CASV member Lisa C. Lightbody ’03 cited the Ellison committee—which originally recommended that the Ad Board require corroborating evidence at the outset of a sexual assault investigation—as a previous example of insufficient student involvement in College policy formation.
Kutcher said he would like to see five students on the committee, including a representative chosen by the Undergraduate Council.
Yet despite these concerns, CASV members said they look forward to working with the committee’s chair.
Leaning studies problems of international human rights and humanitarian law, humanitarian crises and medical ethics in disasters and emergencies at HSPH. She is also an attending physician in the emergency medical department at Brigham and Women’s Hospital.
Park said Leaning was chosen as chair because of her work in international health, especially involving women and violence.
“She’s got a lot of understanding of how you deal with difficult and painful and contentious issues,” Park said.
Kutcher said Leaning told CASV members at the meeting that she wants the committee to try to define what constitutes sexual assault.
“There are laws that describe what sexual assault is,” Kutcher said. “If you’re concerned with preventing sexual assault... in no sense would it be appropriate to solicit people’s opinions on a consensus definition.”
Lightbody said she is disappointed that more experts in the field of sexual assault prevention will not serve on the committee.
“We’re confused as to why they don’t necessarily want only experts or the most trained in this field on the committee,” Lightbody said. “It seemed like they were focusing on [Faculty] members who weren’t interested in this topic or trained in it.”
But Park said the committee may include members of University Health Services and the Bureau of Study Council.
Levit-Shore said the committee’s recommendations will not be legitimate unless its members do not consult with local organizations like the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center and Jane Doe.
“If the committee doesn’t use these valuable resources that are in the area, that will cast a shadow over the committee’s findings,” Levit-Shore said.
Lightbody said CASV members will meet tomorrow to decide how to approach the committee.
“I have strong hope that [it] will do the right thing and will really make a significant increase in education and services and will extend their mandate to the Ad Board,” Levit-Shore said. “But Coalition is not going anywhere.”
—Staff writer Anne K. Kofol can be reached at kofol@fas.harvard.edu.