An
anticipated 432 staff members who work to prevent and respond to sexual assault
and relationship violence at Tennessee’s public and private colleges and
universities are expected to gather at Tennessee State University to
participate in an intensive training summit led by respected advocates,
researchers and practitioners from around the country.
The
summit will include three customized tracks for campus police, student support
services providers and Title IX investigators and is being hosted by
Tennessee’s public and private higher education systems—the University of
Tennessee (UT), Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) and Tennessee Independent
Colleges and Universities Association (TICUA). Staff are expected from 76 institutions across the state.
The
summit also solidifies a partnership between the state’s higher education
community and Tennessee’s leading private, non-profit sexual assault coalition.
The Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence will provide
trainers, resources and best practices to assist with combatting sexual assault
and relationship violence on Tennessee’s campuses.
Through
the development and implementation of effective prevention and awareness
programs and campaigns, the statewide partnership will enhance the efforts of Tennessee’s
higher education institutions to focus on student safety at all levels. It also
will address the need for ongoing training to comply with regulations
implementing the amendments to the Jeanne Clery Act made by the 2013
reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which take effect July 1,
2015.
Summit
sessions will cover topics ranging from domestic and dating violence 101 to
bystander intervention and the psychological and biological effects of sexual
assault. Keynote speakers include:
·
Katie Koestner, executive director of
the Take Back the Night Foundation and Campus Outreach Services and the first
survivor of acquaintance rape to speak out nationally
·
S. Daniel Carter, director of the 32
National Campus Safety Initiative formed by the families of the victims and
survivors of the Virginia Tech tragedy
·
Connie Kirkland, director of sexual
assault services at Northern Virginia Community College and contributing author
of the 2014 NCAA guide “Addressing Sexual Assault and Interpersonal Violence”
·
Jim Hopper, consultant and instructor
of psychology at Harvard Medical School specializing in the psychological and
biological effects of sexual assault and serving on the
congressionally-mandated Peace Corps Sexual Assault Advisory Council
·
Kayce Matthews, program specialist with
the Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence
The
complete agenda and speaker biographies are available on the event website at http://tennessee.edu/sarv/. The summit will be held at Tennessee
State University’s main campus, located near downtown Nashville.
Media interested in attending are welcome but must make
arrangements in advance to receive a parking pass and credential. Some speakers
have restrictions on photo and video during presentations.
---
UT System Media Contacts
Gina Stafford, (865) 974-0741, stafford@tennessee.edu
Ellie Amador, (865) 974-1177, amador@tennessee.edu
Gina Stafford, (865) 974-0741, stafford@tennessee.edu
Ellie Amador, (865) 974-1177, amador@tennessee.edu
TICUA Media Contact
Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and
Sexual Violence Contact
Kathy Walsh, (615) 957-6730, kwalsh@tncoalition.org
What They Are Saying:
“We are seeing increased accountability at schools
nationwide for preventing and responding to sexual violence as a result of
unprecedented attention by the federal government during the last two years.
However, the unified response in Tennessee is unique and should serve as an
example for other states. There is no formula for ending sexual violence, but
the consequences of not taking action are the same.”
Kathy Walsh, Executive Director for the Tennessee
Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual Violence
“Along with the privilege of educating and guiding young
minds come the responsibilities of creating safe learning environments and
supporting our students when they need us most—responsibilities that deserve
the highest level of urgency and commitment. We have a shared focus in
Tennessee and believe we’re more likely to lead change by working together and
holding each other accountable.”
Joe DiPietro, President of the
UT System
“The collaboration among higher education systems and
institutions on this effort illustrates the serious attention being focused in
Tennessee. The event offers a chance for sharing best practices, learning from
national experts and hearing from those on the front line.”
John Morgan, Chancellor of the TBR System
“The safety of our students has been, and remains, a chief
value among private colleges and universities in Tennessee. We are so pleased
to collaborate with our public higher education partners to discover better
ways to end sexual assault and relationship violence on campus. A key outcome to the college experience is to
mold our students into healthy and productive citizens, and that starts with
practicing respect and honor with each other.
We believe this joint training will help to facilitate this goal.”
Claude Pressnell, President of the TICUA System
Summary of Recent Federal Legislation and Guidance
On Oct. 20, 2014, the U.S.
