Students interviewed for a piece on sexual assault prevention training at New Student Orientation in the July 9 edition of The Daily Tar Heel said that sexual assault was mentioned briefly during several presentations but that they didn’t come away from the orientation with a clear understanding of the University’s sexual assault policy.
All involved in the organization of freshman orientation surely have the best interests of incoming students at heart. The people who design and schedule orientation likely do so because they care about influencing the next generation of UNC students in a positive way.
Surely organizers of orientation are interested in preventing sexual assault. But a scattered approach that focuses on response to sexual assault does a disservice to incoming students. The orientation for the next incoming class of students should strive to fully explain UNC’s new sexual violence policy as well as provide information on bystander intervention and warning signs. An ideal new student orientation would include a full session devoted to interpersonal violence at UNC.
A study published in the Journal of American College Health affirms talk about a college “red zone,” the first six weeks of the fall semester when female freshmen are at a high risk of sexual assault. Given that the dangers of assault are highest at the beginning of a student’s college experience, they should be equipped as early as possible.
The University has the ability to educate each incoming student before they begin their time as students at UNC. This is a prime opportunity to impress upon students the importance of bystander intervention as well as full understandings of what constitutes sexual assault.
For some students, a session focused on interpersonal violence might be repeating information they already understand, but many others may still view sexual assault as something that happens in a dark alley, rather than a crowded house party.
Transfer orientation should include this information as well. Just because transfer students have attended another university doesn’t mean they have a full understanding of UNC’s sexual violence policy and the resources available at UNC.
In short, students should not come away from orientation feeling unsure about how UNC approaches sexual violence on campus.
They shouldn’t leave orientation knowing more about cheers for basketball games than how to intervene if they see a potentially dangerous situation.
