On Wednesday, April 22, Brandeis University released a Campus Climate Survey on Sexual Violence via email. The survey is divided into many sections and seeks to learn about the experiences of as many Brandeis students as possible. It was sent to undergraduate and graduate students and is entirely confidential.
In an email to the Brandeis community, Provost Lisa Lynch explained that the task force consisting of faculty, staff and students “has been working to evaluate our policies, response and prevention efforts relative to campus sexual assault,” and recommended a campus climate survey.
The survey poses questions about the “sense of community” ones experiences at Brandeis. It assesses how capable students feel the university is in terms of responding to crises. On the student-to-student level, it seeks to understand how students view rape and sexual assault, asking how they would respond or believe others would respond in a given situation. Other sections examine students’ experiences with harassment and unwanted sexual behaviors in different settings on campus. The survey aims to understand how aware students are of the various confidential and non-confidential services available to them and their specific roles. It also inquires about students’ understanding and execution of bystander intervention.
In her email sent to the community, Lynch stressed that students’ voices are “critical.” She wrote, “As members of the Brandeis community, we all share a responsibility to prevent sexual violence from occurring and, when it does, to do all we can to support those who have experienced it.
In her email she notes that, “Given that the survey is confidential it is likely to provide more information regarding incident rates than we currently have available to us.” Lynch believes the survey will have an important impact on the Brandeis community, allowing the university to appropriately “tailor prevention and response efforts.”
“I think [the survey] is a really important opportunity for us to get feedback in a very sort of systematic way from students about their experiences on campus,” said Brandeis’ Sexual Assault Services and Prevention Specialist Sheila McMahon in an interview for a Jan. 16 Hoot article.
Every single student who completes the Campus Climate Survey is offered their choice of $5 dollar Amazon or Chipotle gift card. This is an increased incentive, as it is a change from previous Brandeis surveys, where usually only a few students receive a reward. Students can also enter a raffle to win an iPad.
