State report reveals hundreds of sexual misconduct complaints made at New York universities

A new state report has revealed troubling numbers when it comes to sexual misconduct complaints for a number of New York universities.

According to reporting by Title IX offices in the state, 100 sexual misconduct complaints were reported by students at NYU from January of this year through May.

Both current students and former students were surprised by the number of cases reported.

“It surprises me and it’s alarming. I really hope it’s not true. Living alone it’s not nice to hear that stuff,” NYU graduate student Tazeen Siwani shared.

While NYU was second in the state for sexual misconduct reports, Cornell University was #1 on the list with 199 sexual misconduct complaints for the same time frame.

“I think [the high reported incident count is] a good thing,” said Cornell Title IX director Chantelle Cleary. “Every single report is an opportunity to provide the person who had the experience with information that can help them.”

“My hope is that the reports continue to increase,” Cleary said. “If it’s happening, then I want to know about it, because I want to be able to provide students with support.”

New York Universities obligated to report sexual misconduct

Columbia University had 42 complaints issued by students. As for other universities and colleges in other states, 1,762 complaints were made at 233 schools statewide during the January through May 2018 timeframe.

The new reporting comes after the implementation of the ‘Enough is Enough’ law that was signed into legislation in 2015.

The law requires all universities and colleges within New York to follow a set of procedures and guidelines when it comes to any reports of domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking and sexual assault.

The ‘Enough is Enough’ law was put in place ensure the safety of all students attending colleges and universities in the state.