UCLA student leaders worried about new sexual assault policies

Some student leaders have voiced concerns about recent changes to the Student Code of Conduct, including a portion of the code that outlines how the university handles sexual assaults.

The Office of the Dean of Students implemented several updates to the code on Friday, as part of a routine revision process. Changes to the code are based on feedback from students and administrators, as well as state and federal policies, said Debra Geller, executive director of community standards in the Office of the Dean of Students.

The additions to the code keep it compliant with guidelines in the Campus Sexual Violence Elimination Act, a new law that defines a university’s procedures for sexually-based violence, including assault and stalking.

Administrators implemented changes that further define the roles of campus advocates and support persons. Campus advocates are trained campus officials who counsel students involved in a disciplinary hearing, while support persons are usually friends, family members or attorneys who provide a support system to students in the hearing.

The updated code acknowledges the role of alcohol during sexual assaults.

The changes also call for people involved with sexual assault hearings to not take into account the sexual history of the people involved.

Savannah Badalich, the Undergraduate Students Association Council Student Wellness commissioner, said she thinks that the administration has made huge strides in updating the code, specifically by including alcohol’s role in consent and not looking into the sexual history of the people involved in a hearing.

Still, one of her main concerns is the code’s definition of “effective consent,” which did not change in this year’s update.

As of now, the Code of Conduct defines “effective consent” as “words or actions that show a knowing agreement to engage in mutually agreed-upon sexual activity.”

Badalich said she thinks the phrase makes the nature of consent ambiguous and does not want victims of sexual assault to feel like they are to blame for their attack.

“(The change) undermines the progress of the administration,” Badalich said.

Badalich said she has talked to administrators about the phrasing of “effective consent” since the initial drafts of the code, and was hoping that it would be changed.

She said she is also concerned about the changes to the number of people allowed in a sexual assault hearing. Before the revisions were implemented, both students involved in a hearing could have up to three people for support in addition to a trained campus advocate. Now, both students can only have two support persons and one campus advocate in the room.

Cody Trojan, the vice president of academic affairs for the Graduate Students Association, voiced concerns to the Graduate Council on Friday about this change. He said he thinks limiting the number of friends and family members in the hearing is harmful to the student who was allegedly assaulted.

“It seems like the wrong direction,” Trojan said.

Pamela Thomason, UCLA’s Title IX officer, said the administration limited the number of support persons for logistical reasons. More people in the hearings makes scheduling a time and place for the hearings more difficult, she said.

Geller added that the change was meant to limit the number of people to those vital to the case.

“The extra row of observers didn’t do a lot,” Geller said.

Badalich said that administration should not discount the value of an extra support person for the students involved in the hearing.

“There may not be a visible benefit (of the extra person), but there is an emotional benefit for both the complainant and the accused,” Badalich said. “Having the option is important.”

Thomason said that the Student Code of Conduct is a working document that can change. She added that for now, however, there will not be any chances in the near future.

The revised Student Code of Conduct is available to view on the Dean of Students website.