DURHAM, N.H. — A nation that prides itself on fighting the abuse of power has an obligation to prevent sexual violence in schools and on college campuses, Vice President Joe Biden said Monday as he kicked off a nationwide awareness campaign on schools’ responsibilities and victims’ rights.
Biden and U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan spoke at the University of New Hampshire to announce the initiative. Colleges and public and private K-12 schools will receive letters outlining their duties under Title IX, the federal civil rights law banning sexual discrimination and harassment.
“Students across the country deserve the safest possible environment in which to learn,” Biden said before the announcement. “That’s why we’re taking new steps to help our nation’s schools, universities and colleges end the cycle of sexual violence on campus.”
The regulations are not new, but the effort to promote them is. Officials say schools need comprehensive guidelines for filing complaints, helping victims, disciplining perpetrators and monitoring campus climates in the wake of an attack.
UNH was chosen for the announcement because of its highly regarded violence prevention efforts. But Duncan described other colleges where victims are ostracized, not allowed to call witnesses during disciplinary proceedings and are prevented from speaking out.
“Every school would like to believe it is immune from sexual violence but the facts suggest otherwise,” Duncan said in previously released comments.
Nearly 20 percent of college women will be victims of attempted or actual sexual assault, as will about 6 percent of undergraduate men, according to data provided by the Education Department.
