Two campus-wide emails were sent out Oct. 20 informing the Oswego State community of “troubling reports” of sexual assault.

The first email, sent in the morning, said “troubling reports of non-consensual sex” had been made to the Title IX office. The correction email came in the evening and was identical to the first, but identified the incidents as “sexual assault.”

“We used a phrase that I wish we hadn’t used,” said Oswego State President Deborah Stanley, who signed the emails. “We were not aware of how much charge and impact would be around that phrase.”

After receiving feedback from students during the day, Stanley said her office had to make a “value judgement” to decide whether to send out a correction.

“Do I send out a correction so that people are not offended and because I want to get it right?” Stanley said. “Or do I not send out a correction because it again puts sexual assault in the consciousness of the campus and people feel triggered by that?”

Stanley said the email notification was sent out because there was a lot of “chatter” on campus about sexual assaults.

“I said at the town hall meeting that we are going to try to get better communication to the campus and try to make it closer to events,” Stanley said. “We felt it had reached a place where we could make a minor communication to the campus.”

The victims who made reports of sexual assaults were not alerted before the email was sent to the campus, but Stanley said she felt her office was “acting in a responsible way.”

In 2015, 13 rapes were reported at Oswego State, according to the college’s Annual Security and Fire Safety Report in compliance with the Clery Act. Of these, three were reported to the police by the victim.

The recent assaults have not been reported to the police at this point. Stanley said reporting to the police as well as going through Title IX can be beneficial but difficult.

“If there is a likelihood of a crime having been reported, I wish it would go through [the police],” Stanley said. “I also wish that process were more humane.”

Stanley said she has faith in Oswego State’s University Police to handle these situations.

“They get [Services to Aid Families] involved right away, they get a Title IX officer involved right away, they really make sure the victim is being protected throughout this as well,” Stanley said.

Victims of sexual assault can choose to go through the judicial process, sue civilly for damages or go through University Police, the Title IX Office, SAF and several other resources.

“If a student chooses to bring a report to the police, the student can still access resources and support from the college,” Stanley’s chief of staff Kristi Eck said.

Though the reports are still being investigated, Stanley said she thought it was important to let students know what was going on.

“It was a complex set of events that we were trying to make sense of and trying to make sure that we were being responsible as far as the campus was concerned,” Stanley said.

Oswego State is continuing to grapple with the question of how to notify students of sexual assaults that occur on campus.

“We are balancing sensitive information, in the case of the affected individuals, with that of the campus’ community and their need to know,” Wayne Westervelt, Oswego State’s chief communication officer said.

The college is looking at what other schools, SUNY-wide and nationally, do to notify their campus communities of incidents of sexual violence. Stanley said some campuses put out communication for “almost every report.”

“That’s an awful lot of information and it’s kind of deadening to the senses to a certain extent,” Stanley said.

SUNY Cortland’s Title IX coordinator, Nanette Pasquarello, said SUNY Cortland sends out a “timely warning” email to the campus when they receive a report that constitutes a Clery Act violation.

These emails include whether the incident happened in a residence hall, but not which one. They also state whether an arrest was made and whether the accused was a stranger or not. Pasquarello said the college is careful to protect victims’ identities.

SUNY Cortland sometimes posts information about sexual assaults in residence halls, especially when the perpetrator is unidentified and has not been apprehended. After one annual climate study, the college received feedback that students wanted their warning emails to be more proactive. Pasquarello said SUNY Cortland has since changed their emails to include information about resources for students.

Oswego State is planning to conduct a climate study as well, Westervelt said. The climate study will get students involved in the process of what and how sexual assault reports are communicated.

Stanley said the college’s first priority is the safety and security of the campus. They are also concerned with helping students feel safe and empowering survivors of sexual assault.

“We want to change victims’ voices and make them more powerful so the result that’s realized is one that the victim, the person who has been injured, can really structure for themselves,” Stanley said.