By Jenaé Steele
With Title IX being read to interpret subjection to rape and sexual assault as a form discrimination against women, college campuses across the country are under media scrutiny for purposely mishandling sexual abuse cases on their campus —especially when it involves athletes.
Title IX states (in part) that “No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance.” Since 91 percent of victims of sexual abuse are women and a college experience consisting of suffering sexual abuse denies a student the full benefits of higher education, the rampant occurrences of sexual abuse on college campuses are widely considered violations of Title IX. Recently, the U.S Department of Education shed light on the issue of sexual violence on college campuses by releasing a list of 55 campuses that are under Title IX Investigation for allegedly mishandling cases of sexual abuse.
It is possible that the failure to adequately address and handle sexual assault on college campuses is indicative of a larger problem in society. Ellen Staurowsky, educator and specialist on sports management, shares a big picture look at this issue: “Sexual assault is particularly problematic because there is not a particular part of society – from law enforcement to college campuses — that are not challenged in handling these cases. Victims of sexual assault, in general, do not often get justice.”
The trend of sexual abuse on college campuses is complicated; However, the issue becomes further complicated when campuses are more likely to protect their athletic programs than their student body. It appears that despite what Title IX requires in instances of sexual abuse, which is to promptly (in most cases, within 60 days) investigate alleged sexual assaults and to take the appropriate action, college campuses are purposely delaying investigation —if one occurs at all, to comply with their athletic program’s schedule.
An Egregious Example at the University of Oregon
The latest and arguably most egregious example of this behavior concerns the University of Oregon and Coach Dana Altman. The campus and coach are currently being sued under Title IX for knowingly admitting Brandon Austin, a basketball player that had been suspended from Providence College after being accused of rape. The student filing the claim stated that she was raped by Austin and two other Oregon basketball players twice: once at a party, and then the second time at an off-campus apartment that they transported her to. The suit claims that although the student filed her allegation of rape on March 9th, the day after the alleged incident; the campus did not begin its investigation until after Oregon’s basketball season was over in May. Despite the complaint, two of the alleged rapists continued the season and had significant roles in tournaments that Coach Altman received bonuses for winning.
Not only was investigation delayed for financial gain and a winning season, but the university and the coach also allegedly committed another controversial act in this suit. They allowed someone with a history of sexual assault accusations to join his team. Arguably the campus put their student body at risk by allowing Austin to transfer to play basketball. However, with Austin having no conviction and the NCAA allowing athletes to play even with a conviction, did the university do anything legally wrong by admitting him? The Title IX suit argues that the University of Oregon should have better protected their student from a person with allegations of rape in his recent past. Staurowsky explains that most campuses are not prepared to handle these types of situations: “Most student conduct codes say that disciplinary proceedings are confidential and will not be listed on transcripts. Disclosure of sanctions must be requested. For an athlete — or student- who has not been convicted of a criminal act, how are they to be treated on a college campus?” Would it be appropriate or even constitutional to unofficially label potential students as sex offenders by alerting the student body of the arrival of someone who has only been accused? With the apparent bias in favor of these allegedly sexually abusive athletes, many may say yes.
The mishandling of sexual abuse cases particularly when the alleged is an athlete appears to be a rising trend. A 2014 survey reveals that 1 in 5 college athletic departments have had some of oversight in sexual assault allegations against their athletes. For example, both Duke University and Florida State University have reportedly mishandled reports of sexual abuse by delaying any form of action or even investigation. At Duke, approximately ten months passed between the coach gaining knowledge of an incident involving his player and him taking the action of dismissing his player for reasons supposedly not relating to the incident. FSU basketball and football star player Jameis Winston played uninterrupted for two years before any review of complaints against him occurred. Extended delays of investigation are particularly damaging because they negatively impact all parties involved. “There is a strong belief that Florida State’s handling of its obligation under Title IX did not serve either the accuser or Winston,” explains Staurowsky. “There were only more suspicions about Winston’s conduct and institutional motives and the alleged victim was denied relief under Title IX.” Eventually, he was cleared of all allegations despite the harm to his reputation. On the other hand, the alleged victim dropped out.
Although athletes only make up 4 percent of the college population, 19 percent of sexual assaults on campus involve student athletes. This has not gone unnoticed. The NCAA passed a resolution in August 2014 to restrict the role athletic departments play in sexual abuse investigations. The resolution also dictates that athletic departments should educate their players, coaches, and staff about the appropriate manners to prevent or respond to instances of sexual abuse. Hopefully, this resolution will lead to nationwide compliance to Title IX procedures for sexual abuse. More importantly, hopefully college campuses and athletic departments place more value on the lives of their college women than a winning season.
Steele is a 3L at the University of Texas
