Sexual assault group seeks funds

Members of the University community are looking for funding to cover medical treatment for sexual assault victims.

The Victims' Assistance Fund has reached dangerously low levels - it now holds approximately $900, about five times less than the ideal balance.

"Emergency room bills can average from $500 to $1,500," said Melinda Manning, assistant dean of students.

"Ideally, we would feel more comfortable with a balance around $5,000 or $6,000."

The Women's Affairs Committee of student government is working with officials to ensure that no victims will be turned away.

"That's something we absolutely don't want to happen," Manning said.

The fund, which is supported by student fee money, pays for emergency room costs, including medications, emergency contraception, X-rays and other related treatment that assault victims need.

The money also covers costly evidence collection, or a "rape kit," the results of which help identify an attacker.

Since August there have been 13 confidential reports of sexual assault filed on campus.

The statistic indicates that more people are using the fund than in recent years, but that doesn't necessarily mean that more people are being attacked, Manning said.

"We don't know if there's a rise (of sexual assaults on campus) or not," she said. "We know that more people are coming forward and reporting."

When Student Health Service shifted from being open 24 hours a day to a more standard business schedule, the fund also suffered.

The limited schedule forces student victims who are attacked after hours to seek care in emergency rooms where costs are higher, Manning said.

More victims resort to this option, as the likelihood of being assaulted is higher at night, when Student Health is closed, Manning said.

Diane Kjervik, director of the Carolina Women's Center, said it is critical for the campus to support women who have been victims of sexual assault.

"You have to have the supports in place," she said. "I hope that the system can replenish the supply."

Menaka Kalaskar, chairwoman of Women's Affairs Committee, said members are examining how the Campus Safety and Security fee now is allocated to see if more of it can be used to support the Victims' Assistance Fund.

"We're going to look at where (the money) is sitting, and if it's sitting in funds that aren't being used, we'll see what we can do to get more of the money," Kalaskar said.

If the committee can't obtain student fees to keep the fund running, it will have to turn to donations, which supported the fund when it was created during the late 1980s, Manning said.

"If we have to, we'll go back to that," she said.

"We like having student fees because it's steady. ... The ultimate goal is to make sure we have enough money to pay for everybody who needs it."

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