So, in the last blog we got into some background on Title IX and the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Collaborative Committee to address Sexual Misconduct.

They’d been working diligently on a report when new Title IX guidelines were issued by the Department of Education.

By this time, the Collaborative had already been divided into six committees: three student committees and three faculty committees. They were assigned to address the following three topics: prevention and education; intervention; and policies and procedures. Their goal was to provide guidance and recommendations to the Chancellor that would ensure a safe, transparent, and trauma-informed approach to responding to sexual misconduct.

Basically, the committees were tasked with addressing legal and societal issues we have struggled with a long time. No pressure, right?

As the report was being prepared, the Board of Regents and the Chancellor were receiving letters expressing concern about UNL’s policies from women’s organizations in Lincoln. Understanding the need for change, we let them know about the upcoming report and asked for their patience in addressing their concerns.

For those of us regents who had heard the young women speak in the public portion of the Board’s public meeting, we decided to take it a step further. Jim Pillen, Elizabeth O’Connor, Ronni Miller (a UNL student regent and Collaborative committee member) and I set up a zoom meeting to listen to hear their perspective.

With something this important, we wanted to do our utmost to get it right.

Before I continue, I want to say that I appreciate everyone – Collaborative members, advocates, our University of Nebraska family and the public alike – who helped to create this report. Without the courageous and thoughtful testimony, without diligent research, we would not be able to improve our systems to better protect against and respond to sexual misconduct.

After the Chair of the Collaborative, Dr. Susan Swearer, circulated a final draft to all members for approval, she submitted the final report to the Chancellor this fall.

There’s a lot to it, and I encourage you to read the full report here. It’s a Roadmap for creating and maintaining a caring campus community.

The committee agreed on 35 recommendations, and provided resources. I won’t get into all of them here, but the good news is that of those recommendations, 15 are already done and 15 more are in process.

A few examples of the changes being made:

• Creating a Sexual Misconduct Commission to oversee the applications of changes to meet with Chancellor on a regular basis and ensure accountability.
• Remove gendered language in policy
• Adopt affirmative consent policy
• Review timelines for investigation & adjudication
• Provide accommodation for disabilities
• Include an amnesty policy provision
• And others on training and trauma-informed Training

One recommendation I thought was a good start on educating the whole campus is: “Require a syllabus statement on sexual misconduct for every class.” We are also extending the university services and resources to issues that arise during university programs off campus and abroad.

So, what about the other five issues the committee raised?

This is where our world – and bureaucracy – get more complex. There are legal issues and Title IX complications that may make these impossible. However, we are examining all avenues to protect all our students.

After the report came out, we had a great conversation with the women from the Lincoln community. They liked the changes and offered their assistance in any of the education and training being implemented.

Here’s the bottom line: our work on this issue is not finished. We are on a journey together, an imperfect one, but one that holds safety and wellness as our highest priorities. It is a partnership that I believe brings the best to our students. It is a partnership that I hope brings out the best for all of us.

*Barbara’s thoughts as written by Kate based on weekly (fascinating) conversations.