Sexual Misconduct Prevention Program Student Advisory Committee

What is the Student Advisory Committee?

The Sexual Misconduct Prevention Program (SMPP) Student Advisory Committee (SAC) is a group made up of students and student-facing staff and faculty committed to the ongoing improvement of sexual misconduct prevention and response efforts on the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus. University employees from student-facing units whose services focus on or intersect with sexual misconduct prevention and response participate on the committee on a long-term basis.

Committee members are expected to:

  • Attend monthly committee/working group meetings;
  • Provide input on priorities related to sexual misconduct prevention and response; 
  • Bring their perspectives about strengths, opportunities, and needs related to current campus sexual misconduct prevention and response efforts;
  • Serve on one of three working groups focused on a specific area (more information below); 
  • Support efforts to gather additional student perspectives where needed; and
  • Draft and put forth recommendations to the Sexual Misconduct Prevention Program. 

The Student Advisory Committee (SAC) meets quarterly throughout the school year (likely September, November, February, and April; although specific meeting dates will be determined based on the committee’s availability).  During meetings, the committee will discuss priorities, get updates on the work happening within each working group, review and make decisions about working group recommendations, and put forth recommendations. Recommendations stemming from this committee’s work will be presented, as needed, for consideration to the SMPP Executive Oversight Committee. The Student Advisory Committee will collaborate with appropriate units for consideration/implementation of recommendations.

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Sexual Misconduct Prevention among Undergraduate Students Working Group

This working group will focus on developing, implementing, and evaluating primary prevention strategies to reduce sexual misconduct among undergraduate students, including both prevention programming and policy, systems, and environmental strategies. The efforts of this working group may include but are not limited to:

  • the online prevention course required of incoming undergraduate students;
  • additional mandatory in-person prevention programming for first-year undergraduate students;
  • additional required programming for second-, and third-year students;
  • continued support of tailored prevention programs within high-risk populations (i.e. Athletes Supporting Advocacy and Prevention within Athletics; Prevention Advocates within Fraternity and Sorority Life; Prevention efforts within the LGBTQIA+ community)
  • developing and/or expanding existing educational programming that can be tailored for specific high-risk populations (e.g. BIPOC students, international students, students with disabilities) and a plan for delivering it consistently each year; and
  • other prevention initiatives deemed important among undergraduate students and their support staff.

The professional staff member supporting this working group will be Alicia Leizinger, SMPP Program Manager. 

Sexual Misconduct Prevention among Graduate and Professional Students Working Group

This working group will focus on developing, implementing, and evaluating primary prevention strategies to reduce sexual misconduct among graduate and professional students, including both prevention programming and policy, systems, and environmental strategies. The efforts of this working group may include but are not limited to:

  • the online prevention course required of incoming graduate and professional students;
  • efforts to include prevention messaging into college-specific orientation programs;
  • consideration of strategies outlined in the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine 2018 Sexual Harassment of Women Report including:
    • the diffusion of hierarchical and dependent relationship between trainees and faculty
    • the creation of diverse, inclusive, and respectful environments
    • the increased demonstration of transparency and accountability among leadership; and
  • other prevention initiatives deemed important among graduate and professional students and their support staff.

The professional staff member supporting this working group will be Maggie Campe, SMPP Director. 

Sexual Misconduct Support and Response Working Group

This working group will focus on the University’s systems to support all students - undergraduate, graduate, and professional - who have experienced sexual misconduct. The efforts of this working group may include but are not limited to:

  • Strategies that improve community members’ ability to respond supportively to a disclosure;
  • Efforts to identify and remove barriers for students to access formal support services; 
  • Processes to ensure trauma-informed & culturally-responsive care;
  • Identify barriers to reporting and recommendations for the provision of systems of accountability that best meet the needs of our community; and
  • Support the provision of consistent, easy to understand language, and accurate information on websites and marketing materials from University resources that engage in sexual misconduct response.

The professional staff member supporting this working group will be Chloe Vraney, The Aurora Center Associate Director.