Content area
Full Text
Currently, an American woman who attends college is more likely to be a victim of sexual assault than a woman who does not attend college. At the same time, institutions of higher education across the country do not have an incentive to acknowledge the problem publicly or address it proactively. The current oversight of the federal laws has the perverse effect of encouraging colleges to under-report sexual assaults.1
Introduction
Since the 1980s, and likely earlier before it was ever recorded, sexual violence has loomed across college campuses throughout the country.2 Despite current legislation and attempts by school officials to address the existing issues, the astounding statistics have not changed significantly.3 Studies indicate "[o]ne in [five] women and one in [sixteen] men are sexually assaulted while in college."4 Additionally, more than ninety percent of victims never even report the assault.5 In a world where discussions about sex have often been shunned or held behind closed doors, people are finally beginning to talk more openly and address these pertinent issues of sexual assault and rape on college campuses. This Note addresses, from the sides of the victim and the accused, the issues involved with sexual violence on college campuses including the history of the law, a college's duty to protect its students, Title IX lawsuits, and university proceedings.
I. History of the Law
Under Title IX, the United States Education Amendments of 1972 states that "[n]o person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."6 A federally mandated law, Title IX applies to all facets of federally funded educational programs or activities and provides regulatory guidelines to which schools must adhere concerning sexual assault cases.7 Under Title IX, both victims and those falsely accused receive protection through an equal opportunity for education apart from sexual harassment under federal law.
Sexual assault and rape on college campuses first received media attention in 1985 after an article, "Date Rape: The Story of an Epidemic and Those Who Deny It," was published by Dr. Mary Koss in Ms. Magazine.8 The article included Koss's three-year research of over seven thousand students among...