This past Thursday, the University of North Carolina Wilmington Police were notified of a sexual assault on campus.  

Due to the on-going investigation, little details have been released from the UNCW Police Department to protect the privacy of the students involved.  However, the Police Department released a brief statement concerning the assault that mentioned the victim knew the suspect previous to the assault.  The Campus Police as well as the University Relations Specialists did say they would provide the general public with more information concerning the assault once the investigation was closed and completed.

According to an investigation by Joseph Shapiro on “National Public Radio”, reported sexual assaults on college campuses have increased 49 percent between 2008 and 2012.  While the rise in sexual assaults is devastating, Shapiro mentions more students are willing to come forward and report this underreported crime”.  

Universities like the UNCW offer services to victims of sexual assault and to the entire student body in regard to prevention, protection, and care.  Dr. Rebecca Caldwell, Director of Substance Abuse and Violence Prevention and UNCW’s CARE Office, says that UNCW and the CARE Office work to educate students and faculty alike in order to make the UNCW community  aware of the help that can be received for victims as well as how to protect oneself from potential perpetrators.  

The CARE Office has created a campaign called the ‘Red Zone’ that emphasizes the potential dangers that the first 6 weeks of being on-campus can bring to new students. This safety education program emphasizes awareness, communication, action and intuition.   

Dr. Caldwell says that they teach new students bystander intervention trainingwhich helps,“…everyone to understand that ‘I’m somebody who can recognize the signs that someone isn’t okay, or isn’t doing something that’s okay, and I can do something,” Caldwell said.   

As with the current case at hand, many sexual assaults are between people who know each other or at least are acquaintances.  

“While admist the general public and around the world 75 to 80 percent of people that are sexually assaulted know the person, it is found in studies that on college campuses “it’s more like 90 percent,” says Dr.Caldwell.

Dr. Caldwell elaborates the vitality of this knowledge by recognizing that “…a lot of us have been raised to think about a rapist as a stranger…but we often don’t think about the fact that this person I invited over to study could hurt me…so when that person crosses a boundary or starts to hurt you, it’s like a delayed reaction because you think this can’t be happening”.  The more aware students are, the more careful and prepared they can be.

However, while prevention and intervention are necessary, the action lies in the hands of the perpetrator.  As Dr. Caldwell points out, the assaulter makes an active choice to hurt another person; the perpetrator is the only person responsible for the sexual violence.

Despite the recent assault, various students reported that they still feel safe on campus and secure in UNCW’s Campus Police.  

For those interested in learning more about UNCW’s CARE (Center for Assault Response and Education), they can visit the website at www.uncw.edu/care.  

In case of an emergency or to contact Campus Police:

– Call 911

– Non-emergency calls can be placed to (910) 962-2222

– Call 962-TIPS, email www.uncw.edu/police, or text TIP708 to CRIMES (274637) to share anonymous information.