Temple's new Sexual Assault Advisory Group reaffirms commitment to safety after alleged rape near campus
Members of the newly formed Sexual Assault Advisory Group at Temple University described this past weekend's alleged rape at an off-campus apartment as a "very serious concern" that reaffirms the importance of the group's work moving forward.
The advisory group, which is made up of faculty members and students at the North Philadelphia school, is tasked with reviewing the university's policies and procedures regarding sexual assault before making recommendations for how to better serve the students and community.
"At the end of the day, we want to make sure we are holding ourselves accountable," said Monika Shealey, the dean at the College of Education and Human Development. "We have students that come to universities, and they have expectations of the university community and all of us, and we want to be able to live up to those expectations."
Temple University President John Fry announced the group on Oct. 3, a week before the alleged rape at the University Village Apartments in the 1700 block of North 10th Street. The incident happened around 2:30 a.m. Saturday, according to the school's crime log.
Fry released a statement, saying in part, "This investigation is currently being handled through Temple's Student Conduct Code, which allows the university to hold students accountable under university policy. While the university's conduct process is independent of law enforcement, it does not diminish the seriousness of the allegations or our responsibility to respond."
The Sexual Assault Advisory Group was formed following an alleged gang rape at Cornell University that has made national headlines and led to widespread protests.
"It reaffirms what it is that we're doing," College of Public Health Dean Jennifer Ibrahim said. "Thinking about this from a full spectrum, from what are we doing in terms of prevention and how are we looking at our systems and policies and procedures and response."
The group is made up of faculty members and students and will total around 15 people. The university is still working to round out the group, but members say many people are interested.
Members said they look forward to working with various groups to improve the university's procedures. They said the formation of the group doesn't indicate any failures at the university but rather a focus on improvement.
"We're going to have national experts in the conversation with us. We're going to have members across the Temple community come together to be able to influence and review what it is we're currently doing, where are our gaps and how do we move forward," Vice President of Student Affairs Jodi Bailey Accavallo said.
Laquisha Anthony, who is with WOAR-Philadelphia Center Against Sexual Violence, said the university creating the advisory group is a timely step in the right direction.
"During the time between August and Thanksgiving in November, there are heightened reports of sexual violence happening within college campuses. It's called the red zone," Anthony said.
Anthony said the alleged assaults at Temple and Cornell are disheartening, but she wants survivors to know that there are resources available to help.
"I think many survivors struggle with that concept of if I would have done something different. And then they also deal with this society's stigma of what other people may say about that experience," Anthony said. "So I would say it's not your fault, that there is support out here for you that you can utilize our hotline at any time. Our hotline number is 215-985-3333. We have trained advocates that are going to answer the call."
The faculty members in the advisory group said they look to give the university recommendations by the end of the spring semester, but that work to ensure the safety of the students and community will continue well beyond this school year.
