Mason’s presentation focused on the data from the reports and what the College could do to lower the number of reports it receives. New to this year’s presentation was the inclusion of trends over several years for reports and investigations going back to 2015. The College has collected and kept data on Title IX reports for many years, under compliance with the Clery Act of 1990. The act requires that any college which participates in federal financial aid programs keep and make public certain statistics about crime on campus. This includes sex offenses, which constitute Title IX violations on the basis of discrimination. The Violence Against Women Act also dictates what universities must keep track of, as it specifies how such crimes can be prosecuted. The 2017-18 academic year was only the third since the most recent amendments of VAWA and the Clery Act. The amendments caused many universities, including the College, to update their reporting standards and definitions of Title IX violations. As a result, there are more data categories on which reports can be compared. “We’re actually just getting to a place where we have comparative data,” Mason said in an interview a few days after the Board meeting. “We might be looking at … reporting in general, and what are trends in reporting. So, trying to get more philosophical with [the Board of Visitors], than just numbers and data oriented and have them be thinking about what’s the best response.” Several factors contributed to the variance in the number of reports over the years. From federal policy changes to the updates in the College’s definitions for acts violating Title IX, to more awareness of sexual assault on campus in general, the reasons are more complex than just an increase in instances of misconduct. For example, prior to the College’s policy update, sexual misconduct constituting a violation of the school’s policy was defined as “sexual harassment, non-consensual sexual contact, non-consensual sexual intercourse, and sexual exploitation.” The handbook provided examples and limited definitions of the listed items, but there was no mention of dating violence, domestic violence or stalking. Furthermore, the College’s definition of sexual assault was split into the definitions of non-consensual sexual contact and nonconsensual sexual intercourse, but sexual assault as a broader term was not yet used. This meant that reports could depend on things like each individual’s definition of terms like sexual intercourse, complicating incident categorization for the Clery report. “The Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of [2013] said [that by 2014], we had to start counting for our Clery/[Annual Security Report], the sexual assaults, dating violence, domestic violence and stalking,” Mason said. “Not that they weren’t violations, but those became much
Counseling Center offers ‘triage’ appointments as students report longer than 40-day wait times for initial visits TALIA WIENER // FLAT HAT ONLINE EDITOR
Hope Duke ’19 has a big smile that lights up her face. If you met Duke, that bright smile would stick around while she talks about her love for geology club, Pod Save America and her dog, Moose. It would also hide how overwhelmed she has been feeling lately. School work, senior thesis research and the fear of letting her advisor down have continued to pile stress upon Duke. She had resigned herself to powering through until a few weeks ago when she received some news: A friend from home had taken their own life. Duke spoke with friends and family, and one person suggested she take the leap and make a counseling appointment in honor of her friend’s struggle with their mental health. Thursday, Sept. 20, she walked into the College of William and Mary’s Counseling Center and was told she would have to wait 40 days for the earliest available appointment: Oct. 30. Nationwide, universities are facing record-high numbers of students seeking campus mental-health resources. The College
is no exception — as of Sept. 27, it has seen a 25 percent hike in individual counseling appointments between this fall semester and the 2017 fall semester by the same date. According to the Counseling Center, 10-12 percent of a student population seek campus counseling on average. At the College, 15 percent of students are utilizing Counseling Center resources. Counseling Center Director Carina Sudarsky-Gleiser traces the increased desire to seek professional mental health help to a variety of factors. According to her, the political climate, stress and an over-reliance on technology are all to blame. At the College, students most often seek counseling for anxiety, depression and relationship concerns, according to Sudarsky-Gleiser. “We used to talk about how one out of every four people experience mental health issues,” Sudarsky-Gleiser said. “The truth is four out of four.” The increased student interest in counseling has led to longer than usual wait times for initial appointments. In the 2014-15 academic year, average wait time for a consultation appointment was six days. In 2015-16, it was nine days. In 2016-17, it was 11 days. In 2017-18, 12 days. According to Sudarsky-Gleiser, the average wait time for the 2018-19 academic year so far is 14 days. However, students are experiencing wait times much longer than the current average. Duke waited 40 days. Grace Gilbert ’20 called the Counseling Center for an initial appointment Oct. 1 and was told the first open spot was Nov. 12, 42 days later. The Counseling Center offers three types of initial appointments for students. These appointments are essential to student treatment and include an assessment of the student’s mental state and the creation of a future counseling plan. The first, and most common, is a regular consultation, the type of appointment that found Duke and Gilbert waiting six weeks to be seen. The second is a walk-in or emergency consultation, reserved for students who are in a crisis and are a threat to themselves or others. These consultations ensure that students are able to meet See COUNSELING CENTER page 3
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We used to talk about how one out of every four people experience mental health issues. The truth is four out of four.
— Carina Sudarsky-Gleiser on campus mental health
GRAPHIC BY NIA KITCHIN / THE FLAT HAT
Inside Sports
Inside Opinions
Breaks make new students’ transition difficult, increase importance of College community
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Rainy, High 84, Low 72
See TITLE IX page 4
Manaswi Alagani ’22 says that last month’s hurricane break and the upcoming fall break make it harder for freshmen adjusting to college life. page 5
Tribe football beats Albany, 25-22 Comeback victory ended streak of three blowout losses, earned the College its second season win. page 10