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Dartmouth College on Thursday announced a new Campus Climate and Culture Initiative aimed at curbing sexual harassment and misconduct. The announcement comes weeks after Dartmouth was sued by seven female former students who said the college mishandled their misconduct complaints about three former professors of psychological and brain sciences who resigned or retired last year.
President Philip Hanlon wrote in an all-campus memo that “Powerful accounts of sexual misconduct and the surfacing of painful memories have had a profound effect on us all. While change does not come easily for any institution, and there are no easy solutions, the stories that brave members of our community have shared strengthen our resolve to ensure that our learning environment is safe and inclusive for all of its members.” The initiative, called C3I, is inspired by a recent National Academies report on sexual harassment, Hanlon said. It will consist of climate reviews in all academic departments, mandatory sexual harassment training, professional development and leadership training, and increased campus resources and personnel, among other measures.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs in the pending federal case, who are with the firm Sanford Heisler Sharp, said in a joint statement, “To the extent that Dartmouth now seeks to conform its policies to the requirements of federal law, we certainly support this long overdue step.” Yet Dartmouth “continues in its failure to acknowledge or accept responsibility for the damage its long history of inaction has caused,” they added. “Until Dartmouth commits to making the women whose ‘courage’ Hanlon claims to ‘admire’ full partners in crafting and implementing reforms, each new ‘comprehensive initiative’ will continue to miss the mark.”
