To Action.” The class, taught by
Nursing Prof. Michelle Munro —
a former participant in SAPAC’s
Peer Education Volunteer Program
and University alum — requires
enrolled
students
to
undergo
SAPAC or SafeHouse volunteer
training. In January, the class
brought 30 new volunteers to
SAPAC.
Sharkey has been employed by
SAPAC since 2010, but has been
involved with the organization
since she was a freshman at the
University in 2002.
When she was a student, Shar-
key said, SAPAC volunteers mainly
focused on starting an initial dia-
logue about sexual assault, rather
than facilitating it.
“It didn’t feel as prevalent or rel-
evant as it does today,” she said. “I
feel like I was the student in class
who was trying to bring in that per-
spective, and we had to try really
hard to get volunteers and build
relationships to do our workshops.
Now, there’s not so much of a need
to go out looking for that because
people are coming to us.”
LSA junior Fabiana Diaz, who
said she was sexually assaulted as a
freshman, said there was a point at
which she felt isolated and unable
to tell anyone about her experi-
ences.
“When it first occurred, it was
very a hush-hush situation,” she
said. “I felt like I couldn’t speak
to anyone about it. There were no
communities where I felt I could
talk to anybody about it except
SAPAC.”
Diaz, a SAPAC volunteer and
former
LSA
representative
in
the Central Student Government
assembly, said she has seen a posi-
tive shift in campus climate since
her first year here in 2012.
“I see it way more in my classes,
and when I’m walking around I
hear people talking about it,” she
said. “The awareness is getting
out there. I would still say there is
a stigma around it but I’m seeing a
lot of survivors sharing their sto-
ries. That bravery has opened a lot
of doors and has given us a voice.”
Two years later
In September 2013, the Univer-
sity debuted a new sexual miscon-
duct policy, shifting from a model
driven by complaints to one that
more actively involves University
investigators.
In the new policy’s first year,
there was a sharp increase in the
number of cases of reported sexual
misconduct — which the Universi-
ty defines as “unwanted or unwel-
come conduct of a sexual nature
that is committed without valid
consent, including sexual assault
and sexual harassment.”
According to the first Student
Sexual Misconduct Annual Report
released in November, 129 cases
were reported to the University
between June 2013 and June 2014.
By comparison, 83 cases were
reported from 2012 to 2013, 62
were reported from 2011 to 2012
and three were reported from 2010
to 2011.
In January 2014, the Daily
reported that former Michigan
football kicker Brendan Gibbons
was “permanently separated” from
the University after he was found
responsible for sexual misconduct.
A Title IX complaint filed over this
case ultimately resulted in a federal
investigation into the University’s
handling of sexual misconduct.
In April 2014, the Office of Stu-
dent Life hosted a panel discussion
in partnership with the Daily about
the University’s sexual misconduct
policy, which included numerous
administrators — SAPAC Direc-
tor Holly Rider-Milkovich; Dean
of Students Laura Blake Jones; Jay
Wilgus, Office of Student Conflict
Resolution director; and Anthony
Walesby, the University’s Title IX
coordinator. The panel drew 40
students.
“We are trailblazers,” Blake
Jones said at the panel. “And an
institution that most of the country
looks to in terms of our prevention
and education efforts.”
In September, Central Student
Government planned a number of
events pertaining to sexual assault
in response to the White House’s
“It’s On Us” campaign, which aims
to end sexual assault at universities
across the country.
In October, protesters cov-
ered the Diag with a list of seven
demands calling for the University
to improve campus sexual assault
policies. Students carried mat-
tresses around campus to raise
awareness of sexual assault and
abusive relationships as a part of
the national Carry That Weight
campaign. The campaign origi-
nated when Columbia University
senior Emma Sulkowicz began car-
rying a mattress around the New
York City campus in September
after her alleged rapist was found
not responsible for sexual miscon-
duct by Columbia.
LSA junior Donald Lyons is the
co-coordinator for SAPAC’s Men’s
Activism
Volunteer
Program,
which focuses on engaging men
in the conversation surrounding
sexual assault through workshops
with a variety of campus commu-
nities like fraternities, athletics and
ROTC.
Lyons said in the past few years,
he has seen the Men’s Activism
program triple in size, indicating
men are becoming more involved
in the dialogue about sexual
assault. He said Carry That Weight
exemplified this progress and cam-
pus-wide progress overall.
“If I were to choose one moment
this year where I was like, this is
going to be something that’s huge,
that’s going to get people involved,
it was Carry That Weight,” Lyons
said. “I think that day on campus
was so powerful.”
