With spring comes warmer weather and an opportunity to check for another type of climate change at UNM.
The Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO) is once again conducting a campus climate survey to assess the student population’s exposure to the risk of sexual misconduct as well as their knowledge of the university’s policies and support resources.
This year, UNM is partnering with two dozen other universities around the nation in a confidential web-based survey of undergraduate students ages 18-24. The survey called McBEE – Multi-College Bystander Efficacy Evaluation - is an abbreviated questionnaire modeled after the 2015 AAU campus climate survey, and includes measures of sexual and partner violence for both victimization and perpetration. The study is being conducted by the University of Kentucky with support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“UNM is in a unique place to provide invaluable data related to rates of sexual misconduct and how beliefs and attitudes towards sexual misconduct have changed and continue to change with the next generation.” – Heather Cowan, UNM Title IX Coordinator.
CAMPUS CLIMATE SURVEY
Who: Undergraduate students between the ages of 18 and 24What: McBEE – Multi-College Bystander Efficacy Evaluation, a campus climate survey facilitated by the Office of Equal Opportunity
When: Friday, April 21 through Friday, May 5, 2017 (online survey should take about 15 minutes).
More info: UNM’s Office of Equal Opportunity.
Branch campuses take part in National Campus Climate Survey
The University of New Mexico’s four branches around the state – Gallup, Taos, Los Alamos and Valencia County – will be taking part in their first campus climate surveys this spring. UNM’s Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO) is conducting a National Campus Climate Survey (NCCS), which is similar to the one completed on main campus last April, but with slight modifications to fit smaller campuses.
“So often, issues of sexual misconduct are focused on large campus communities or urban areas, and there isn’t a lot of research available on small campuses with closer knit communities,” said Heather Cowan, UNM Title IX Coordinator for OEO. “Each of our branch campuses has unique populations so this data will be invaluable in helping inform our prevention and policy efforts for them.”
Data collection will run from April 19 – May 10 at each of the branches. Jayme McMahon, director of Student Affairs at the UNM-Gallup, emphasized that the NCCS surveys will complement The Grey Area training initiative which is now underway at the branches as well as on main campus.
”Survey results will help make the trainings successful by giving us a clear understanding of students’ perceptions of sexual violence and their knowledge of what resources are available to them,” said McMahon.
University leaders stressed that input from the students is essential in order to create programs that meet their needs. To encourage participation, students who take part in the NCSS have the opportunity to be selected for $50 Amazon gift cards, Lobo merchandise and other prizes.
Dr. Theresa Cruz, deputy director of UNM’s Prevention Research Center, will serve as the faculty liaison for this research study. “We’re fortunate to be part of this collaborative effort to better understand the best strategies for preventing sexual violence on college campuses,” Cruz said. “The results of this survey will not only provide information about prevention efforts at UNM, but will also determine which types of programs are most effective across the country.”
UNM’s Title IX Coordinator Heather Cowan said it is a great opportunity for UNM to take part in a national study on an important, yet sensitive topic. “UNM is in a unique place to provide invaluable data related to rates of sexual misconduct and how beliefs and attitudes towards sexual misconduct have changed and continue to change with the next generation,” she said.
She added that it will also be beneficial for UNM to be able to compare its results to those of the other universities in the survey. “Through our participation, we hope to answer questions such as: How are UNM’s efforts benchmarked against other universities? What are the best practices in prevention? How can we change our culture to one of mutual respect and communication?”
As part of the agreement with the Department of Justice, UNM pledged to conduct annual campus climate surveys. Participation in the McBEE survey meets that requirement and is at no cost to UNM, a savings of about $36,000 over conducting independent surveys for three years.
University officials emphasize that student input is essential and OEO is offering prizes as incentives to complete the survey. Students who take part have the opportunity to be selected for $50 Amazon gift cards, Lobo merchandise and other prizes.
“We are thankful for each student who takes the survey because we cannot make programs that work for students without input from students,” Cruz said.
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