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Sexual Assault Response, Programs, & Service

Reporting Procedures for Sexual Assault

PSU students have several reporting options available to them:

  • Reporting directly to Portland Police Bureau
  • Reporting to CPSO
  • Reporting anonymously to Women’s Resource Center (WRC) or the Center for Student Health & Counseling (SHAC)
  • Filing a Student Conduct Code Complaint via the Office of the Dean of Student Life
  • Filing a complaint with the Office of Equity and Compliance (for incidents involving PSU Faculty and Staff)

  • PSU Sexual Assault Anonymous Report Form

    • The IPV Advocate is available to help students make informed decisions regarding their reporting options and to offer support/accompaniment through the reporting processes. 

    Primary Reporting Resources on campus

    This office is a resource available to any student or employee who feels they have been impacted by discrimination and harassment.  As an employer and educational institution, PSU has a responsibility to respond to any complaint of discrimination or harassment quickly, fairly, and to correct the situation immediately.  The Office of Equity and Compliance is charged with investigating complaints of discrimination and harassment.  Equity and Compliance work in partnership with the Office of the Dean of Student Life, and the Director of Student Conduct and Community Standards in particular, and CPSO to create a hostile-free and safe campus environment.  These departments work together to ensure complaints are dealt with in a timely manner.  They also strive to adhere consistently to principles of survivor-centeredness and to focus on offender behavior.  Staff members are available to provide consultation and guidance about various options and their potential outcomes.

    Read more about the Prohibited Discrimination and Harassment Policy.

    This position is responsible for coordinating responses to alleged violations of the Student Code of Conduct by an internal university disciplinary process (separate from a civil or criminal hearing). Investigations are conducted into any allegation of sexual misconduct in coordination with Diversity and Inclusion/Equity and Compliance and CPSO.  This group convenes to decide whether to proceed with a conduct hearing based on the determination that a Code violation may have occurred.  During the investigation and/or until resolution of the matter, interim restrictions may be issued as deemed appropriate by the Conduct Officer or designee. These might include restrictions on contact between the complainant and the respondent, exclusion from areas of campus, removal or relocation from residential areas, etc.  Information and guidance through the process are available for both the respondent and reporting student.

    This department provides 24-hour response services for immediate safety concerns including sexual violence.  In 2010 CPSO appointed an officer to serve as WRC Liaison.  This officer completed the forty-hour Basic Advocacy Training provided by the Portland Women’s Crisis Line, ensuring that a female-identified, specially trained officer is available to PSU students.

    Sexual Assault Prevention Programs and Survivor Support Services

    Sexual Violence Prevention Program Team

    The Women’s Resource Center Assistant Coordinator is responsible for planning and implementation of campus-wide prevention efforts.   In 2010 this included:

    • Partnering with University Studies as the community partner to the Sexual Assault Education Theater Capstone Class.  Coordinating logistics and scheduling to ensure that student performances meet campus needs for education.
    • Developing and implementing an IPV Prevention Certification for Resident Life Student Staff.  (Completed by twenty-eight student staff focused on skill building around stopping sexual violence before it occurs).
    • Partnering with campus partners to increase dissemination of training and education regarding sexual violence prevention.  2010 focused on strengthening the relationship with Residence Life, increasing the training from one two-hour training in 2009 to five separate trainings for Resident Life student and professional staff.
    • Chairing the IPVTF, facilitating the group’s efforts to improve the coordinated campus efforts to prevent sexual violence.

    Capstone Instructor:  Sexual Assault Education Theater:  Teaches students in the interactive “Forum Theater/Theater of the Oppressed” model of peer education and bystander intervention.  The class is offered Fall, Winter, and Spring quarters.   The Instructor leads students in education regarding sexual violence on campus, writing and developing scripts, and offering at least three performances per quarter relating to sexual assault prevention education.

    Student Participants:  Sexual Assault Education Theater:  Class is capped at 25 students three times per year.  Students are trained as outlined above and perform interactive plays focusing on practicing strategies for bystander intervention.  These performances are a popular opportunity for students to offer their peers the chance to “rehearse for life” in a low-stakes environment.