At SAPAC’s 28th annual Sexual
Assault Speak Out in November,
survivors were invited to speak
openly about their experiences and
attendance was so high — nearly
300 people — that it was standing
room only.
LSA junior Anna Forringer-Beal
is a co-coordinator for SAPAC’s
Networking, Publicity and Activ-
ism program, which organizes the
Speak Out. In the five semesters
Forringer-Beal has volunteered
with SAPAC, she said she’s seen a
shift in how prominent the issue is
on campus.
She added that this year’s Speak
Out was indicative of this shift.
“I’m so proud that we had such
a huge attendance,” she said, “So
many people came and shared and
spoke and really took ownership of
their healing and their experience.
Bringing up these issues and talk-
ing about it and creating a space for
survivors to share is just so monu-
mental.”
In January, University President
Mark Schlissel announced that the
University would randomly survey
3,000 students about the climate
and knowledge of sexual assault
on campus, the results of which are
now in and being compiled.
The University is also part of
a 27-school survey distributed
by the Association of American
Universities to compare trends
in sexual assault across campuses
nationwide. This survey was sent
to students March 31.
“I figured that it would be valu-
able to have us be able to compare
our data to that at a lot of differ-
ent schools that are similar, big
research universities, but different
than us, to see how we’re doing,”
Schlissel said in a January inter-
view with the Daily.
CSG, LSA Student Govern-
ment and the Engineering Student
Government passed resolutions
in February and March support-
ing the addition of the University’s
Student Sexual Misconduct Policy
to course syllabi. These proposals
recommend but do not require pro-
fessors to add the policy.
LSA junior Laura Meyer, SAPAC
volunteer coordinator, approached
several student governments with
the idea in February and CSG
passed the resolution on March 17.
LSA senior Corey Walsh, former
LSA-SG vice president, said there
has been increased talk within the
organization on this issue
“I think it’s permeating a lot of
student organizations right now
across the spectrum, partially
because of the campus climate sur-
rounding it and partly because of
national campaigns like It’s On Us,”
Walsh said. “I think it’s something
everyone can get on board with and
wants to put an end to.”
LSA senior Emily Lustig, the
former CSG vice president, echoed
Walsh’s sentiment.
“Sexual
assault
awareness
in
general
has
exponentially
increased across campus,” she said.
“I think we have a really strong
community that is really passion-
ate. I think it has fostered a very
different environment than the one
I came in to.”
Additionally, the recent Daily
report raised questions regarding
how the University handles the
investigation and sanctioning pro-
cesses following a report of sexual
assault — pointing out discrepan-
cies between SAPAC’s definition of
consent and the definition outlined
in the University’s Student Sexual
Misconduct Policy.
In response to the article,
SAPAC updated information on its
web page about consent.
“One of the core values that
guides SAPAC’s work is respect,”
the new page reads. “And for
SAPAC, consent is respect. As we
work towards a world free of sexual
assault, intimate partner violence,
stalking and sexual harassment,
we promote equality and respect
for all members of our commu-
nity through our commitment to
primary prevention. Our primary
prevention approach is centered
on our vision and hope for a future
where we all expect consent for
sexual activity to be verbal or oral,
sober, and enthusiastic.”
However, language around the
University’s definition of consent —
as articulated in the Student Sex-
ual Misconduct Policy — remains
largely unchanged compared to a
version of the website updated on
Jan. 17, 2015.
Culture shift and targeting
specific demographics
In the last year, perhaps one of
the most concentrated student-
driven forums for discussion about
sexual assault and violence was the
Culture Shift retreat in January.
Forringer-Beal, Diaz and LSA
juniors Meagan Shokar and Olivia
Rath organized the two-day event
in conjunction with the Office of
Student Life to focus on topics such
as rape culture and the University’s
sexual misconduct policy.
“We wanted to bring people,
and bring student leaders, togeth-
er to give them a space to learn
and collaborate,” Forringer-Beal
said. “It was a strategic way to try
and have this conversation collec-
tively.”
Diaz said one of her goals is to
bring more identities to the con-
versation, from men to members
of the LGBTQ community to Black
students.
“We need more intersection-
ality on our campus,” Diaz
said. “We always focus on
one identity, when survivors
have multiple identities. We
want to continue educating
because that is the only way
this will happen — by educat-
ing student leaders, who will
pass that down. There’s not a
united place where (student
leaders) can all come together,
and that’s what we are trying
to do with Culture Shift, so we
actually do create a shift in our
culture.”
