Sexual Assault in Athens, Ohio

According to the National Survey of Sexual Violence on College Campuses one in fifteen male college students reported that they committed a rape or attempted to commit a rape in the preceding year. This is an alarming statistic that we need to be aware of as college students. Our inboxes see crime alerts from Ohio University Police department (OUPD) about attempted rapes and sexual assaults on campus.

But what about off-campus?

There are instances that affect students that live off of OU's campus but are still considered a part of Athens. A recent Ohio University Post article brought to light that in the last seventeen months the Athens Police Department received reports of 68 sexually related crimes, and at least fifty-one of those crimes were in areas densely populated with students. Of all of these occurrences OUPD only sent out a measly eight crime alerts. The article Sexual Assaults Going Unnoticed quoted, "Because OU's campus and the city of Athens are considered two completely separate jurisdictions, the Ohio University Police Department is not required to issue crime alerts when a sexual assault occurs off campus" (Grady,1).

We believe that OUPD should begin to issue crime alerts for off campus sexually related crimes. It is their duty to alert students of dangerous events on campus so that we take into account our own safety. General awareness of what is occurring on campus is one of the best ways to counter these instances and potentially save a lot of emotional and physical pain.

When you think of the greater Athens County the close-knit, rural, Appalachian, residents are the people who first come to mind. Despite that very distinct feeling, Athens county is largely populated by the students who live off campus as well. By not providing information about the potentially hazardous situations happening in the areas of our peers, you are not only creating a false sense of security for the on campus students (who aren't too far away) but for the students who live in the houses in the community of Athens.

By Jarrod Dowalter, Adrienne Green, and Maggie Valerio




Grady, Kaitlynn. "Sexual assaults going unnoticed". The Post. May 9 2012. Page 1. Print

"Rape Awareness: Understanding the reality of sexual violence". helpingandhealing.org .Butler County Rape Crisis Program., n.d. Web. 9 May 2012.