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creating a better
learning environment
What can colleges and universities do
to assist women like Susan?
They can attend to her emergency and
longer-term housing needs by:
- reserving dormitory space in all-women residences for women
and children who need emergency shelter.
- supporting and working closely with transition homes,
shelters, and sexual centres in the community.
- developing victim-centred housing policies to address
violence perpetrated by men in co-ed and married/co-habiting student
residences.
They can address medical and emotional
needs by:
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providing on-campus health services.
-
ensuring that student counselling staff know about violence
against women and are accessible.
-
developing standards and protocols for appropriate and
complete documentation of injuries for possible use in future legal
proceedings.
-
working with and making referrals to community rape crisis
centres and shelters.
- supporting on-campus, student driven services such as
women's centres.
They can ensure access to legal services
by:
- establishing a legal aid clinic in conjunction with a local
law school or feminist lawyers and developing a lawyer referral service.
They can ensure student services include:
They can create a violence-free,
woman-positive campus by:
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conducting personal safety audits of campus buildings and
grounds, and addressing features which pose safety risks to women.
-
ensuring safe access to public transportation.
-
amending policies on attendance, course load, extensions,
waiving of fees, standing, medical leave, dismissals, re-admission, any of
which may disproportionately disadvantage women who are living with the threat
of violence.
-
making financial assistance available to both full-and
part-time students.
- developing policies and procedures to address and prevent
sexual harassment and violence against women by students and staff.
Paula Pasquali |