Occidental College Mostly Cleared In Federal Sexual Assault Investigation

Article here. Excerpt:

'A federal investigation found that, contrary to complaints from current and former students, Occidental College did not mishandle cases of sexual assault, except for delays in several cases during the 2012-13 school year.

But the report from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights did find that the campus climate may be leading some students not to report sexual assaults they experience.

Occidental’s investigation started in 2013, at the beginning of a wave of activism around campus rape. The private liberal arts college in Los Angeles entered into a voluntary resolution this week with the Education Department to measure the climate on campus as it relates to sexual violence and to improve the speed with which the college investigates assault reports. The agreement ends the investigation, allowing the government to release its findings.

As more and more universities are put on notice about how they handle sexual assault, the results of investigations such as this can provide insight into what federal officials expect from institutions.'