Reports of sex assaults on MU campus at all-time high

The number of sexual assaults reported on the University of Missouri’s campus is at an all-time high. From August to December of this past year, 144 incidents were reported to the Title IX coordinator.

Of those reports, 135 were potential violations that are currently being investigated.

For the past year, MU has made several changes in how these crimes are reported and investigated.

“We have established a very good reporting process. We have a full time investigator and we are hiring two more right now. So the case load can be maintained so we can do rapid investigations compared to the past,” said Chancellor R. Bowen Loftin.

Loftin said the numbers do not mean sexual assaults are up on campus, but rather students are more educated on where they report those sexual assaults.

On Wednesday, ABC 17 News asked students on campus if they knew what a Title IX coordinator was.

“I get emails about it but I’m not sure exactly what it is.”
“Yes, I believe it’s for like sexual assaults.”
“No”
“Nope”
“Umm no.”

“The title IX coordinator is someone that oversees maybe minorities and women’s rights.”

“They are the people who are required to report about sexual abuse or harassment when it comes to the campus.”

For the past year MU has had an interim coordinator, but starting next month Ellen Eardley will take over.

“Ellen brings a lot of good perspective to this and she has talked to me about how much she wants to focus on education and training and that’s where I think the solution ultimately is,” said Loftin.

All freshman at MU are now being taught about the Title IX coordinator, and that is something Loftin says will continue under Eardley’s leadership.

The interim Title IX coordinator will stay through August to help Eardley.

The department will also be purchasing a case load software system to help the investigators to get each report as quickly as possible.