    IPV Prevention Certified Resident Assistants:  While all Residence Life student staff are trained on PSU’s policies and resources regarding sexual violence, one-third of student staff are trained and certified in IPV prevention education.  These students host prevention-based programming in campus housing and serve as student leaders in practicing and modeling bystander intervention.

    Support and Advocacy for Survivors/Victims of Sexual Assault

    IPV Advocacy Services at the Women’s Resource Center: The WRC serves students of all genders.  Staff are available to answer questions, work with student survivors, and advocate on behalf of their self-identified needs, decisions, wishes, questions, and concerns.  This includes:

    • "Healthy Relationships" peer support group offered in partnership with the Queer Resource Center.
    • Providing intervention, support, information, and referrals.
    • Serving as a liaison between the student and campus departments such as Residence Life, Campus Public Safety, Student Health and Counseling, Student Legal Services, and the Office of Student Affairs.
    • Serving as a liaison and advocate with University faculty and staff.
    • Assisting in linking the student survivor to off-campus community services when needed.
    • Assisting the student survivor with accessing and understanding University policy, including Student Conduct Code.

    Student Health and Counseling (SHAC):

    • Both medical and counseling staff are available to students who choose to access their free and confidential services.  Counseling staff can be accessed on an emergency/walk-in basis, and urgent medical appointments related to sexual violence are prioritized for a speedy response.
    • Both Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) and Student Health Services house staff who specialize in providing services to students affected by sexual violence.  CAPS staff provides 24-hour services to Residence Life. After-hours services for non-residential students are provided by the Multnomah County Crisis Line.

    Campus Public Safety Office: is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  All officers are available to respond to sexual violence incidents.  CPSO employs an officer who has completed a 40-hour sexual assault training offered by community partner Portland Women’s Crisis Line.  This officer serves as a liaison to the WRC, and is ava

    Office of Residence Life:  can assist with changes in living situations for students living on campus.

    Dean of Student Life:  coordinates student support services, including facilitation of the Student C.A.R.E. Team.

    Student Legal Services:  offers legal assistance to students with the restriction that the dispute is not with another member of the university community.

    Community Resources:

    Portland Women’s Crisis Line (PWCL): Sexual assault advocates are available 24 hours to assist women and men and help them access community resources. This service is available for individuals regardless of whether they choose to take legal action or not. PWCL can also help link women and men in domestic violence situations with the appropriate referrals including emergency shelter and support groups.

    Medical Services for Survivors/Victims of Sexual Assault

    Student Health and Counseling (SHAC):

    • Both medical and counseling staff are available to students who choose to access their free and confidential services.  Counseling staff can be accessed on an emergency/walk-in basis, and urgent medical appointments related to sexual violence are prioritized for a speedy response.
    • Both Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) and Student Health Services house staff who specialize in providing services to students affected by sexual violence.  CAPS staff provides 24-hour services to Residence Life. After-hours services for non-residential students are provided by the Multnomah County Crisis Line.
    • Beginning in Fall of 2011, SHAC will become a SANE forensic evidence collection site.  Two staff nurses have completed SANE certification.  Rapid Sane Investigations, a mobile SANE response team, has been contracted to prove SANE exams to PSU students at times the PSU staff are unavailable.  These exams will be offered during limited business hours. 
    • Advocates from the PSU Women’s Resource Center will respond to students seeking SANE exams at the Student Health and Counseling Center.  Agreements have been implemented to insure that community partners Portland Women’s Crisis Line and the Multnomah County District Attorney Rape Victim Advocates will also respond as needed.
    • Outside of business hours, Oregon Health and Sciences University (OHSU) provides 24-hour emergency services for immediate medical needs and forensic exams for survivors of sexual assault.  Sexual assault exams are offered by a SANE nurse service called Rapid Sane Investigations.  The founder of Rapid Sane Investigations attends the Multnomah County Sexual Assault Response Team (SART), which is also attended by the WRC Assistant Coordinator.