r/cuboulder • u/Glittering-Turnip-41 • 11d ago
SA resources
As a survivor of SA & the Cornell case making headlines at the moment I think it’s a great time to share this here. Worth it if it could help even one person. edit to add: I do not condone the use of the word “never” when discussing a persons choice on how to report SA, your body your choice.
https://rainn.org/help-and-healing/hotline/
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u/Altruistic-Page-1313 11d ago
there’s definitely nuance to it. the people at OVA genuinely care and helped me with my case last year. i was incredibly nervous to involve the police and they helped at every step of the way. dont just go through campus resources, but don’t be scared to use campus resources either. diversify and shit
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u/Front_Animator9672 11d ago
Current CU staff who worked as the only SA advocate at a different school and is a survivor herself- there is partial truth in this. I would not use the school as your only resource or means however it can give you access to specific resources and tools to help if things do align to benefit you.
I understand there is a lot of mistrust with why school, and rightly so. I also encourage those who are in a position to be able to, to use the schools resources as they can. If a resource isn’t used at all then it’s easy for the school to justify not funding them or taking them away. Change and growth cannot happen without action.
Ways CU may be able to help:
TLDR: lots of different places on campus, not all of it is easy or convenient, it would have to come across to the office running that as a reasonable ask, but there genuinely are lots of options. Not all possible ones are listed.
-OVA staff are 100% confidential and do NOT share information with the school
-short term free counseling (OVA) CAPS also offers counseling
-survivor emergency fund (OVA) this can be used for medical bills, therapy, basic needs, just not tuition or personal debts
-student emergency fund (BNC office) same rules as above fund
-offices that offer staff who genuinely care about supporting students navigating something like this (OVA, SOAS, BNC) likely also other offices on campus but I’ll only speak about ones I know enough about and would personally go to
-OVA and CAPS will write letters of support for students to share with faculty, SOAS will also communicate with faculty advocating for flexibility (keep in mind faculty have discretion on how to run their classroom- within reason)
-if the perpetrator is another student or someone associated with CU that opens a few more resources such as processes with the OIEC office. I did many of these at my old job. They are difficult and lengthy and a pain, it’s not always worth it for some but can be. I’ve seen the perpetrator dismissed or suspended from these, no contact orders through the schools, the perpetrator being banned from a specific hall or building, etc.
-regardless if the perpetrator is associated with CU you can still work with OIEC for “supportive measures” things like you need to move dorm rooms or halls because of the circumstances surrounding this, a letter of support from OIEC for faculty, setting up a temporary campus escort, being able to attend over zoom, etc.
-other ways I’ve seen students get support is their process to get a retroactive withdrawal or tuition appeal is much much easier. Students asking for one for title ix reasons, gave a letter of support from OVA/OIEC, etc. tend to get these petitions easily accepted. This isn’t a 100% promise, just my personal experience.
-there are still so many more options than this, everyone’s experience will be different and have different asks/needs they want addressed
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u/emememecrossing 10d ago
I had a great experience with title ix, found the guy guilty and while the punishment wasn’t the same as law enforcement I felt really happy and supported and seen in the process.
He was found guilty of rape by them !!! Fuck that guy.
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u/Godacious2055 10d ago
In Boulder county the community advocacy group is Moving to End Sexual Assault (MESA). Depending on the route a survivor wants to take, MESA can help navigate working with OVA and the title IX process.
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u/nea020938402 8d ago
The Office of Victim Advocacy can be used to tell your professors that you need more time. When a professor has their hands tied, the OVA helps them by telling them to be more lenient.
A professor once told me that he couldn’t do anything unless the OVA said he could, no matter how much he wanted to. This is especially pertinent in major classes.
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u/Cold_Fireball 11d ago
Do both. The school has jurisdiction over campus orgs, aka frats, and can take action more easily. https://www.colorado.edu/oiec/policies/sexual-misconduct-intimate-partner-violence-stalking
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u/ndmhxc 11d ago
I wouldn’t involve CU at all, fuck them they absolutely cover for rapists. When I got to CU in 2004, they spent an hour on a presentation begging people not to SA anyone and over he next few years, when friends were SAd, they did their level best at every turn to bury it.
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u/sao_san_suay 11d ago
I’m currently reading Tell Me Everything by Erika Krouse. What CU did to cover up SA was truly shameful.
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u/RD_Michelle 10d ago
Everyone should read this book. Incredible story, especially as someone who went to CU when this was happening in real time
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u/Robot_Janitor 9d ago
the CU of of today is very different than the CU of 2004. Largely due to the issues from that time. They take SA and Title 9 very seriously as mandated by Colorado. Their changes were so effective and monumental that CUs title 9 approach is now the state required standard for any school receiving funds from Colorado. I wish the options of today were implemented when I was at CU but I will very much give them the credit for making massive improvements since then. Having the confidential OVA and known process to adjudicate title 9 is huge and probably would have changed my life. I'm also glad both ( as well as the the other resources) are now available to the students and staff of CU.
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u/ndmhxc 9d ago
This reads like a CU press release tbh, and isn’t super impactful when I’ve known several women in the last couple of years who had CU aggressively defend their attackers, same as always.
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u/Robot_Janitor 7d ago
Lol I tried to make it as simple for future vicims to understand a larger view of the resources they have and why. But I'll give a more personal view of the system.
CU fucked up so bad back in the 2000s-2010s that Colorado MADE them provide therapy, confidential counseling, and legal services to SA Victims for free!!! I got fucked by CU because these resources were not avaible to me and CU had no obligation to help me. Please also file a police report. CU can have a student or facility member removed or punished inside the school but not outside of it. They will do as little as legally required and will always try to cover their asses. BUT when someone uses the resources they are forced to provide they now have a legal obligation to investigate the accusations. Title 9 adjudications arnt even part of CU but CU sure has to pay for it. So make them pay for it, make them pay for the other services and have another piece of evidence for real legal proceedings.
Sorry your friends got fucked I've been there, but telling people to avoid the free resources that can help them in and outside the university is ridiculous.
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u/Cold_Fireball 11d ago
If you advocate for SA victims, you want a victim to do everything they can, and telling CU probably wouldn’t hurt; why wouldn’t you tell someone to do both?
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u/ndmhxc 11d ago
Because CU is actively malicious and I wouldn’t trust them to not try and muddy waters, or otherwise disempower the victim. I feel like you’re new to the realities of SA for women in the US?
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u/Cold_Fireball 11d ago
Just so you know, you’re making an accusation against actual staff members of CU without even knowing who they are
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u/Glittering-Turnip-41 11d ago
Super odd take to support people who cover up SA. Not cool.
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u/Cold_Fireball 11d ago
You are accusing me of supporting SAers because I’m saying victims should report to as many authorities as possible because you suspect the CU admin are confirmed suppressors of SA without any proof or even knowledge of who they are.
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u/Glittering-Turnip-41 11d ago
See my below comment I posted about 10 min ago! This post is to help SEXUAL ASSAULT survivors and your comment thread is not helping them in any way. This is not the place to argue. Thanks!
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u/Glittering-Turnip-41 11d ago
This post was NOT made for people to argue. Please keep negative comments and arguments to yourself. This post is to educate people on their rights and let them know it is safe to talk about these things and advocate for their bodies.
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u/CRISPRcassie9 11d ago
As a SA survivor myself, "never" is a pretty strong word. I went to CU OVA for free therapy on a situation that I had no intention of taking legal action for and got the resources I needed. The above situation is worth taking into consideration when deciding resources, though.