In this vein, Lyons said he
hopes some of the dialogue
about sexual assault will help
men to broaden their perspec-
tives and understand more
nuanced narratives.
“Since there’s so much pop-
ular discourse around sexual
assault, a lot of narratives end
up being ‘those poor women’
narratives,” he said. “This can
be unproduc-
tive
because
part of what
we
want
to
talk about is
the
systems
surrounding
these
situa-
tions.”
Targeting
men, in par-
ticular, is not
a new concept
for
sexual
assault educa-
tion.
Like
Cul-
ture Shift, I
Will, a sexual
assault aware-
ness campaign
established in
February 2013,
aims to make
sexual assault a
less taboo topic
for all mem-
bers
of
the
community.
The
pro-
gram,
orga-
nized by four
then-LSA
seniors, launched with the support
of SAPAC, OSCR and the Univer-
sity’s Athletic Department.
University alum Josh Buoy, one
of I Will’s founders, said in Febru-
ary 2013 that the program would
place additional focus on men.
“Sexual assault and violence
takes so many forms beyond rape,
and that’s what we really want to
do — we really want to educate —
what qualifies as sexual assault
because I think so many people,
especially of the male gender, don’t
know what it is,” Buoy said. “With
this campaign, we’re working with
everyone where they are.”
LSA senior Hannah Crisler, I
Will director and a former ath-
lete, said she saw a big change,
especially within athletics, after it
was reported that former football
kicker Gibbons was permanently
separated from the University in
January 2013.
“It’s just so prominent in our
culture right now,” she said. “Defi-
nitely having one of your star foot-
ball players kicked out of school for
doing a horrific act is going to stir
up the water.”
I Will regularly hosts coffee
shop events for students to talk
about specific issues, in addition
to workshops with CSG and other
campus organizations and an
awareness week every April.
What the future holds
Public Policy senior Laurel
Ruza, the former CSG vice speak-
er, is an It’s On Us student orga-
nizer. Though she wasn’t directly
involved with organizations dis-
cussing the issue before this year,
Ruza said she’s noticed a change
now that sexual assault is a more
prominent part of campus conver-
sation.
“When I was a freshman, I went
through Relationship Remix and
we had that hour and a half long
conversation, and then it died off
and the conversation ended,” she
said. “What I’m starting to see now
is that conversation is continuing in
a lot of aspects on campus.”
Ruza said she thinks that a lot
of progress needs to be made, both
among students and administra-
tors.
“I think there’s a ton more work
to be done,” she said. “For a lot of
campus, this really isn’t a topic of
conversation. I think that admin-
istrators are recognizing that stu-
dent voices around this issue are
critical, and that students really do
have a unique perspective. More
work can be done in terms of edu-
cating the campus and raising
awareness.”
Diaz said, she most of all hopes
to see more education on campus
about sexual violence.
“I wish that, on campus, every-
one knew what a survivor was,
and the real statistics of it, and the
whole idea that it can happen to
you,” she said. “It’s very possible.
It can happen to your friend, your
roommate. One people start open-
ing their eyes to those facts, I think
we’ll see a shift in our culture.”
2-News
2A — Thursday, April 16, 2015
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
News
DELANEY RYAN/Daily
Ann Arbor resident Blair Ellis marchs in solidarity with low
wage workers on Wednesday in an attempt to raise the mini-
mum wage to $15.
FIGHT FOR $15
TUESDAY:
Campus Voices
THURSDAY:
Twitter Talk
FRIDAY:
Photos of the Week
WEDNESDAY:
In Other Ivory Towers
MONDAY:
This Week in History
The University’s debate team has
reached a historic win for their
senior members.
“Debate Team wins 2nd
place at 69th annual National
Debate Tournament for 2nd
year; historic achievement for
seniors.” -@umich
“Deposited my money for U of M. I’m
officially a Wolverine (even though I’ve
been one my whole life) #Victors2019
-@Justine_Ezell
#Victors2019 have taken to
Twitter to share their excitement
about officially attending the
University.
Each week, “Twitter Talk”
is a forum to print tweets
that are fun, informative,
breaking or newsworthy,
with an angle on the
University, Ann Arbor and
the state. All tweets have
been edited for accurate
spelling and grammar.
The Ross School of Business shared
their thoughts on changing the
process in which we do our taxes.
“It’s Tax Day!! It’s also 2015 - so
it’s about time we overhaul all
that cumbersome paperwork.”
— @MichiganRoss
FOLLOW US!
