A Shift Worth Making

Is There a Smarter Way to Think About Sexual Assault on Campus? by Jia Tolentino
The New Yorker, February 12, 2018

What do Schools Teach About Sexual Harassment? by Stephen Sawchuck
Education Week, January 26, 2018

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At Columbia University, Jennifer Hirsch and Claude Ann Mellins (professors in anthropology and clinical psychology respectively) are studying sexual assault socio-ecologically: as a matter of how people act within a particular environment. Their extensive project is called SHIFT (Sexual Health Initiative to Foster Transformation), and through it they are looking to “transform how people think about the problem” and “nudge students toward responsible behavior on a collective scale.” Hirsch and Mellins believe that small changes to college culture could change how students interact, revealing a new holistic approach to sexual assault wherein it is “possible to protect potential victims and potential perpetrators simultaneously.” Conducting participant observations, one-on-one interviews, and a far-reaching survey about college life, Hirsch and Mellins have revealed that sexual assault is often portrayed as “lurid and dark and complex,” while experiences are often “obvious and ordinary”— one of many complexities surrounding this problem. SHIFT invites an emphasis on teaching sexual citizenship, along with measures to create a less stressful, less hard-drinking, more respectful environment on college campuses. As K-12 educators, we have also found ourselves called to investigate longstanding curricula and pedagogies related to sexual education and health. Steven Sawchuck’s “What do Schools Teach About Sexual Harassment” taps teachers to be the proverbial frontline in educating future generations about consent, healthy relationships, and how to prevent sexual violence. Sawchuck cites #teachthem, a campaign from the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States. It is aimed at catalyzing state governments to fund and support comprehensive sex education, underlining the responsibility teachers have to address the difficult issues impacting their students and society at-large. Hopefully, as projects like SHIFT transform college campuses for the better, K-12 educators can help prepare students to engage in safe, healthy relationships throughout their lives.