A week after the conclusion of the Dartmouth Summit on Sexual Assault, national experts and Dartmouth faculty and students interviewed spoke in generally positive terms about the event. Participants and national leaders in the field praised the College for the wide variety of expert attendees but also urged a continued focus on the dynamics of sexual assault, not just compliance with federal policies and regulations.
From its announcement to its completion last week, the College’s summit caught and held the eye of the national media. Reporting on July 15, Time Magazine quoted several speakers, including Representative Ann Kuster ’78 and Catherine Lhamon of the Department of Education’s office of Civil Rights, and noted that Dartmouth is “certainly talking” about the issue of sexual assault. In a longer piece, also published on July 15, Inside Higher Ed noted the summit’s focus both on federal regulations guiding schools in their handling of sexual crimes and on troubling cultural trends impacting college campuses. The summit was also covered by The Associated Press and The Christian Science Monitor, whose article was republished by Yahoo News.
Occidental College professor Caroline Heldman, who helped form Faculty Against Rape, a network of faculty members across the country who are working to combat sexual violence on college campuses, wrote in an email that the summit “certainly made a difference.”
“It’s a great start on what will be a long path to completing all of the best practices research we need to make effective reforms that interrupt broader rape culture, prevent rape before it happens and generate fair outcomes during adjudication,” she wrote.
Angela Exson, assistant dean of the Stanford University office of sexual assault and relationship abuse education and response, said that although she could not attend the summit, she plans to meet next week with Stanford community members who did attend the conference to hear their impressions. Speaking generally, she emphasized the importance of gathering national experts to discuss issues surrounding sexual assault on college campuses.
“Having been in this work for 15 years, this is really what we’ve been trying to do,” she said. “There are so many folks who have been doing this work, representing their respective fields and interests, so any time we can bring these people together it is absolutely helpful and essential.”
Melora Sundt, executive vice dean at the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education, said that while she did not attend the conference, she was skeptical about its outcomes from the media coverage she read. Reached via email because she was on vacation, Sundt wrote this media coverage indicates participants were focused primarily on compliance issues, the “typical” higher education response to sexual assault.
“If those characterizations are generally true, that’s predictable and disappointing,” Sundt wrote.
Sundt said that she has yet to hear the summit discussed in informal conversations.
Native American studies professor and summit participant Bruce Duthu said he has heard mixed reactions on campus. Some people felt it was meant primarily for representatives from other institutions, he said.
Outgoing Dean of the College Charlotte Johnson said the conference accomplished many of its stated objectives, which included gathering different institutions, involving national experts and establishing working groups to begin a more nuanced investigation into sexual assault’s more challenging aspect.
The conference’s working groups, Johnson said, will meet over the next six to eight months to create recommendations on best practices.
Exson noted that the list of speakers at the conference appeared comprehensive.
After the working groups develop their white papers, they will be presented at a second conference, Johnson said. This event will convene with the purpose of compiling recommendations and finalizing them for release. The organizers are still looking for a school to host the conference, Johnson noted, adding that several have already approached her indicating interest.
“The idea is to make sure we’re all at the table, at the same time, looking at the same issues,” she said.
Josh Koenig contributed reporting.
