April 3, 2015 | The Miami Student

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The Miami Student Established 1826

FRIDAY, APRIL 3, 2015 VOLUME 142 NO. 45

WWW.MIAMISTUDENT.NET

MIAMI UNIVERSITY OXFORD, OHIO

Sexual assault reports triple, but punishments remain low SEXUAL ASSAULT

KATIE TAYLOR COLE MIRACLE

SEXUAL ASSAULT RESPONSE BREAKDOWN Does not include off-campus assaults

THE MIAMI STUDENT

PART ONE The following piece is the first in a series that will address the complexities of sexual assault. Future stories will expand on why the crime is underreported, the intricacies of the university disciplinary system and the difficulty of successfully prosecuting perpetrators in the criminal world. The number of on-campus sexual assaults reported yearly at Miami University nearly tripled from 2011 to 2013, but there was no corresponding increase in the number of individuals disciplined for the crime. Reports jumped from seven in 2011 to 20 in 2013 at Miami’s Oxford campus, according to Clery Act data released by the university in October. Out of the total 45 individuals accused during those three years, Miami punished only 10. Nine of the 10 were allowed to return to campus following punishments that included suspension, probation, no-contact orders and alcohol assessment. One was permanently expelled. These numbers reflect only a small portion of incidents involving students, since the Clery Act— the federal law requiring colleges and universities to report data on campus crimes—does not require schools to report sexual assaults that occur off campus, unless in an affiliated establishment such as a fraternity or sorority house. The scarcity of disciplinary action in cases of sexual assault is

Of those 18

8

45

Were found not responsible

Reports of sexual assault during the 2011-2013 calendar years

10

Were found responsible

1

18

Individual was expelled from Miami

Other punishments included suspension, probation, no-contact orders and alcohol education

Reports resulted in OESCR investigations

Information from Clery Act data and university records

leading some to question the effectiveness of the university adjudication process. Researcher and advocate with the national Title IX movement Nadia Dawisha said institutions’ response to the crime is inadequate, not only at Miami, but across the nation.

brought into the system. “This is an area that, boy, I wish we all had a crystal ball and could figure this out,” he said. “A very significant portion of the cases that are brought forward on campus have a substantial amount of ambiguity in them … It’s often one per-

[Miami] had plenty of reason to have a disciplinary hearing, and they didn’t. I might not have ever been sexually assaulted.” SEXUAL ASSAULT VICTIM ANONYMOUS MIAMI UNIVERSITY STUDENT

“As long as there is an incentive for universities to sweep this issue under the rug, then I don’t think anyone receiving a paycheck from the university should be working on sexual assault,” she said. “I think everybody needs to be external.” University President David Hodge said the low disciplinary rate is not unusual, and that it reflects the complexity of cases

son’s word against another person’s word, and trying to find the corroborating evidence that can shift the balance to one side or another is very difficult to do.” Miami is facing a lawsuit filed by a student who was allegedly sexually assaulted in 2011. Grace, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, said Miami failed her by not expelling the student who

assaulted her, Antonio Charles, for earlier acts of sexual misconduct. Charles was investigated by Miami University and Oxford Police after his fraternity brothers reported him for voyeurism in 2009. Charles’ was accused of recording sexual encounters with women without their knowledge. He was not prosecuted in the criminal courts. Though videos of sexual acts were confiscated from his possession, the university did not hold a conduct hearing because they could not identify the women in the tapes as students of the university. In Grace’s case, a disciplinary board of Miami’s Office of Ethics and Student Conflict Resolution found Charles “responsible” for her sexual assault—the equivalent of a guilty verdict. The board also found him responsible for the separate physical and sexual assault of a different female student committed the night before. The university then expelled him permanently— the only person to receive that

