sexual misconduct task force

Concordia University released the report of its task force on sexual misconduct and sexual violence on June 26. Training sessions, a step-by-step guide for filing complaints, an online hub and the implementation of a standing committee on sexual misconduct and sexual violence were recommended as key steps to moving forward.

Alan Shepard, Concordia University’s president launched the task force in January 2018, in the wake of allegations of sexual misconduct and sexual violence in the creative writing department. Its mandate is to consult the Concordia community about problems with the university’s policies and procedures concerning sexual misconduct and violence. To do so, the task force collected information and data through community conversations, surveys, and community members’ feedback.

To clarify Concordia’s Policy on Sexual Violence, the report recommended a wider definition of sexual violence and specific examples to include power imbalances and coercion. It also added that the discouragement of relationships between students and employees should be better emphasized in the Code of Rights and Responsibilities and Consensual Romantic or Sexual Relationships Guidelines.

A survey issued by the task force at the end of April was completed by over 1,500 community members, which was comprised of over 900 students and almost 600 faculty and staff members. Their level of familiarity with the current policies and resources available at Concordia was significantly weak, with an average rating of 2.1 out of 5. To address this lack of knowledge, the task force recommended that the university write a step-by-step guide for filing complaints. Lisa Ostiguy, the deputy provost and chairperson of the task force said they are “creating a mapping [of the processes]. If you experience this, here’s where you could go, here’s what they do, here’s what will happen when you get there, and here are your options when you get there.”

The step-by-step guide is expected to be complete by the fall semester. It will be a collaborative effort between all parties involved, such as the Sexual Assault Resource Centre (SARC), the Office of Rights and Responsibilities (ORR) and campus wellness and support services, among others. For instance, Jennifer Drummond, SARC’s coordinator, is responsible for outlining the centre’s processes and services in the guide.

A significant take away from the survey is that members of the Concordia community don’t know where to find help or how the processes used to file complaints work. The task force suggested an online hub, which will likely be linked to the Concordia website, to serve as a potential solution to this issue. According to Ostiguy, it will create a place where any relevant information can be found. The hub will also be constantly updated by the task force and the soon-to-be-established standing committee on sexual misconduct and sexual violence.

The task force has also placed training and education of the Concordia community as its top priority. Due to Bill 151, training will be continuous and mandatory, as is required in all post-secondary institutions. According to the report, the training will take multiple formats, including online and in person, and will be “sensitive to intersectional concerns” as well.

In the next two months, the task force will put together a standing committee mandated by Bill 151 to revise and implement the relevant policies and keep track of the university’s progress.

Graphic by ZeZe Le Lin

Concordia’s decision fulfills only one of the union’s requests for more transparency

The Concordia Student Union (CSU) will take over the process of recruiting undergraduate students for the new university task force on sexual misconduct and sexual violence, announced Graham Carr, the university’s provost and vice-president of academic affairs, on Feb. 2.

This decision comes one day after the student union held a press conference outlining their opposition to multiple procedures regarding the nomination process for the two undergraduate spots available on the task force.

The controversy began on Jan. 26, when Concordia president Alan Shepard released a statement outlining steps the university would be taking in the wake of allegations of sexual violence and misconduct against multiple faculty members in the creative writing program.

One of the steps was the creation of a task force that would review current policies and processes, as well as Bill 151, a piece of Quebec legislation requiring universities to take certain steps to address and prevent sexual violence.

It was later announced that four students (two graduate and two undergraduate) would be appointed to the task force. Despite claiming the university was looking for “a diverse group from across the university,” the call for applications specified that undergraduate applicants must have completed at least 30 credits and be in “good academic standing.”

On Feb. 1, the CSU held a press conference in their office on the seventh floor of the Hall building. During the conference, CSU student life coordinator Leyla Sutherland read from the union’s press release, claiming the task force procedures violated Quebec law by recruiting undergraduate students without the CSU’s involvement. She cited the “Act respecting the accreditation and financing of students’ associations,” a piece of provincial legislation that specifies student associations, such as the CSU, “may, alone, appoint students who […] are called upon to sit or participate as student representatives on various councils, committees or other bodies in the institution.”

“Beyond the cited legal concerns, this indifference in proper student representation shown by the university goes against both the spirit and letter of Bill 151,” said Sutherland. “It is imperative for students, and only students, to have a say as to who represents them.”

The press release also outlined a number of requests, including doubling the number of undergraduate students on the task force and ensuring representation from all faculties. Another request also asked that the requirement of good academic standing be removed.

Sophia Sahrane, the research and education coordinator for the student advocacy organization Association for the Voice of Education in Quebec (AVEQ), also spoke out against the task force’s academic requirements at the press conference.

“[The academic requirements] demonstrate a deep lack of both understanding and compassion for the reality of living through the trauma of sexual assault and having to become a survivor,” Sahrane said. “How do you maintain a good academic standing when you have just been sexually assaulted? When you have had your agency taken away from you […] when your abuser is your professor?”

Also present at the press conference was Caitlin Salvino, the chair of the Our Turn committee, a student-led initiative aimed at ending campus sexual violence. Salvino claimed it is not uncommon for universities to exclude student unions and the students they represent when addressing sexual violence.

“Students and student unions across the country have been locked out of task forces, committees and being able to advocate for policies that are actually survivor-centric,” Salvino said.

On Feb. 2, another email related to the task force was circulated to all students. In this email, Carr wrote that the university had decided to allow the CSU to oversee the recruitment process of undergraduate task force members. The same day, university spokesperson Mary-Jo Barr told The Concordian the university would accede to the CSU executive request “because [its] overriding goal is to finalize, as soon as possible, the membership of the task force so it can begin to work.”

Sutherland pointed out that, while the university’s quick response to co-operate is a positive sign, the university has not met the union’s additional demands.

“We are very glad that the university is handing this process over to us as we have been requesting,” Sutherland said. “It is absolutely essential that student representatives be chosen by students and not by the administration, which presents a clear conflict of interest […] We will continue to advocate for four undergraduate students and the removal of the good academic standing criteria.”