Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro on Thursday announced a campus safety initiative geared toward preventing drug and alcohol abuse, mental health and sexual assault at colleges and universities across the state.
The effort will come in the form of community-based roundtables at several colleges and universities in the state.
And when it comes to campus safety, it appears that the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford is ahead of the game, Pitt-Bradford spokeswoman Pat Frantz Cercone said.
“We take these topics very seriously on our campus and have developed educational programming throughout the academic year to make sure our students have the information they need to help them make good decisions and act appropriately to protect themselves and others,” she said.
State officials reported that 11 percent of students at colleges experience rape or sexual assault, including 23 percent of female students. Alcohol abuse impacts campus sexual assault, with nearly 70 percent of sexual assaults involving an intoxicated perpetrator and 43 percent involving an intoxicated victim.
A total of 1,700 college students die every year from alcohol-related injuries, the state pointed out.
In 2016, a total of 862 Pennsylvanians between the ages of 15 and 24 died from drug overdoses. One in five young adults also experience a mental health condition.
“To address one problem, we have to address them all as one community,” Shapiro said. “We want to reduce the stigma for victims and survivors: it’s not your fault, and we’re here to support you and get the help you need.”
After the roundtables are held, the state attorney general’s office will compile and assess the ideas discussed and brought up and distribute the results to participants.
In the meantime, at Pitt-Bradford, several campus safety events are held each semester, beginning with orientation during the summer. New students also complete a two-hour online tutorial called “Campus Clarity: Think About It” as well as a one-hour Bystander Intervention program.
“However, it’s important to note that all of these are ongoing and existing endeavors. None of these trainings or sessions is the result of any recent initiatives or legislation,” Cercone said. “For example, four years ago, we created a Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Committee, which has members from various officers on campus. The purpose of the committee is to plan and coordinate our programming and develop communication campaigns to ensure that our students have the information they need to stay safe and help keep others safe.”
