Sexual assault includes but is not limited to such actions as touching the body of another with a sexual intent and without consent of the person being touched and forced intercourse. Consent can not be considered to have been given by a person who, because of intoxication, youth or medical disability, is unable to make a reasonable judgment concerning the nature of the activity.

The following procedures have been developed to provide for the coordination of University and community resources in incidents of sexual assault. This policy applies to resident and off-campus students.

Any student, who believes that she / he has been the victim of sexual assault should contact the Dean of Students immediately. The Dean of Students will initiate the procedures as outlined in the student handbook. At all times confidentiality will be maintained to the extent possible.

Initial Notification: A victim or a friend of the victim notifies the Dean of Students or other University Official (either the Residence Hall Director or the Director of Public Safety and Security). Whenever possible, the Dean of Students should be the first person notified of a sexual assault. The Dean of Students is located in Whitecar Hall, Room 116; phone 215-596-8529. The Dean of Students is the University administrator responsible for coordinating all services and procedures associated with these incidents. All reports to the Dean of Students remain confidential and no further action (including criminal) is taken without the express permission of the victim. The Dean of Students will insure that the victim’s immediate physical, emotional, and safety needs are attended to promptly, completely, and confidentially. The Dean of Students will also advise the victim of his/her options for further action (including criminal and Internal) and assist the victim in pursuing these options if desired.

If the Dean of Students is unavailable, the victim should notify:

One of the above listed individuals will be able to contact the Dean of Students and see to the immediate needs of the victim.

Immediate Services: A victim of sexual assault will be encouraged to receive immediate attention at Thomas Jefferson Hospital Trauma Center. A University Official will arrange escorted transportation for the victim. Due to the extent of evidence legally required in cases of sexual assault, a prompt and thorough examination is necessary. The examination will include testing for sexually transmitted diseases, obtaining physical specimens, and establishing risk of pregnancy. The trauma center’s protocol requires notification of the Philadelphia Police Department, although this does not mean that the victim must press charges or pursue legal action. The Trauma Center, in conjunction with Women Organized Against Rape, provides counseling services for victims of sexual assault.

The Counseling Center is available to provide on-campus psychological assessment and support to both the victim and the alleged perpetrator. Counseling personnel will not be involved in any form of disciplinary deliberation. The Counseling Center is located at 4140 Woodland.

Off campus services for victims of sexual assault can be obtained from Episcopal Hospital, Front and Lehigh Ave., Philadelphia, Pa., Women Organized Against Rape (WOAR), 1233 Locust St., Suite 202, 215-985-3333 (24-hour hotline) and the Rape,Abuse, and Incest National Network (RAINN) 1-800-656-HOPE. RAINN is a 24-hour-a-day, 7-day-a-week national toll free hotline for victims of sexual assault. When a victim calls the 800 number, the call will be routed instantaneously to the rape crisis center nearest the caller.

Internal Disciplinary Action: In cases involving accusations of sexual assault the disciplinary committee must accord both the accuser and accused the following rights: (1) the accuser and the accused are entitled to the same opportunities to have others present during a campus disciplinary proceeding; and (2) both the accuser and the accused shall be informed of the outcome of any campus disciplinary proceeding brought alleging a sexual assault. Sanctions range from dismissal of charges to disciplinary expulsion. (See USP Student Handbook for explanation of Disciplinary Code and Procedures)

Alternative Housing: In a sexual assault situation where both the victim and the accused are living in the same residence hall, the Director of Student Life will move both parties to separate residence halls if possible. If only one party can be conveniently relocated, this will be done based upon space availability. Both parties will be barred from each others residence hall. The University may revoke a room agreement for an alleged sexual assault of a resident, guest or University personnel.

Academic Support: The Dean of Students will work personally with the victim and the alleged perpetrator to insure that appropriate academic support services are available to assist her/him through the period following the assault. These may include excused absences, make up exams, tutoring, or class changes.

The University provides educational programs and information, which stress prevention through awareness. These include: (1) workshops on date rape and sexual assault presented to freshman during orientation and in the first weeks of school; (2) residence hall programs are given when requested by students or Student Affairs personnel; (3) resource materials are available through University counselors, Student Health offices and the Department of Public Safety and Security.

Additionally, the Department of Public Safety and Security presents the Rape Aggression Defense program (RAD) to groups of students, free of charge. The Rape Aggression Defense course is a 12-hour course designed to empower women with options for their self-defense. This course is offered once a semester or more provided there are a sufficient number of students. Information on RAD courses can be obtained by calling 215-895-1128, 1117, or 215-596-8595 during business hours.

