Catlin Gabel addresses student sexual harassment and assault
By Elise Song ‘20
Fears of reporting sexual harassment and assault. Drawing by Elise Song.
On Wednesday, Oct. 23, Upper School (US) Head Aline Garcia-Rubio announced at the US assembly that she had received an anonymous report of sexual assault two weeks ago and then a follow-up message from the same person last week.
The announcement stood out in part because sexual harassment and sexual violence remains drastically underreported.
According to the Rape, Abuse & Incest Nation Network (RAINN), about three out of four sexual assualts go unreported. Specifically, only 20% of female college students report incidents to the police.
“Sexual violence is notoriously difficult to measure, and there is no single source of data that provides a complete picture of the crime,” RAINN notes.
The Jeanne Clery Act, passed in 1990, requires colleges and universities to annually report campus crime statistics and security information to the Department of Education.
According to the American Association of University Women (AAUW), 89% of college campuses reported zero incidents of rape in 2016. Additionally, 79% of public schools reported zero incidents of sexual harassment or bullying in the 2015-16 school year.
However, AAUW conducted a research study “Crossing the Line: Sexual Harassment at School” and found that in the 2010-11 school year, 48% of surveyed 7-12th grade students experienced some form of sexual harassment.
Though schools are legally bound under Title IX of the 1972 Education Amendments to protect students and report sexual harassment and assault statistics, the discrepancy between what actually happens and what is reported indicates that schools must work towards encouraging students to come forward.
Though Catlin Gabel School (CGS) is not federally funded, the school maintains an anti-sexual harassment and assault policy.
According to the 2019-20 Family Handbook, “It is in the best interest of each individual and the school that we dedicate ourselves to creating an educational environment that promotes respect, dignity, and equality and that is free from all forms of harassment, exploitation, intimidation, illegal discrimination and retaliation”
CGS also provides a Sexual Assault Support and Resources guide that details the different options of how to report sexual assault. Students can report directly to law enforcement or to the school, opting to make an anonymous report if they wish.
If someone makes a report of sexual harassment or assault (that is not anonymous), CGS will conduct an investigation, maintaining confidentiality if requested.
“The primary concern is the person,” said Upper School (US) Counselor Kate Grant.
She noted that the process has “changed in my time -- the burden is protecting the student and not the offender.”
Grant said once a counselor receives a report, it would be passed on to US Dean of Students Brandon Woods or Garcia-Rubio depending on if the perpetrator was a student or teacher, respectively.
The counselor would then “circle back and make sure the person gets support and an outcome that they are satisfied with,” Grant said.
“The fact that [someone is] reporting means it’s serious… The point isn’t to feel good about it -- it’s wrong either way,” Grant acknowledged.
Woods said once the school receives a report, they will contact the Department of Human Services and other outside agencies.
“[The school] guarantees the safety of the person who is victimized,” Woods said, adding, “I use that language [of the victim] because I choose to believe the person.”
Throughout the process, CGS will stay in consultation with the person, their family, and law enforcement. If the accused is a student, the school will work to make sure there is as little contact between them and the victim.
Woods acknowledged that most sexual harassment and assault goes unreported.
“There are reasons people choose not to report, including the fear of mandatory reporting or having no control over that process,” said Woods.
To clarify mandatory reporting, CGS’s lawyer will come to a January assembly to discuss the topic.
Woods said, to create an environment where sexual harassment and violence does not occur, we must “counter a lot of misogyny in society and our institution.”
To address this, CGS has implemented Green Dot Training in the Upper School. Last year, students were selected to participate in training sessions held throughout the year.
Green Dot was created by the organization, Alteristic, “a social accelerator that tackles societal issues at local, national, and global levels. Committed to optimizing and activating inherent human good, we equip and mobilize communities to create social norms that ensure safety, respect, and the opportunity to thrive for all people.”
Green Dot is a “prevention strategy” through bystander intervention training, training individuals to interrupt what Alteristic describes as situations that are “imminently or potentially high-risk for violence.”
“By expanding the role of bystanders beyond reactive, the Green Dot program trains participants to engage in proactive behaviors that model and endorse norms that are incompatible with violence,” states the Alteristic website. “The ultimate goal is not simply to react to potential violence as it is occurring, but rather to simultaneously shift community norms that support the violence that is occurring.”
Amanda Lighthiser, US English teacher at CGS and a Green Dot Coordinator, describes Green Dot culture as students taking a stand to create a community where harassment and violence are not tolerated.
“Change can’t just come from adults,” Lighthiser said. “Green Dot gives students the tools to change their culture… and empower them to be better to each other.”