Indicating that the prevalence of rape and sexual assault at colleges and universities was “deeply troubling,” President Obama recently formed a task force - the White House Task Force on Protecting Students from Sexual Assault - to develop a coordinated federal response to campus rape and sexual assault. The president noted that a number of federal laws aim to make campuses safer, but that institutions’ compliance with the laws was “uneven” and, in some cases, “inadequate.”
The task force’s charge includes providing institutions with evidence-based best practices for sexual assault prevention and response, increasing institutional compliance with existing laws, increasing transparency of the federal government’s enforcement activities, broadening the public’s awareness of individual institutions’ compliance, and facilitating agency coordination.
The president gave the task force until April 22 to submit proposals and recommendations. It must also report annually on efforts to implement the recommendations.
