She cited a University Health Services statistic from its survey two years ago in which 52 students said they were sexually assaulted that year. She also cited the two sexual assault cases that went before the Ad Board in that year.

“So wake up Harvard, what happened to the other 50?” Elfenbein said. “We’ve got 50 to 80 students [who committed sexual assault] walking around enjoying the perks of this campus... Harvard is failing its students.”

Lisa C. Lightbody ’03, a CASV member who also spoke at the rally, said the main objective of the rally was to mobilize the Faculty to overturn the change, which was made official last week when the full Faculty passed a revised Handbook for Students that included the new Ad Board policies.

“If we can’t get it to be overturned we would like it to be tabled until further discussion has taken place,” Lightbody said.

Lightbody also said that while the rally mostly focused on criticizing the administration for its sexual assault policy, it was also meant to “more publicly highlight” commitments Summers made in the past week both in private and in public to improve preventive education on sexual assault.

“That’s something that the people who run the freshmen orientation programs do but I’ve conveyed that I think it’s very important that we strengthen education in this area,” Summers said in an interview yesterday.

Summers first addressed sexual assault on campus at a study break in Dunster House last week. He has also met with CASV members and has another meeting scheduled with the student group next Tuesday.

“We just want to make sure that he follows through,” Lightbody said.

At next Tuesday’s Faculty meeting, Professor of the History of Science Katharine Park will propose the formation of a task force to reexamine the University’s sexual assault policy.

—Staff writer Anne K. Kofol can be reached at kofol@fas.harvard.edu.