College is an environment more casual than most, where new freedoms bring new challenges and responsibilities. The casual environment of college puts students in a position to easily fall into uncensored conversations with friends and sometimes with professors.

In some cases though, students and professors can cross the line. The countless unpublished credos on what is, and what is not, acceptable on campus make it more difficult to determine what really is acceptable when a complaint is filed. The idea of being sexually harassed by another student or a professor is a scary thought, but it is a reality some face.

According to a January 2006 survey by the American Association of University Women, 62 percent of college students say they had received a comment or gesture they found inappropriate. Female students were reported as more likely to experience physically aggressive sexual harassment such as grabbing. Most of those students didn’t report the incidents to campus employees or other officials. Sexual harassment on college campuses is an unfortunate circumstances that can affect not only the people involved, but an entire campus.

Right now, Sacramento State Professor and Chair of the Foreign Languages Department Wilfrido Corral is facing charges of sexual harassment from one of his former students.

The Sacramento State Sexual Harassment Policy implies that it takes the issue of sexual harassment seriously, which is why I was infuriated when I found out this is not the first time that Professor Corral has been reported to the university administration for inappropriate behavior (sexual harassment). Sac State’s sexual harassment policy lays out a formal complaint procedure which borders on excessive legal jargon — certainly not light reading.

It is clear that the process does not invite false complaints and makes efforts to investigate this possibility.

Although some of the motivation in creating this policy is to protect the reputation and financial liability of the university, the main motivator in investigating claims of sexual harassment should not be a formal procedure or a lengthy process to discourage complaints, but instead finding truth and passing fair judgment.

It is the responsibility of students and staff to report any and all incidents of sexual harassment and to hold the university accountable to take action. It seems that the university staff has been turning a blind eye in the current case and may be putting students at risk in the meantime.

Despite the seriousness of the situation, the decision regarding accountability and punishment regarding sexual harassment allegations should be left to the investigation of the university and the police and courts if necessary, not to the courts of public opinion.

Allowing the university to take permanent action void of proof puts every student and professor at the mercy of false allegations, which sadly are an occasional reality.

I believe the Sacramento State Sexual Harassment Policy should be modified to put action to the seriousness of the issue. Each claim of sexual harassment should be investigated, and where there are multiple claims which are initially corroborated by both staff and student(s), the professor should be banned from teaching classes and conducting research with students present until a final decision and resolution is reached.

The impact on Sac State’s bottom line of having professors sit idle will, no doubt, speed up the process of investigating claims, keep students free from any possible risk in the meantime and send a message to students and staff that the university does in fact take sexual harassment seriously.

Turning the university into a judge and jury could easily turn the administration into a police state. The expertise of a college staff and administration should be to the education and well being of their students, not passing legal judgment. Leave the judgment to the experts and help protect each of the freedoms that come along with college life.

Rebecca Friedman can be reached at [email protected].