Carleton announced mid-January it will be investigating a stand-alone sexual assault policy on campus, according to Carrolyn Johnston, equity advisor and co-ordinator of sexual assault services on campus.
“We are currently researching the policies of other universities across Canada as a result of the Ontario government’s input on the issue,” she said in an email.
Johnston said sexual assault at Carleton is currently addressed under the sexual harassment section of the university’s Human Rights Policies and Procedures.
“How Carleton addresses sexual assault is driven by the wishes of the person who has disclosed a sexual assault,” she said.
She also said the process in coming up with the new policy will include consultation with students, staff and faculty, but did not specify how much.
The Graduate Students’ Association (GSA) released a statement and called on the administration to involve student voices in the creation of a new policy.
Theo Hug, the GSA’s vice-president (external) suggested consulting students through surveys and focus groups.
Hug said women, racialized, Indigenous, queer, and transgender students should sit on committees with the policymakers.
“If there’s a committee, at least half of the members should be students because we are the majority stakeholders on the issue,” Hug said.
Folarin Odunayo, president of the Carleton University Students’ Association (CUSA) said the university has reached a point where it needs to re-evaluate the policy and focus on students’ involvement.
“There needs to be a lot more student input and it’s something I’d like to see CUSA move forward with,” he said.
Hug said the GSA would like to see the new policy be victim-centred to “focus on the person who’s experiencing it and giving them a variety of options.”
The GSA currently has two sexual assault outreach co-ordinators who plan events and panel discussions to educate people on the issue.
“There doesn’t seem to be much discussion of the issue,” Hug said. “The more we can get people involved in the conversation, the better.”
Hug said the GSA would like to see a “real collaborative effort” between students and the administration, which will be necessary as all new policies at Carleton must first be approved by the Board of Governors, according to Johnston.
Danielle Williams, a fourth-year commerce and accounting student, also agreed and said she thinks students would have a different outlook on sexual assault than the administration and that it would be good to get “all aspects of the views.”
“I would definitely say it’s important to have student voices in it,” Williams said. “They’re what make up the school.”
