With Radcliffe College on the way out and after two well-publicized campus rape cases in the last 18 months, a group of undergraduate women have begun asking Harvard to reassess a woman's place on campus.

These women, led by the Coalition Against Sexual Violence, have demanded better medical services for rape victims, more administrative attention to women's educational issues and more opportunities to foster community among Harvard women.

In particular, they have requested a roof of their own to go over offices and meeting space--a "women's center" like the ones found on all other Ivy campuses and at colleges across the country.

But problems with this plan arise from all sides. First, Harvard already has resources for women that are comparable to those of other universities--they are just not all found in one building.

Second, the administration has never been fond of creating "centers" for specific ethnic or gender groups. And in agreement with the College's identity-groups philosophy, many female students say they would not be comfortable being singled out in this way as a sub-community with special needs.

And so, though the coalition has already won some concessions on other fronts and will likely win more, a women's center as they envision it will certainly not be coming to Harvard in the near future.

Other Schools of Thought

This preliminary discussion leads coalition leaders to other schools for models of women's centers. The functions and resources of these centers are surprisingly similar across the country.

These centers boast substantial medical, educational and social programming and hired staff, in addition to part-time student workers.

An ideal women's center, coalition members say, is exemplified by the center at Duke University.

Founded in 1989 by a group of undergraduate women with concerns similar to the coalition's, the Duke center has its own building and a small full-time staff, in addition to part-time student workers.

On the personal health and safety front, the Duke Women's Center also houses the Office of Sexual Assault Support Services (SASS). SASS provides a full array of educational programs and support.

In addition, Duke's center has a program called Safe Haven. Open on the weekends, Safe Haven provides a place for women to "sober up in safety," wait inside for transportation and sleep over in times of crisis.

With seven staff members and a building of its own, the Stanford University Women's Center seeks "to improve women's lives on all levels and to enable women to achieve their fullest personal and educational potential." It, too, has been cited as a model by coalition members.

Though the Stanford center has no in-house clinic, its staff directs women to medical resources and are trained to respond in cases of sexual assault.