#TMD
@michigandaily
“
“
420 Maynard St.
Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1327
www.michigandaily.com
The Michigan Daily (ISSN 0745-967) is published Monday through Friday during the fall and winter terms by
students at the University of Michigan. One copy is available free of charge to all readers. Additional copies may
be picked up at the Daily’s office for $2. Subscriptions for fall term, starting in September, via U.S. mail are $110.
Winter term (January through April) is $115, yearlong (September through April) is $195. University affiliates
are subject to a reduced subscription rate. On-campus subscriptions for fall term are $35. Subscriptions must
be prepaid. The Michigan Daily is a member of The Associated Press and The Associated Collegiate Press.
JENNIFER CALFAS
Editor in Chief
734-418-4115 ext. 1251
jcalfas@michigandaily.com
DOUGLAS SOLOMON
Business Manager
734-418-4115 ext. 1241
dougsolo@michigandaily.com
Newsroom
734-418-4115 opt. 3
Corrections
corrections@michigandaily.com
Arts Section
arts@michigandaily.com
Sports Section
sports@michigandaily.com
Display Sales
dailydisplay@gmail.com
Online Sales
onlineads@michigandaily.com
News Tips
news@michigandaily.com
Letters to the Editor
tothedaily@michigandaily.com
Editorial Page
opinion@michigandaily.com
Photography Section
photo@michigandaily.com
Classified Sales
classified@michigandaily.com
Finance
finance@michigandaily.com
EDITORIAL STAFF
Lev Facher Managing Editor lfacher@michigandaily.com
Sam Gringlas Managing News Editor gringlas@michigandaily.com
SENIOR NEWS EDITORS: Shoham Geva, Will Greenberg, Amabel Karoub, Emma Kerr,
Emilie Plesset, Michael Sugerman
ASSISTANT NEWS EDITORS: Anastassios Adamopoulos, Tanaz Ahmed, Neala
Berkowski, Alyssa Brandon, Nabeel Chollampat, Gen Hummer, Emma Kinery, Lara
Moehlman, Carly Noah, Irene Park
Aarica Marsh and
Derek Wolfe Editorial Page Editors opinioneditors@michigandaily.com
SENIOR EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS: Claire Bryan and Matt Seligman
ASSISTANT EDITORIAL PAGE EDITORS: Regan Detwiler, Michael Paul, Melissa Scholke,
Michael Schramm, Mary Kate Winn
BLOG EDITOR: Tori Noble
Max Cohen and
Jake Lourim Managing Sports Editors
sportseditors@michigandaily.com
SENIOR SPORTS EDITORS: Max Bultman, Daniel Feldman, Rajat Khare, Erin Lennon,
Jason Rubinstein, Jeremy Summitt
ASSISTANT SPORTS EDITORS: Chloe Aubuchon, Minh Doan, Jacob Gase, Kelly Hall,
Zach Shaw, Brad Whipple
Adam Depollo and
adepollo@michigandaily.com
Chloe Gilke Managing Arts Editors chloeliz@michigandaily.com
SENIOR ARTS EDITORS: Jamie Bircoll, Kathleen
Davis, Catherine Sulpizio, Adam Theisen
ARTS BEAT EDITORS: Alex Bernard, Karen Hua, Jacob Rich, Amelia Zak
Allison Farrand and
photo@michigandaily.com
Ruby Wallau Managing Photo Editors
SENIOR PHOTO EDITORS: Luna Anna Archey, James Coller, Virginia Lozano
ASSISTANT PHOTO EDITORS: Amanda Allen, Zach Moore, Sam Mousigian, Paul Sherman
Emily Schumer and
design@michigandaily.com
Shane Achenbach Managing Design Editors
Ian Dillingham Magazine Editor statement@michigandaily.com
DEPUTY MAGAZINE EDITORS: Natalie Gadbois
STATEMENT PHOTO EDITOR: Luna Anna Archey
STATEMENT LEAD DESIGNER: Jake Wellins
Hannah Bates and
copydesk@michigandaily.com
Laura Schinagle Managing Copy Editors
SENIOR COPY EDITORS: Emily Campbell and Emma Sutherland
Amrutha Sivakumar Online Editor amrutha@michigandaily.com
Kaylla Cantilina Managing Video Editor
Carolyn Gearig Special Projects Manager
BUSINESS STAFF
Madeline Lacey University Accounts Manager
Ailie Steir Classified Manager
Simonne Kapadia Local Accounts Manager
Olivia Jones Production Managers
Jason Anterasian Finance Manager
ACTIVISM
From Page 1A