Reaction to assault disclosure makes huge impact
It has happened more times than Nancy Worcester can remember.
A female student will approach the associate professor of women’s studies after a class, or during office hours, to ask for an extension on a term paper or to postpone an exam.
The reason: A recent sexual assault has gotten in the way of academics and the student needs more time to prepare.
The request is always granted. Depending on the situation, Worcester — or a member of her teaching team — also asks if the student needs help connecting with campus and community resources for sexual assault survivors.
“Above all, that student needs to know that they’re going to have all of the support they need,” she says, noting that she’s also worked with students who have disclosed domestic violence, incest or past sexual abuse. “At that moment, academics isn’t the first priority.”
Her own expertise and the topics of her courses — women, their bodies and health — makes it more likely that a student would feel comfortable approaching her about a rape. However, university officials say similar situations take place with professors, teaching assistants and academic staff every semester, all across campus.
The reaction to such a disclosure can make a huge impact, not only in giving academic help, but also in making the difference between putting a student in touch with crucial resources or forcing her to retreat into isolation.
Dealing with a student who needs help as a result of an assault involves common sense and basic human compassion, says Yolanda Garza, assistant dean in the Dean of Students office. Academics is typically an area in which a survivor will need extra time or help when coping with the aftermath of an attack.
Most survivors would prefer extensions or consideration on assignments, instead of dropping classes or taking incompletes, which often feels like another way of being victimized by their attacker, she says.
If a survivor comes to the dean’s office for assistance after an assault, Garza can coordinate resources. That process might also include writing a letter to faculty members explaining the situation and asking for assistance. However, a survivor always maintains control over how the outcome of her attack is handled.
“I don’t believe we can call ourselves good teachers without being able to address an issue that’s getting in the way of academics. That’s part of our role in the university. And you don’t have to be an expert on sexual assault to play an important role in a student’s life.”
— Nancy Worcester
If approached directly, faculty and staff members should listen without judging or pressing for details and validate the student. Or, if it becomes clear that a student is struggling in class, approaching the student with a simple “Are you doing OK?” or “How can I help?” is often enough to start the conversation.
All necessary academic support should be provided, and the faculty or staff member should use the opportunity to ask if the student needs information about resources, such as the dean’s office, Rape Crisis Center or University Health Services, she says. A faculty or staff member should never use guilt or pressure to convince the survivor to report the assault to police.
“The thing you have to remember is that everyone is going to be different and that there isn’t a magical timeline on how someone heals,” she says. “A student is going to have up days and down days.”
One common mistake for faculty and staff is to avoid such conversations, assuming that they’ll be forced into becoming the primary caregiver or support person for the student, says Lori Henn, relationship violence prevention coordinator with University Health Services. That isn’t the case.
“Essentially, all you need to do is make a good referral and follow up one time without prying,” she says.
An acquaintance sexually assaulted Heather Logghe, a UW–Madison senior, during the second semester of her freshman year. The attack had major academic consequences, and Logghe ended up withdrawing from the university for a time before returning to complete her degree. Logghe now works as educational outreach coordinator for Promoting Awareness Victim Empowerment and Men Making a Difference.
In numerous instances before she left school and after she returned, Logghe approached her professors to ask for extensions and generally make them aware of her situation. In nearly all cases, she was warmly received and granted the consideration she needed, she says. In once instance, a professor even gave her a greeting card. The kindness from her professors has made a tremendous difference in her academic career and healing process, she says.
“A lot of people have the idea that nobody cares on a campus of 40,000,” Logghe says, noting that she believes professors and teaching assistants are willing and able to help sexual assault survivors, but they just need a little more information on how to react.
“That couldn’t be farther from the truth.”