Carleton University just finished seeking feedback from the broader university community on its draft Sexual Violence Policy. Community feedback will be considered in advance of submitting the policy to the Board of Governors for review and approval in November. As written, the draft Sexual Violence Policy does not make specific commitments to services for survivors of sexual violence, but mentions in Section 2.1 that the purpose of the policy is to ensure that university community members who experience sexual violence receive support and appropriate accommodation.
The Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) has a unique opportunity to play a critical role in preventing sexual violence on-campus and supporting survivors of sexual violence, by implementing mandatory peer-based support training for those operating and volunteering for its service centres.
Compassion, caring, and service delivery excellence are key ingredients that speak to the success of CUSA service centre workers and volunteers. Ten CUSA service centres offer accessible and approachable resources and programming on campus as a way of meeting the needs and demands of a diverse student population.
In the introductory letter attached to the draft Sexual Violence Policy, Suzanne Blanchard, the vice-president (students and enrolment), states that “commitments to resources and programs, while absent from this document, will be addressed within the next budget cycle.” The policy excludes mention of the 10 CUSA service centres, including the Womyn’s Centre, the Gender and Sexuality Resource Centre, the Health and Wellness Centre, Foot Patrol, and the Mawandoseg Centre, among others.
The existence of these service centres not only represents the recognition of the diverse identities and intersections of the student community, but also makes them highly visible to the broader university community.
All CUSA service centres aim to provide safe(r) spaces for Carleton University students. Individuals that run the centres prioritize the safety and needs of diverse students. CUSA is in a unique position to make a commitment that expands services to the survivors of sexual violence.
The service centres could play a crucial role in preventing sexual violence on campus and supporting survivors. Peer-based support training of CUSA service providers would ensure that university community members who experience sexual violence receive support, compassionate treatment, and appropriate accommodation through the service centres. Training of this nature ensures that those who have experienced sexual violence can reach out to peers that know and understand how to support them in a caring, safe, and supportive environment.
Moreover, there are other benefits of proactively engaging with the sexual violence initiative, including the creation of a network of committed students that ensures the campus is a safe and inclusive space for all, and the building of worker and volunteer capacity and knowledge on how to appropriately respond to situations reflecting the diversity and intersectional identities of the students. It would also foster survivor-centred thinking in those who operate the service centres, and hold their volunteers and workers to a standard of care and education. Most importantly, survivors of sexual violence seeking support from the centres would know they are believed, and that education on sexual violence is happening on campus through the CUSA service centres.
By implementing mandatory peer-based support training for those who operate and volunteer at any CUSA service centre, CUSA could make a positive contribution to the provision of services and resources to survivors of sexual violence.