Department of Education published its final regulations implementing the
amendments to the Clery Act made by the 2013 reauthorization of the Violence
Against Women Act (VAWA). Key provisions
of the VAWA regulations include:
·
Adding domestic violence, dating violence and
stalking to the list of crimes for which higher education institutions must
disclose statistics;
·
Requiring that institutional disciplinary
proceedings be conducted by officials who, at a minimum, receive annual
training on the issues related to dating violence, domestic violence, sexual
assault, and stalking and on how to conduct an investigation and hearing
process that protects the safety of victims and promotes accountability;
·
Requiring institutions to provide to all
students and employees primary prevention and awareness programs concerning
sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence and stalking;
·
Requiring institutions to conduct ongoing
prevention and awareness programs for all students and employees concerning
sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking; and
·
Requiring institutions to give the accuser and
the accused certain rights in disciplinary proceedings, including allowing both
the accuser and the accused to have an advisor of their choice present during a
disciplinary proceeding.
In January 2014, President Obama announced the creation
of the interagency White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual
Assault. The task force is charged with sharing best practices along with
increasing transparency, enforcement and public awareness to protect and
support survivors. On April 29, 2014, the task force issued its first report,
titled “Not Alone,” and launched a new website, notalone.gov.
On April 29, 2014, the U.S. Department of Education’s
Office for Civil Rights (OCR) also issued a guidance document titled,
“Questions and Answers on Title IX and Sexual Violence.” The document supplemented guidance issued in
April 2011 by OCR in a “Dear Colleague” letter on student-on-student sexual harassment
and sexual violence. Since 2011, OCR has
entered into resolution agreements with numerous colleges and universities
concerning compliance with Title IX.
About the Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and
Sexual Violence
The Tennessee Coalition to End Domestic and Sexual
Violence is a private, non-profit organization composed of community leaders
and program members who share a common vision of ending violence in the lives
of Tennesseans through public policy, advocacy, education and activities that increase
the capacity of programs and communities to address violence.
Partnership between Tennessee Higher Ed and the Coalition
In its comments on the Violence Against Women Act
regulations, the U.S. Department of Education encouraged higher education institutions
to draw on the knowledge and experience of state sexual assault coalitions in
developing training and prevention programs relating to sexual assault,
domestic violence, dating violence and stalking.
Participating Colleges and Universities
Tennessee Board of Regents –
Tennessee’s Community Colleges (13/13)
·
Chattanooga State Community College
·
Cleveland State Community College
·
Columbia State Community College
·
Dyersburg State Community College
·
Jackson State Community College
·
Motlow State Community College
·
Nashville State Community College
·
Northeast State Community College
·
Pellissippi State Community College
·
Roane State Community College
·
Southwest Tennessee Community College
·
Volunteer State Community College
·
Walters State Community College
Tennessee Board of Regents – Universities
(6/6)
·
Austin Peay State University
·
East Tennessee State University
·
Middle Tennessee State University
·
Tennessee State University
·
Tennessee Technological University
·
University of Memphis
Tennessee Board of Regents – Tennessee
Colleges of Applied Technology (26/27)
·
TCAT – Athens
·
TCAT – Chattanooga
·
TCAT – Covington
·
TCAT – Crossville
·
TCAT – Crump
·
TCAT – Dickson
·
TCAT – Elizabethton
·
TCAT – Harriman
·
TCAT – Hohenwald
·
TCAT – Jacksboro
·
TCAT – Jackson
·
TCAT – Knoxville
·
TCAT – Livingston
·
TCAT – McKenzie
·
TCAT – McMinnville
·
TCAT – Memphis
·
TCAT – Morristown
·
TCAT – Murfreesboro
·
TCAT – Nashville
·
TCAT – Newbern
·
TCAT – Oneida
·
TCAT – Paris
·
TCAT – Pulaski
·
TCAT – Ripley
·
TCAT – Shelbyville
·
TCAT – Whiteville
University of Tennessee System (5/5)
·
UT Chattanooga
·
UT Health Science Center
·
UT Knoxville
·
UT Martin
·
UT Space Institute
Tennessee Independent Colleges and Universities Association
(26/34)
·
Aquinas College
·
Belmont University
·
Bethel University
·
Christian Brothers University
·
Cumberland University
·
Fisk University
·
Freed-Hardeman University
·
Johnson University
·
King University
·
Lane College
·
Lee University
·
Lincoln Memorial University
·
Lipscomb University
·
Martin Methodist College
·
Maryville College
·
Milligan College
·
Rhodes College
·
Sewanee: The University of the South
·
Southern Adventist University
·
Southern College of Optometry
·
Tennessee Wesleyan College
·
Trevecca Nazarene University
·
Tusculum College
·
Union University
·
Vanderbilt University
·
Watkins College of Art, Design &
Film
