Perhaps the biggest affront of all is the lack of publicly represented survivors. We are in touch with a large number of alumnae who were victims, many of whom stand ready to serve on the task force as the public voice of survivors.

We applaud the trifold focus in the task force charge on prevention, after-care, and legal remedies, with particular emphasis on the first two. We are encouraged that despite the complexities inherent in the relationship between alcohol abuse and sexual misconduct, the task force will not shy away from examining it. With at least a 50 percent and some studies say closer to 90 percent coincidence of alcohol and sexual abuses, this quagmire is not one to circumnavigate. We trust that victim blaming will be studiously avoided.

Concerning outcomes, the charge includes the verbs “question,” “reflect,” “report,” and “recommend.” We suggest it go one step further and include the word “present.” With widespread attention currently directed at the crisis of on-campus sexual violence spurred by President Barack Obama’s recent establishment of a national task force on the issue, we are at a unique place in history where Harvard can make a difference.

Pride in our alma mater would be somewhat restored if Harvard could take the lead in sharing what the task force learns with the rest of the nation. We suggest a concluding open conference at which the task force’s recommendations are shared with the wider academic community. What better time than April—Sexual Assault Awareness Month—2015, precisely a year after the Crimson’s publication of Dear Harvard: You Win?

Last, but not least: Anonymous, our hearts are with you. Too many of us identify with you all too well. We virtually hold you in our arms, and are deeply sorry that our Harvard failed you on so many levels.

There were several things that made my class, the Class of 1980, and those immediately surrounding it, very special. We arrived at Harvard during a decade that witnessed a sea shift in the status of women in America and at Harvard. We were among the small number of classes to receive a Harvard-Radcliffe diploma, among the first to live in co-educational housing, to share Lamont, and to participate equally in varsity athletics. I was one of the first students privileged to work at the Schlesinger Library of the History of American Women, and my roommate Laura E. Schanberg ’80 was the first female sports editor at the Crimson. But we also confronted sexism at every turn. Although we took pride in Harvard’s integration of women and men, we hoped future women undergraduates would have an easier time being women at the College than we did. After reading last week’s stories and meeting with undergraduates, I’m aware that the more things change, the more things stay the same.

Alumni and alumnae have the power to hold the administration to high standards of transparency, gender equity, and inclusivity in this critical work. If we do, we have a much better chance of achieving the Harvard my classmates and I believed the integration of women into one of the most influential old boys’ clubs in the world could bring.

Lisa E. Paige ’80, is the president of The Alumnae Network for Harvard Women, a Shared Interest Group in the process of planning a survivor support event, entitled “Surviving Silence”, on May 29, details of which along with additional information will be posted at www.harvardwomen.net.