HEDS Sexual Assault Climate Survey 2019

In February 2019, Colgate participated in the Higher Education Data Sharing (HEDS) Consortium’s Sexual Assault Campus Climate Survey.

This page contains descriptive language of sexual assault and other gender-based violence that may be triggering to survivors and others.

In February 2019, Colgate administered the Higher Education Data Sharing (HEDS) Consortium’s Sexual Assault Campus Climate Survey for the second time. We wanted to learn our students’ perceptions of Colgate’s climate for unwanted sexual contact and sexual assault, how Colgate responds to sexual assaults, and whether and how often they have experienced unwanted sexual contact or sexual assault. We are sharing the results in order to engage the campus community in informed discussion about how to address this complex and difficult issue.

This page shares a summary of the survey results. You may review the full data set here. You may also review the results to the 2015 survey administration.

VIEW FULL RESULTS

Survey Information

Timing, Distribution Method, and Scope

Administered electronically to all students February 5, 2019 - February 24, 2019
Responses were anonymous
All demographic information was voluntarily self-reported; therefore, not all counts add up to total who responded.
Women are overrepresented in the sample (82%)
Not a random sample, so it is difficult to generalize to our undergraduate population; the purpose of the survey was rather to inform about respondents’ experiences and perceptions

Response Rate

422 students = 14.4% of Colgate students

Class year breakdown
Senior	23.7% (100 Students)
Junior	17.8% (75 Students)
Sophomore	26.1% (110 Students)
First Year	32.0% (135 Students)
Graduate/Other	0.2% (1 Student)
No response	0.2% (1 Student)

Gender breakdown
Men	Women	Nonbinary	No response
16.6% (70 Students)	82.2% (347 Students)	0.7% (3 Students)	0.5% (2 Students)

Race/ethnicity breakdown
American Indian or Alaska Native	#
Asian	4.3% (18 Students)
Black or African American	1.4% (6 Students)
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander	#
White	78.0% (329 Students)
Hispanic or Latino/a	8.1% (34 Students)
Not a U.S. citizen or permanent resident	3.3% (14 Students)
Two or more races	3.8% (16 Students)
Unknown	#

# Data were redacted to protect the anonymity of the survey completers.

Sexual orientation breakdown
Asexual	1.2% (5 Students)
Bisexual	8.3% (35 Students)
Gay	1.2% (5 Students)
Heterosexual	82.9% (350 Students)
Lesbian	0.7% (3 Students)
Pansexual	1.2% (5 Students)
Queer	1.2% (5 Students)
Questioning	2.6% (11 Students)
Fill in	0.2% (1 Student)
No response	0.5% (2 Students)

Summary of Findings

These findings are a summary of the survey results. The full data set is also available here.

Views on General Climate at Colgate

Students “strongly agree” or “agree” with the following
Statement	Colgate
Faculty, staff, and administrators at Colgate are genuinely concerned about students’ welfare.	83.1% (351 Students)
Students at Colgate are genuinely concerned about the welfare of other students.	68.2% (288 Students)
I feel safe on this campus.	81.7% (345 Students)

Views on Sexual Assault at Colgate

Students “strongly agree” or “agree” that the number of sexual assaults at Colgate is low
Colgate
20.1% (85 Students)

Information and Education

Students received information or education from Colgate on...
Statement	Colgate
What sexual assault is and how to recognize it	96.4% (407 Students)
How to report an incident of sexual assault	88.4% (373 Students)
Procedures for investigating a sexual assault	58.2% (245 Students)
Actions you can take to help prevent sexual assault	97.4% (406 Students)

Such as someone making sexual comments about your body; making unwelcome sexual advances, propositions, or suggestions to you; or telling you sexually offensive jokes or kidding about your sex or gender-specific traits.

Such as someone sending you sexual emails, texts, or pictures; posting sexual comments about you on blogs or social media; showing you sexually offensive pictures or objects; leering at you or making lewd gestures towards you; or touching oneself sexually in front of you.

Such as someone briefly groping you, rubbing sexually against you, pinching you, or engaging in any other brief inappropriate or unwelcome touching of your body.

How often have you experienced the following forms of unwanted sexual contact while you were at Colgate?
Unwanted conduct	Frequency	Colgate
Verbal behaviors	At least once	73.2% (308 Students)
Verbal behaviors	Never	26.8% (113 Students)
Nonverbal behaviors	At least once	37.1% (156 Students)
Nonverbal behaviors	Never	62.9% (265 Students)
Brief physical contact	At least once	69.6% (293 Students)
Brief physical contact	Never	30.4% (128 Students)

Sexual Assault

Have you been sexually assaulted* [at Colgate]?
Response	Colgate
Yes	14.9% (63 Students; 58 Women)
Suspect I was, but not certain	6.6% (28 Students; 24 Women)

*Sexual assault includes touching of a sexual nature, oral sex, vaginal sex, anal sex, anal or vaginal penetration with a body part other than a penis or tongue, or by an object.

The following questions were only answered by 63 respondents that answered “yes” to “Since starting at Colgate, have you been sexually assaulted while you were on campus or while you were off campus during an event or program sponsored by Colgate?”

Acts During Sexual Assault

When you were sexually assaulted, which of the following happened? (Check all that apply)
Sexual act	Colgate
Touching of a sexual nature	87.3% (55 Students)
Oral sex	23.8% (15 Students)
Vaginal sex	42.9% (27 Students)
Anal sex	6.3% (4 Students)
Anal or vaginal penetration by body part other than penis, or tongue, or by an object	4.8% (3 Students)

This incident of sexual assault involved...
	Colgate
[Threat of] physical force, or using coercion/intimidation	28.6% (18 Students)
[Use of] physical force against you	42.9% (27 Students)
Other people drinking alcohol	84.1% (53 Students)
Other people using drugs	17.5% (11 Students)
Your drinking alcohol	74.6% (47 Students)
Your voluntarily taking or using drug	6.3% (4 Students)
Your being given drug without knowledge or consent	1.6% (1 Student)

Timing

When in your academic career did the sexual assault occur?
During new student orientation	1.6% (1 Student)
First year	61.9% (39 Students)
Second year	19.0% (12 Students)
Third year	9.5% (6 Students)
Fourth year	4.8% (3 Students)
Other	1.6% (1 Student)
No response	1.6% (1 Student)

Location

Location of sexual assault
Residential building	70.1% (89 Assaults)
Nonresidential building	7.1% (9 Assaults)
Off-campus (but not at another college or university)	12.6% (16 Assaults)
Off-campus at another college or university (not study abroad)	3.9% (5 Assaults)
Study abroad, study away, or other off-campus study program	6.3% (8 Assaults)

Relationship to Assailant

Relationship to people who sexually assaulted you (check all that apply)
Stranger	20.6% (13 Students)
Non-romantic friend	34.9% (22 Students)
Casual date or hookup	41.3% (26 Students)
Current romantic partner	4.8% (3 Students)
Ex-romantic partner	3.2% (2 Students)
Other	4.8% (3 Students)

Full Results

This page shares a summary of the survey results. The full set of survey results is also available on the Office of Institutional Analysis page.

VIEW FULL RESULTS

Response

These findings are serious and troubling. They are not just numbers, but the voices of our students. We are actively working to educate students and prevent sexual assault in our community. But while Colgate has supported a number of programs to confront these problems, there is still much more to be done.

Full results are also available here.
Online sexual violence prevention training is mandatory for new students, all student leaders, and student-athletes
Led successful effort to establish Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner (SANE) coverage for Hamilton