Just one week after President of Fordham University Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J. condemned sexual assault on campus, the University released an anonymous survey to students via email to learn more about the climate of sexual assault on campus. Students received the link at 5 p.m. on Monday, April 6. The survey will be open until May 14.

The University’s working group focused on Title IX issues on campus began working on the survey in the summer of 2014. Title IX is legislation passed in 1972 that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in schools that receive federal funding. The working group includes Dean of Students at Fordham College at Lincoln Center (FCLC), Keith Eldredge, Dean of Students at Fordham College at Rose Hill (FCRH), Chris Rodgers, Director of the Office of Institutional Equity and Compliance Anasastia Coleman J.D., Associate Vice President of Public Safety John Carroll, Deputy Emergency Manager Patricia Upton and Associate Vice President of Student Affairs Michele Burris.

“One of the main goals is to gage how prevalent [campus assault] is here,” Eldredge said. “We only know the incidents that our reported to us.”

“We’ve been talking about the idea for years,” Eldredge said. After the White House released their Not Alone report which suggests Universities begin a climate survey which looked to pass mandatory surveys in 2016, “that was the final impetus to say, ‘Let’s do this now,’” he said.