After UW-Madison’s decision to reject a fully-funded proposal to implement Callisto campus, a software that allows students to report a sexually assault, the Student Title IX Advisory Committee posted their response Tuesday.
The Committee became aware of the administration’s decision to reject the proposal in October, but decided to wait until now to issue a statement to ensure they had all the accurate and relevant information and could decide what goals they wanted to reach through their statement, said Manasi Mohan, the chair of STIXA.
The committee voiced their concerns, saying their software would help reach their goals of “streamlining the reporting process, supporting and empowering survivors and making our campus safer” in their letter.
Callisto allows victims to give a time-strapped record of their assault, identify their victim, and submit a report to administration if, and when, they feel comfortable. According to STIXA’s response letter, the only report form found online is the general Clergy act form, which is buried in the UW Police Department website and inaccessible via the UW-Madison Title IX webpage.
“We at STIXA find the current reporting options confusing and fragmented,” the letter states.
The Dean of Students cited three main concerns with the Callisto system last April: focuses solely on sexual assault, as opposed to all kinds of sexual misconduct; that it is made for especially for undergraduates; and that it is minimally useful if the victim cannot identify their attacker via Facebook. STIXA addressed and refuted these claims in their letter.
According to STIXA members Dom Maderal and Petra Dai Walech, a three-year report from Callisto shows campuses using Callisto have students reporting sexual assaults an average of four months after the incident — as opposed to 11 months after the incident for campuses that do not use the software.
Additionally, students who accessed Callisto were six times more likely to report an assault that those who did not.
STIXA will continue to use the programs currently in place to provide support to sexual assault survivors and invite administrators to work with the organization to consult with students and discuss what can be done to improve the process of reporting an assault.
“Our campus needs to change not only how we talk about consent and assault, but also how we process and support survivors of violence,” Maderal and Dai Walech said in an interview.
The Promoting Awareness Victim Empowerment group believes the Callisto program would have been beneficial to survivors and was disappointed with the University's decision.
"We support STIXA’s letter and as as organization are disappointed that the university has chosen to not implement a fully funded program to help combat sexual assault and streamline the process of reporting,” said PAVE Communications Coordinator Alex Hader and PAVE Chair Ciara Michel. “This is just another way in which the university has demonstrated their lack of commitment to trauma-informed and survivor-centered programs surrounding sexual violence.”
The university has been developing new reporting tools to meet the needs of students and faculty, Director of University News and Communications Meredith McGlone said in a statement.
“After several months of additional work, UW is now preparing to roll out a tool called i-Sight this spring, which will help us enhance our oversight of reports from students as well as employees,” she said.
They have also created a campus resource guide, updated the Title IX website, as well as streamlined outreach and support options, according to McGlone.
While administration appreciated the donor's offer to fund the Callisto system, they did not believe it was the best program for the university.
Still, the STIXA feels the university “missed an opportunity to streamline reporting mechanisms” by failing to install Callisto, the letter states.
“There is no excuse for an institution like UW- Madison...to not do what is in its power to support survivors,” Maderal and Dai Walech said. “Callisto, or a program like it, is not a leap, it is the next logical step. How long it takes for UW-Madison to take that next step is up to the administration. Students have made their voices heard and we hope the university will listen.”
Editor Update [March 29, 2019; 9:10 a.m.]: This article did not previously include quotes from UW-Madison Communications Director Meredith McGlone and did not feature the reasoning why the university passed on the software.
