A conceptual framework for assessing campus climate regarding sexual assault in higher education settings

Alarmingly high rates of sexual violence on college and university campuses have prompted calls for public health responses that both prevent sexual assault and better support its victims. Pending legislation will require colleges and universities receiving federal funds to conduct assessments of campus climate regarding sexual assault using student surveys. However, there is little guidance available to researchers and university staff about how to design a climate survey or conduct a more comprehensive climate assessment. In 2014-2015, the White House Task Force to Protect Students from Sexual Assault asked the Center on Violence Against Women and Children at Rutgers University School of Social Work to pilot a campus climate survey. Investigators developed an iterative campus climate assessment process that is informed by research and has the student survey as its centerpiece. The survey informs and is informed by each step in the recursive, mixed-method assessment process, yielding rich data about student experiences, attitudes, and beliefs and establishing a roadmap for data-driven quality improvement. Investigators will present the conceptual framework underpinning the campus climate assessment process, share lessons learned and recommendations for colleges and universities conducting climate assessment, and examine preliminary results of the student survey conducted in Fall 2014 at Rutgers University-New Brunswick.