penalty for a sex-related offense from 2011 through 2013. “The school and President Hodge say they have not done anything wrong, they’ve done everything that they needed to do,” Grace said. “They had plenty of reason to have a disciplinary hearing [in the earlier accusations against Charles], and they didn’t. I might not have ever been sexually assaulted.” Results from Gallup’s 2015 “Survey of College & University Presidents,” which collected responses from more than 600 school presidents, showed that while about one third strongly agreed sexual assault is prevalent at U.S. colleges, only 6 percent believe it’s an issue at their institution. Dawisha pointed to the survey as proof of an underlying problem. “I just feel like so many universities are taking this very reactive approach to this issue. They don’t want to admit that they have a problem,” she said. “They’re denying the research that has literally come out of their universities.” Susan Vaughn, director of the university’s Office of Ethics and Student Conflict Resolution, oversees the university’s response to all accusations of sexual misconduct, ranging from rape to indecent exposure. Of the 45 on-campus sexual assaults reported from 2011-13, 18 proceeded with OESCR hearings. Eight of the accused individuals were found not responsible. Vaughn said the data on sexual assault and disciplinary action doesn’t paint a full picture of the university’s response to the problem. “I’m always reluctant to just hand over numbers,” she said. “I always just say you have to walk in our shoes, to see and hear the different cases, the way it impacts people ASSAULT »PAGE 4

Growing pains: Gender pay gap causes concern for graduating females MONEY

EMILY WILLIAMS SENIOR STAFF WRITER

With graduation fast approaching, Miami’s seniors have their eye on the prize — a job. While finding a fulfilling career is paramount, with student loan payments and the demands of becoming financially independent, wages are important. Despite the progress that has been made in achieving gender equality in the workplace, the 52 percent of Miami students who are female will be entering a work force in which

M

TODAY IN MIAMI HISTORY UNIVERSITY

PARKING PERMIT PRICES PEAK »PAGE 2

men, on average, are still paid significantly more than women. April 14 marks this year’s Equal Pay Day, a day symbolizing how far women have to work into the new year to earn as much as men did the previous year. The day, originated in 1996 by the National Committee on Equal Pay, was started to spread awareness about the continued pay gap between men and women’s earnings. According to data from the Census Bureau, women currently make only 78 cents for every dollar men make. Ohio ranks 34th in the

nation in terms of the gender pay gap, with women earning 77 percent of what men do. Jane Goettsch, the director of Miami’s Women’s Center, encourages students to learn more about why the gender wage gap exists. “The personal consequences, in terms of lost income over a lifetime, are staggering,” Goettsch said. “The wage gap has barely budged in a decade.” Although significant progress has been made in the last 50 years to reduce this gap, statistics from the American Association of

University Women (AAUW) have found this progress has slowed over the past 10 years. If the current rate persists, the pay gap will not be closed until 2139. Tyler Nichols, the historian for Miami’s organization Feminists Working on Real Democracy (FWord), noted that the discrepancy is wider for women of color. The 2014 report from the White House Council of Economic Advisors shows that African American women make 64 percent of what white men are paid while Hispanic and Latina women make only 54 percent.

“I think the first step in fixing the pay gap is making people aware of what’s going on,” said Nichols. Despite the continued discrepancy in pay, since the mid-1990s, women have been more likely to attend and graduate from college than men. The same White House Council report indicates that 25 to 34-year-old women are now 21 percent more likely to be college graduates than men and 48 percent more likely to have completed graduate school. PAY GAP »PAGE 4

In 1974,The Miami Student reported that Mariano “Muchmouth” Pacetti proved himself once again the “Pizza Champ of the World,” after devouring a 12-inch Domino’s pizza in 60 seconds. Mushmouth defeated three contestants in the Pizza Smash Bash in Porter Hall. COMMUNITY

WILLY WONKA WONDER »PAGE 3

CULTURE

‘IT FOLLOWS’ FRIGHTENS »PAGE 4

OPINION

OFFENSIVE APRIL FOOLS’ DAY »PAGE 6

SPORTS

SOFTBALL »PAGE 10


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