The Student Newspaper of Saint Joseph’s University
Volume XCV | Est. 1929 | www.sjuhawknews.com
March 1, 2017
Handbook policies to be re-examined Student Senate helps launch committee on sexual health ROSE WELDON ’19 Lifestyle Editor
The University Student Senate gathers in the President's Lounge (Photo by Luke Malanga '20).
In an attempt to help students and bring on-campus sexual health resources to light, the University Student Senate (USS), in collaboration with the office of the Vice President for Student Life, is currently in the process of creating a committee on student sexual health. Amelia Brown,’18, has been taking birth control since her freshman year of high school in 2010 in order to control cramps from her menstrual cycle. When she attempted to have her prescription filled last semester at the Health Center at Saint Joseph’s University, however, Brown was surprised by the Center’s inability to do it. “[The woman I met with] said, ‘First of all, it would be a huge process here, I’d have to speak to so-and-so doctor and second of all, because you have migraines,
you would have to go to a neurologist or something, Brown said. "She wouldn’t refer me to one. I was very confused.” In the end, Brown had to take a train and a bus to a Planned Parenthood in Center City to fill her prescription. “It takes so much time out of my day; it’s very inconvenient,” Brown said. “It would be so much more convenient if I could just pop over [to the Health Center] between classes.” The committee will be co-chaired by Student Senate Speaker Angelo d’Antonio-Bertagnolli, ’18, who also proposed the resolution to establish it back in December 2016., however the committee members have yet to be named. “[St. Joe's] does not seem to recognize that students have safer consensual sex, "d'Antonio-Bertagnolli. It offers few sexual
health resources, and is not transparent about the few resources it offers. The committee aims to examine the current state and make improvements where possible.” The committee will be expected to review the current state of the university’s sexual health resources, analyze their findings, and suggest solutions. In a memorandum included with the resolution, d’Antonio-Bertagnolli lists a number of Catholic universities whose sexual health resources are clearly marked on their websites or in other media, including Villanova University, Regis University, and Fordham University. Cary Anderson, Ph.D, vice president of Student Life and associate provost, is putting the committee together. “The resolution was asking for the university to look at our policies and pro-
cedures around sexual health and how we communicate all those things,” Anderson said. “That’s what the committee will do. And then they will come back and make some recommendations, and then we’ll move forward from there.” One initiative that the committee would have is the revision of the Sexual Activity Policy in the Student Handbook. The policy states: “Nonmarital sexual intercourse, on campus at anytime [sic], is behavior unacceptable to the University. Students involved in activity of this nature will be subject to disciplinary action and/ or counseling.” d’Antonio-Bertanolli has spoken with the Office of Community Standards concerning this rule, and thinks it requires a more detailed explanation. “It’s something where, if you live in a suite, and your roommates are being indecent very often, they’ll hit your roommates with certain Handbook violations,” d’Antonio-Bertanolli said. “I understand that there needs to be something in the handbook, but I don’t think what we have is adequate.” He adds that the rule itself is somewhat “archaic,” a common conception that is supported by the Health Center’s 2014 student survey, where 67.1 percent of students reported having one or more sexual partners in the last 12 months. The committee is expected to begin work in the next month and Anderson says that their findings may affect the Handbook in the future. “If the committee can have something back by the end of the semester, that would be helpful,” Anderson said. “Because if we’re going to change policies and procedures, it’s always easier to do it in the summer, put it in the Handbook, and move forward.”
Putting the responsibility on drivers Traffic incidents on campus consistent with citywide problem MARK DE LEON ’17 News Editor Seven reported accidents between pedestrians and moving vehicles have occurred at Saint Joseph’s University between January 2015 and February 2017. Six of those seven accidents involved St. Joe’s students. The latest incident involved Rose Walton, ’19, on Feb. 14. Walton was crossing Cardinal Ave, leaving campus to go back to Pennbrook Apartments at 5:15 p.m. Seeing the walk sign, she crossed halfway into the intersection when a car turned left off of City Avenue and struck her. “I honestly don’t remember what happened between walking and landing on the ground,” Walton said. “The car hit me pretty hard. If I didn’t land on my backpack, I probably would have landed on my back and broke it. My head shot back and I got pretty bad whiplash.” Two female witnesses from Main campus and one male witness from the Merion side of campus came to Walton’s help. Thinking she was fine, Walton returned to Pennbrook and had a friend drive her to night class, despite concerns from her
mother and friends. “The second I sat down [in night class], it hit me,” Walton said. “I had a massive headache, my vision started blurring out and it was really hard to focus. During the class break, I stood up, and I could barely put any weight on my legs. It just hurt so bad.” After night class, Walton was taken to the emergency room where she was told that she had a sprained knee, a concussion, and deep bruising on her legs from the impact. In Philadelphia City Council District 4, where St. Joe’s is located, there have been four pedestrian deaths as a result of car crashes during 2016, including the death of 8-year-old Jayanna Powell on 63rd and Lansdowne in November 2016. As of February 2017, there has been one pedestrian death in District 4 and five citywide. The 76 traffic fatalities in Philadelphia in 2016 is a historic low; 36 of the 76 are pedestrians, according to the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia. Making up 47 percent of traffic fatalities is the highest
that the percentage of pedestrian deaths has been since 1985. In November 2016, Mayor Jim Kenney signed an executive order to create the Vision Zero Task Force. Vision Zero develops Philadelphia traffic safety efforts in the hopes to reduce all traffic-related fatalities and serious injuries by 2030. Kenney also hired Kelley Yemen as Philadelphia’s first director of Complete Streets. “It’s a mind shift from how we have traditionally road safety programs,” Kelley Yemen said. “From putting the onus on the individual, the person walking, driving, or biking, to the system. That [involves] designing new roads, understanding how people are travelling, and figuring ways to accommodate that.” After 120 days of consultation, the office of Complete Streets and the Vision Zero task force will present short and long-term plans in March that will utilize engineering, education, and enforcement. The Office of Public Safety and Security at St. Joe’s is making efforts to keep
pedestrians safe around campus. The university has lobbied to Philadelphia County as well as Montgomery County authorities for traffic calming measures near campus. Installations include crosswalks with speed bumps to slow traffic, warning signals for cars on Cardinal Ave., and signs that indicate state law requires drivers to allow pedestrians right of way in crossing areas.
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Graphic by Luke Malanga '20.