Fall Schedule (2006) for the S.A.F.E. Education and awareness and the RAD Basic Self Defense Course.

S.A.F.E. Classes:
Tuesday, September 26, 2006 @ 8 PM in the Arc Aerobics Room Tuesday, October 10 , 2006 @ 8 PM in the Arch Aerobics Room These classes are independent of each other and are available to Women who would like to familiarize themselves with a greater knowledge of safety issues so that they might increase their options to empower their own safety. There will be a few physical techniques shared but the majority of time will be spent on understanding how to
make your safety priority number 1. No sign up is required.

Basic Women's Self Defense Course:
Mondays, October 16, 23, 30 and November 6, 13, 20 @ 8 PM in the Arc Aerobic Room.
Each of these class is a progression of the previous class and participants should participate in the entire course in order to
maximize the experience. The course is designed to increase safety
options and empowerment for students as well as to develop proficiency with physical self defense techniques. The course concludes with an optional simulation where participants are encouraged to practice their techniques on a padded instructor.
Sign Ups for this class are encouraged and the email address is usp.rad@gmail.com.

Numerous security officers have been trained to serve as a Relationship and Sexual Violence Resource Consultant in an on-going effort to serve victims of relationship and sexual violence on campus. The officers do not act as counselors. The officers assist victims of sexual or domestic violence in obtaining and using the resources available to them, which helps to eliminate or reduce the confusion and frustrations victims often go through.

On September 28, 2006 the University of the Sciences in Philadelphia was one of over 1000 campuses to participated in "GET CARDED DAY". This event was sponsored by the Rape Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). Hundreds of wallet size cards were distributed with information on how to prevent and report sexual assaults. In addition, students and staff were signed up for the upcoming RAD courses.

University of the Sciences in Philadelphia is involved in a unique and exciting consortium along with the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University to provide services aimed at decreasing violence against women. This is being funded by a grant from the US Department of Justice, out of the Violence Against Women Act. Programming will be offered which is aimed at developing a comprehensive, collaborative and coordinated response to violent crimes against women on campus and in the West Philadelphia/University City community in which our campus is located and students, faculty, and staff live. Other goals include:

§ developing and strengthening victim/survivor services in cases involving violent crimes against women on campus, strengthening effective security and investigative strategies to combat violent crimes against women on campus and to enhance the apprehension, and investigation and adjudication of persons committing violent crimes against women.

§ providing Consortium-wide educational programs and outreach campaigns to reduce and address dating/domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking with particular attention to inclusion of new students, students of color, LGBTQ, international students, and traditionally under-represented groups.

More details about the grant can be found on the consortium web site at www.combatviolenceagainstwomen.org

Security Department personnel have received the following training as a result of this Grant:

• A Security officer on each shift has been trained as a sexual assault resource consultant;
• All Security personnel received a four (4) hour block of training on sexual assault prevention training;
• Security personnel attended a seminar on Cyber stalking, presented by Jane Hitchcock, a nationally known author and expert on cyber crime.

There were two major programs this past academic year sponsored by Residence Life and Student Health and Counseling.

Date Rape workshops are conducted in conjunction with the Athletic Department for first year students and present the students with a 50 minute workshop. The goals are to educate students about the definitions of rape and consent and the importance of communication. We engage them in discussions about creating a safe community that both does not directly commit violence towards anyone (women in particular), but also does not allow violence to occur. Some of details are that we show a provocative video called “Playing the Game” which illustrates the complexity of a date rape situation and the different perspectives of the people involved, and we give a packet of handouts with information on resources and services, as well as giving more information about consent, rape myths and facts, etc.

The other program was part of the new student orientation activities and was a multimedia performance in the ARC by an actor and activist named Ben Atherton-Zeman called “Voices of Men”. The play uses humor, video clips, and celebrity male voice impressions to bring these topics to audiences in a way that minimizes male defensiveness. Each male character in the play is forced to deal with one of the issues listed above – in doing so, they come to the realization that they are, in fact, both part of the problem and part of the solution. The goal was to get students to become involved in both self-reflection and in violence prevention efforts.

Other smaller scale trainings included one by a representative from WOAR at the student leader’s conference last summer, which were attended by training orientation leaders, student government representatives, and RA’s about violence against women and how to help refer students for services.