The UW System Board of Regents met Thursday at UW-La Crosse to discuss the findings from a recent survey of multiple campuses, which highlighted topics such as sexual assault and racial profiling.
The study included participants from UW-La Crosse, UW-Milwaukee, UW-Stevens Point and thirteen two-year UW colleges.
The consulting firm Rankin & Associates conducted the survey and evaluated respondents’ personal experiences, their interactions with the universities, perceptions of the universities’ actions and recommendations for change.
UW System President Kevin Reilly said the study “Is designed to assess how well our campuses are meeting several goals.”
The survey, which assessed more than 13,000 students, faculty, and academic staff, uncovered various problems in UW System schools.
The most challenging included widespread status distinctions between and among peer groups, incidents of racial profiling and poor retention of students of color and of LGBT students.
However, among the multitude of concerns expressed at the meeting, one topic in particular drew strong emotional response from Regents and other officials. They expressed concern over the prevailing number of sexual assaults that go unreported at all of the UW System schools surveyed.
At UW-La Crosse, 96 respondents indicated they were victims of sexual assault, 91 of them being women and 86 being students. 51 respondents said they were sexually assaulted at UW-Stevens Point.
As seen in the report, the offender is commonly a friend or acquaintance of the victim and typically both people have consumed alcohol, according to Carmen Wilson, Academic Planner at UW-La Crosse.
Most alarmingly, in all cases surveyed, the majority of sexual assault victims did not report their encounters.
According to members of the board, students commonly said they felt too embarrassed, the perpetrators were their friends, or they believed the assaults were their fault.
These findings are not unique to Wisconsin, according to Senior Research Associate at Rankin & Associates Sue Rankin.
UW System officials are strongly encouraging open communication with students and making necessary resources more readily available to them she said.
According to Rankin, incidents of sexual assault are not becoming more prevalent, but the survey shows people are becoming more willing to report them.
