SASKATOON – A new on-campus sexual assault draft policy unveiled Tuesday will hopefully raise awareness on the issue and be accessible to students, according to University of Saskatchewan (U of S) officials. Administrators will now allow the campus community to review the policy, which they say will hopefully change the university’s culture.
On average, two sexual assaults are reported yearly, according to campus officials. This year, a woman says she was assaulted along the Meewasin trail on campus.
“As a campus community, we have some power to set our own norms, so what are we willing to accept from each other in terms of behavior,” said Patti McDougall, the U of S vice-provost of teaching and learning.
READ MORE: University of Saskatchewan takes action against sexual assaults on campus
The policy document states it “strives to ensure the safety of all members of the university community.” It applies to the institution’s students, staff, faculty and visitors.
“They need to be aware of how to report, how to disclose and then inside the university how they might complain about something like this,” said McDougall, who is the policy’s lead author.
McDougall added the new policy doesn’t overhaul the university’s stance on sexual violence or how it responds to reports of it on campus. However, she said she hopes that having a singular document will make it easier for students to navigate the issue.
“With this sexual assault policy, I look forward to being able to put it out there to students,” said Jack Saddleback, University of Saskatchewan Students’ Union (USSU) president.
“It’s going to be quite easy for them to pick this up and read it because it is quite a digestible policy.”
The policy also focuses on the definition of consent. Saddleback said he hopes it’s the first step in creating a consent-based culture on campus.
“Currently the culture that’s here on campus is slowly changing to that consent-based culture,” said Saddleback.
Saddleback isn’t the only student union member working to make this shift. Dylan Lambi-Raine, coordinator of the campus women’s centre, made consent a prominent theme during her first year in leadership and plans to do the same this year.
“I think last year was really an introductory period, ‘consent 101’ if I can say that,” said Lambi-Raine, after Tuesday’s announcement.
“I think I would like to do a 200-level consent discussion this year.”
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