A full PDF version of this letter, including the action items, can be found by clicking this link. ​

In a message released by the Title IX office on June 29th, it was acknowledged that the recent outpouring of stories shared by the Do Better Campaign regarding gender violence on Loyola University of Maryland’s campus had been noticed and that Loyola is willing to publicly voice their commitment to stopping gender violence. Also included within the letter was a list of general areas of improvement that the administration will be reviewing. Initial communications with students to establish that we are heard is an important first step. What this message fails to do, however, is put the real problem into words: that college campuses— Loyola in particular— have broken cultures perpetuated by broken social environments and administrative processes that make cases of gender violence hard for survivors to come forward. Policies and training that operate only on an individual-case basis are ineffective if the culture surrounding them does not encourage them in practice. Evidence of this phenomena intersects strongly with racial bias, something the University has also had to confront — administrative solutions are ineffective if they don’t address the institutional and systemic facets that exacerbate violence, discrimination, and bigotry. 

It is our hope that in implementing the following changes, gathered through collaboration with many student and alumni voices, Loyola will be able to better support survivors, protect its students, and create an environment that allows everyone to feel safe. Father Linnane, We are publicly challenging you - and Loyola - to do better. 

We request the following action items:

• We request that when a survivor shares their story, validation be the first response. The Loyola University Maryland administration and Campus Safety have allegedly both used victim-blaming language while speaking to survivors and all students on campus. Students should continue to be educated on safe practices in regards to alcohol, but blame should never be deflected onto victims for drinking. The burden of safety should not be placed solely on survivors; prevention efforts and punishing perpetrators should be the focus.
• We request that The Counseling Center be required to meet with, listen to and provide counseling to survivors along ANY timeline rather than being restricted to 8 weeks.
• We request that every time an incident of sexual assault is reported to the Title IX office, an alert of that report is sent to the community. Anonymity should be maintained and be of utmost importance, and absolutely no details about the incident should be included; what should be reiterated, though, is due to an incident, students should remain vigilant and alert, just as they would for other crimes, and also be reminded to be respectful of the personal boundaries of others. Also to be included is how to access applicable resources such as Campus Police and the Title IX office. This is not intended to publicize every case of gender violence that occurs, but rather intended to treat sexual assault as the malicious, violent, and reprehensible crime that it is. The Clery Act requires transparency concerning crime occurrences and statistics on and around campus; students should be made aware of their rights concerning the Act and how the school meets those obligations.
• We request Loyola University Maryland to invest in trauma-informed training for Campus Safety, faculty, staff, and students. Empathy building exercises and other trauma-informed training should be used in addition to bystander intervention training during all four years of education. 
• We request that Loyola University Maryland invest larger amounts of funds into expanding the crisis management team and confidential resources for survivors on our campus. We also request more funds for sexual health resources on Loyola’s campus (STI testing, STD testing & Rape kits).
• We request the expansion of advocate-oriented resources such as the Women’s Center. The Women’s Center should have more staff trained to advocate for and validate survivors and a gender inclusive environment of the same nature should also be available and known. Students should also be aware that reaching out to advocates is a legitimate first step.
• We request that Campus Safety be more representative of the community it serves. We request they hire more officers of color, more female officers, and more officers with experience working with survivors of trauma. We request that Campus Safety hire more staff with backgrounds in social work rather than those with formal police training. 
• We request that students under Title IX investigation be temporarily suspended from their roles in campus organizations during the course of the investigation and appeal process. If found responsible, we are requesting that perpetrators are permanently suspended from leadership roles in any campus organizations. This includes athletics, ROTC, and other group affiliations. 
• We request that student leaders of both organizations and athletics should communicate allegations of misconduct to the administration. If a perpetrator is known to student leaders, they should also be known to Title IX. 
• We request more engagement from the Athletic programs surrounding gender violence. Many students have raised concerns about the amount of gender violence happening within the Athletic organizations. We do not wish to demonize these organizations, but to provide them with training and support to tackle these issues. These organizations have many survivors who are members and would benefit from creating task forces that work to tackle and dismantle gender violence and from partnering with survivor-based organizations. 
• Previously, Title IX advised that schools follow a 60-day timeline for investigations. The new list of Title IX rules eliminates this guideline, but we urge Loyola to commit to a reasonable timeline for investigations. Having a short timeline is essential for ensuring victims aren’t subjected to extended periods of stress and trauma in addition to what they are already experiencing. The new Title IX rules are a blatant rollback of protections for victims and shift protections to the accused through other concerning changes such as allowing a party of the accused to cross-examine victims. We firmly believe Loyola can and has to go above and beyond the bare minimum indicated by Title IX regulations.
• We request that Loyola University Maryland invest larger amounts of money and effort into Gender Violence Prevention and Education. These funds can be used to facilitate training with faculty, staff, and students on everything from sexual education to trauma-informed empathy-building exercises. 
• We request a conversation on power, privilege, and oppression facilitated by an expert familiar with navigating tough questions on these topics relating to gender violence. Several people in the community have described freshman orientation as problematic, and that must be addressed. We also ask for a greater conversation to take place surrounding consent and gender violence in smaller groups during orientation, rather than just one large community presentation with the main focus being an internet video.
• We request programmatic and educational efforts be implemented to recognize and address the role that hegemonic (i.e, power-over, "toxic") masculinity plays in rape culture. Ending gender violence on campus requires fundamental change in men and male social circles. This can be done through educational programs confronting these issues and exploring healthy forms of masculinity. Young men must be taught how to unlearn patriarchy and misogyny and to be actively involved in breaking the cycle of rape culture. It is both unjust and unrealistic to expect gender violence on campus to end if a critical mass of Loyola men are not actively involved in doing so.
• We request Loyola University Maryland provide greater academic support for survivors. Too many stories shared have included survivors who do not feel academically supported, even when they report to Title IX. This includes anything from extensions and speaking to professors to removing perpetrators from classes. 
• We request advocates be made available to survivors who choose to report sexual violence, so that they have the option to not be alone when they navigate a system and process that can dismiss them and invalidate their experience.
• We request that more funding and resources be devoted to red-zone awareness programming at the beginning of each academic year. So many of these stories occurred during a student’s first semester or first year at Loyola University Maryland. This needs to be actively discussed during freshman orientation. 
• We request that Loyola University Maryland go above the current and upcoming Title IX guidelines. Under the new rules, campuses are no longer required to investigate misconduct that occurs off campus. This is problematic, as Loyola students experience gender violence at bars, off-campus housing, and other locations. Students that engage in misconduct against another student should be held responsible by their school no matter where it occurs. The new rules also allow schools to opt out of Title IX requirements if they claim religious exemption; the University’s religious affiliation should not be used as an excuse to deny protection to students. The Department of Education also allows the University to create its own definition of consent; we urge Loyola to define consent as something that can only be given as a “Yes” that is provided in explicit, sober, and informed circumstances in a continuous manner. Anything else is not proper consent. In general, we urge Loyola to refuse to regress their protections in the same manner that the DOE has. 
• We request that these changes be made in consultation with experts in trauma-informed care and prevention and education on our campus.
• We request you, along with other faculty, staff, and administrators, to take the time to read the stories posted by the Do Better Campaign if you have not already done so. 
• We request a meeting with you, in person if possible, where we can begin facilitating a conversation about these demands, along with the ongoing rape culture in our Loyola community.