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University of Wisconsin-Madison
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Thursday, April 11, 2013
Victim into Advocate: One sexual assault survivor’s fight for justice Story by Taylor Harvey
on campus
Finding beauty through art Community members attend an open art class in Helen C. White promoting an enhanced way of life through drawing natural and nostalgic objects. + Photo by Wil Gibb
This is the second story in a two-part series spotlighting sexual assault survivor Laura Dunn, a 2007 University of WisconsinMadison graduate, who became a primary advocate for the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act, which President Barack Obama signed into law March 7 under the Violence Against Women Act. Laura Dunn was working for Teach For America in New Orleans when she received a letter from the U.S. Department of Education. She immediately skipped to the last page, and what she read left her devastated. She read the conclusion of the Title IX complaint she filed against University of WisconsinMadison after she felt officials did not conduct a “prompt and appropriate” investigation into
her sexual assault that occurred April 4, 2004. The DOE’s Office for Civil Rights concluded there was “insufficient evidence” to rule UW-Madison guilty. “I was in the next phase of my life,” Dunn said. “And it was just another door slammed.” UW-Madison exonerated Dunn’s perpetrator due to a lack of “clear and convincing” evidence, which Associate Dean of Students Kevin Helmkamp said was partially because Dunn reported her assault 15 months after it occurred. This was the standard for evidence for indicating sexual assault until 2011, when Helmkamp said the standard in sexual assault cases changed to preponderance— meaning a claimant must show a greater weight of evidence toward his or her claim than
against it. “Once we reach that evidentiary standard, it would be one-year suspension, at the minimum,” Helmkamp said. He added that setting standards for evidence is necessary due to the severity of the consequence one may face after perpetrating sexual assault, which often results in a two-year suspension or expulsion. Dunn’s luck changed after the Center for Public Integrity spotlighted her in an investigation about Title IX complaints regarding the way universities handle sexual assault cases. Soon after the report was released, the DOE released the “Dear Colleague” Letter, which clearly defines how uni-
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Obama’s budget proposal urges affordability in higher education By Jack Casey the daily cardinal
President Barack Obama officially released his version of the federal budget Wednesday, which included various proposals aimed at keeping higher education affordable across the country, drawing mixed responses from Wisconsin politicians. The education portion of the budget is designed to address rising tuition costs and student loan debt across the country, according to a release from the White House
Office of Communications. The budget includes a provision that allocates approximately $1 billion to a federal initiative Obama has referred to as a “race to the top” that would give additional funding to colleges and universities that reduce education costs and expand education initiatives, such as research. Additionally, the budget includes a provision that would take control of student loan interest rates away from Congress and instead tie them to market rates. Proponents of
the move say the market interest rate will be lower than the current rate, but others caution the market rate could rise quickly in the future. U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., said in a statement he supports the majority of Obama’s budget, including its allocations to education and economic development. “I am particularly pleased that the president’s proposal increases investments in the kind of innovative research
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Joint Finance Committee hears public testimony on UW System More than 10 students from the University of Wisconsin-Madison testified at a Joint Committee on Finance hearing Wednesday on the state biennial budget held in Lake Delton, asking for legislators’ support in funding the UW System and keeping tuition low. United Council of UW Students President Geoff Murray requested the committee members support
three key items with regard to Wisconsin universities: $181 million in new investments in the UW System, additional need-based financial aid and a 3 to 4 percent tuition cap. Murray said these actions would help the UW System contribute to “a vibrant and prosperous Wisconsin” for the future. Other students shared personal stories regarding their struggle to cope with
rising tuition rates, which they said are affecting the accessibility and affordability of the UW System. UW-Madison senior Max Love asked the committee to keep state universities affordable to all Wisconsin families, speaking about his greatgreat-grandmother, who also attended UW-Madison. “One hundred and fifteen
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Jane Thompson/the daily cardinal
Forensic expert David Lisak speaks with UW-Madison students Wednesday about how to prevent sexual assault on campus.
Sexual assault researcher speaks with UW students By Megan Stoebig The Daily Cardinal
Forensic consultant and sexual assault researcher David Lisak spoke with University of Wisconsin-Madison students about his research Wednesday at a campus sexual assault summit. Lisak is a professor at the University of MassachusettsBoston and speaks with colleges about the prevalence of sexual assault on campuses. Lisak stressed the need for leadership on college campuses to acknowledge sexual assault is a serious issue, and they need to mobilize to create solutions.
“We generate all this research on college campuses in this country, and yet we still don’t have a single university where the leadership has gotten behind this and said, ‘We’re going to do everything that we can do to prevent sexual violence,’” Lisak said. “It has never happened.” He encouraged parents and students to put pressure on university leaders to make changes and question what universities are doing to prevent sexual assault.
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“…the great state University of Wisconsin should ever encourage that continual and fearless sifting and winnowing by which alone the truth can be found.”