Recently released results from a 2022 Michigan State University survey found that certain groups on campus experienced more incidents of sexual misconduct than their peers during the 2021-2022 school year.
This is the university’s second "Know More" survey since 2019. It assesses “culture, perceptions and policies related to sexual misconduct” across MSU’s campus.
Associate Professor Carrie Moylan is a member of the Relationship Violence and Sexual Misconduct Expert Advisory work group. She says rates of sexual harassment towards trans and nonbinary individuals as well as people with disabilities and in the LGBTQIA community remain high.
“This is a national trend, something that many other campuses have also found on their campus, but it certainly provides us with information about how we can continue to improve our prevention programming, improve our services and our response,” she said.
According to the report, 72.8% of transgender and, or, nonbinary undergraduates had experienced sexual harassment during the 2021-2022 academic year. That’s compared to 61% for cisgender women and 35.7% for cisgender men. Sexual harassment was the most common form of relationship violence and sexual misconduct [RVSM] for all undergraduate groups.
In addition, 65.1% of transgender and, or, nonbinary graduates and professionals experienced sexual harassment compared to 37.5% for cisgender women and 17.3% for cisgender men.
Transgender and nonbinary undergraduates also consistently experienced higher percentages of RVSM in nearly all categories including intimate partner violence or emotional abuse, stalking and coerced sexual contact during the 2021-2022 academic year.
Cisgender women experienced the highest rates of sexual assault at 11.8%.
The first iteration of the Know More report in 2019did not categorize transgender or nonbinary individuals separately for overall victimization prevalence. Instead, they were categorized according to their self-reported gender.
The 2019 report did find faculty and staff with a disability or who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, asexual, or "described themselves in some other way," had the highest prevalence of work-related sexual harassment.
For students with a disability, or who were gay, lesbian, bisexual, asexual, or "described themselves in some other way," they tended to have the highest likelihood of various forms of victimization.
As an immediate response to 2022's findings, Rebecca Campbell, also a member of the Relationship Violence and Sexual Misconduct Expert Advisory work group, said MSU has boosted the number of counselors and advocates at the Gender and Sexuality Campus Center available for support.
She said the center is already a gathering place for the LGBTQIA community where they can get resources or hang out regularly.
“It provides a variety of comprehensive services to members of that community, so that they can also get help and support for RVSM related issues there,” she said.
Campbell said the workgroup hopes to get more engagement, more data and reactions from the community to adjust their strategic plan to address findings.
MSU spokesman Dan Olsen says the university will be announcing upcoming public listening sessions for the community.
"Certainly we're looking for ways in which we can provide additional resources to these underserved communities but part of that we want to make sure we're listening to those communities to hear what's going to be most helpful for them," Olsen said.
The full report can be found here.
