The UvA must take urgent steps to improve university social safety
Universities, including the UvA, cannot continue to shy away from being more proactive in clearly communicating social safety regulations, help resources, and clear guidelines on consent, says bachelor student Sofia Neumayer.
As the first block of the academic year slowly comes to an end, many first-year students have already received a glimpse into the university life that awaits them in the next few years. Hand in hand with the ending of the first block, however, is the midpoint of what a study by the Journal of American College Health coined The Red Zone. This zone is a period of statistically increased sexual assault during the first semester of university.
This is attributable, among many other factors, to a rise in parties to celebrate the return to university, increased alcohol use, and younger students encountering a campus culture they have never experienced before. First-year students in particular are uninformed of the university resources available to victims of social safety infractions at UvA. However, even if they were aware, the resources themselves, which are scattered throughout the website, are difficult to understand and overwhelming to navigate.
65 percent was never informed
A study by Consent at UvA, the student branch of the Our Bodies Our Voices Foundation, further demonstrated this overwhelming unfamiliarity with the regulations. Only 16 percent of respondents who reported experiencing sexual violence while at the UvA were aware of who to contact for help at the university. Furthermore, 55 percent of students stated they were not confident that the university would offer them suitable assistance, showing a lack of trust in the available aid facilities. As for awareness of the resources themselves, 65 percent of students said they were never even informed about the help-seeking facilities at the UvA.
This illustrates the urgent need for a more active approach towards spreading awareness about the available help measures. However, in addition to changing how social safety resources are distributed at the UvA, the institution must take a far more active role in attempting to minimize the cases as well. The topic of social safety is addressed in the introductory newsletters of the academic year, however, this does not tackle the underlying root of the issue.
Unacceptable behaviour
This raises the question of what role educational institutions should play in informing students about social safety regulations. According to the UvA’s current Code of Conduct, ‘In order to establish a safe and proper working and studying environment, employees and students must refrain from any kind of unacceptable behaviour’. This ‘unacceptable behaviour’ is defined as behaviour that is ‘stressful’ to the receiver because it ‘injures the person’s bodily or mental integrity’. While sexual harassment is included in the Code of Conduct as an example of prohibited behaviour, no examples of precise definitions of consent or sexual assault are given. Research has shown that the definition of sexual assault varies greatly between countries and cultures, and some students are unaware of what behaviours are deemed sexual harassment in the country where they are studying.
Introductory newsletter only
The university aims to help international students assimilate into Dutch society, which should include a briefing for both international and Dutch students about the university’s policies on inappropriate behaviour, including sexual assault. This would help eliminate cultural misunderstandings about the definitions of consent, for example, and students can be ensured that their professors and classmates are aware of these same guidelines.
The Red Zone is something that can not be addressed solely with an introductory newsletter containing a link to a website with confusing and overwhelming information about social safety support. Universities, including the UvA, cannot continue to shy away from being more proactive in clearly communicating social safety regulations, help resources, and clear guidelines on consent. Students must feel safe and secure in knowing they will receive guidance and support in the case that they experience a social safety violation.
Sofia Neumayer is bachelor student Communication Science and former member of the Central Student Council of the UvA.
